Class 1A football in the state of Alabama may not get the respect it deserves. Meek High School sophomore quarterback Evan McCay is out to change that perception.
“You have to get after it…you can’t just sit back and play. It’s smashmouth football,” Evan says.
This weekend, Evan and the Tigers (8-3) will travel to face undefeated Wadley (9-0) in the second round of the AHSAA State Football Championships. It will be a tough test, but second-year head football coach Daniel Evans believes in his team, as well as his quarterback.
“Evan is a talented young man. He works hard on and off the field. It is not just about doing well; Evan wants to do things exactly the way it’s supposed to be done. I think that says a lot about who he is as a person,” Evans said.
In addition to playing football, Evan also plays point guard in basketball for head coach Bryan Woods and centerfield in baseball for head coach Chris Lane. He says his favorite thing about being an athlete at Meek is the “high expectations and (being) held to a high standard.”
The son of Andy and Kristen McCay, Evan says his favorite subject is math and he carries a 3.8 GPA in the classroom.
Evan hopes to one day play at the next level and wants to pursue a career where he can work closely with athletes.
“I want to play college football, if God’s willing, and I definitely want to go to a university and get a degree in something I am interested in,” he says.
Other school activities Evan is involved in include DECA, National Honor Society, HOSA, and Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). In his spare time, he loves to hunt and plays piano, and says his favorite weekend activity is “hanging out with friends and watching sports.”
Evan has an anticipated graduation date of May 2027, but for now, his focus will be on the task at hand: finding a way to beat the Wadley Bulldogs this Friday in another version of smashmouth football. TG
Photos by Al Blanton
