Ian Alexander makes the performance leap into varsity

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IAN ALEXANDER (11), Granger football’s starting tight end, is more than just a student athlete. He has hobbies such as playing video games and hanging out with friends. “I often play video games, help out around the house and do chores, and hang out with my friends,” Alexander said.

There’s a variety of  reasons why people join a sport- whether it’s trying to stay active, following a family tradition, trying something new, or just liking the sport itself. For Alexander, it all started back when he was a little kid watching a football game on television.

“Back when I was little I would watch football, I would like how they would hit each other, and I thought it would be a fun thing to do, and I was excited when I got my chance to play varsity,” Alexander said.

Though he is a starter on the football team, football was not the first sport he played. “The first sport I ever played was soccer, and I really didn’t like it,”Alexander said. In order to achieve something, a person has to set goals and know how to manage them. Alexander sets his goals with football and life.  

“I think back over the mistakes I made, and I try to acknowledge them in a different way, so I could overcome them and make me a better skillful person,” Alexander said.

We all have an achievement we are trying to get to, whether it’s buying a dream car, buying a dream house, or making enough money to where your parents do not have to work another day in their lives. Ian has his eye set on a particular goal. “My ultimate achievement would be to go to college and start a family,” Alexander said.

Many people have a saying or motto that they live by to get themselves to their goal and through the day. I asked Alexander to tell which motto he lived by. “I live by the motto of, it ain’t about how hard you get hit, it’s about how hard you can hit,” he said.

Sports can have great impacts on people’s life, and football certainly had a great impact on Alexander. “It made me who I am today, I was a little rebel back in the 9th grade thinking I was cool until I joined football and met Coach Morgan and changed my mindset,” Alexander said.

Linebacker Kyle Beckwith (12) and fullback Brian Romo (11) both had strong first impressions on Alexander’s personality. “He a good guy, a good person to be around with, he’s a funny guy,” Beckwith said. “He is a hard worker, he hustles everywhere he goes,” Romo said.

“He brings a lot of passion and energy to the team, he has came a long way, and now he is a starter for varsity,” Beckwith said. “He is a smart player, coachable, you can tell him to do something and he’ll do it,” Romo said. “His attitude on the field is aggressive, of the field he is happy and joyful to be around, he is a person that you can look up to,” Beckwith said.  

Many student athletes have difficulties, but having mental toughness helps them get through it and strive for excellence.