At the very beginning of the football season a few select players are chosen to be team captains.

  Seniors players are most commonly chosen for these roles but one student proves that this is not always the case.

  Avantae Burt is a junior on the football team. Unlike past years, only three team captains are seniors while Burt is not. Throughout this season he has been a great asset to the team and is highly praised by coaches and his fellow teammates.

  The 2022-23 football season has been off to a rocky start so far, but Burt proves that the team has what it takes to do even better than past years.

  Burt is known for being a great leader to his teammates and an effective listener. 

  “Avantae is a very hardworking, caring young man,” the schools athletic director and head football coach Scott Garcia said.

  Outside of school he puts in about 2-3 extra hours, depending on the day of practice to further his skills and stamina.

  “He is successful in the classroom as well as the football field,” Garcia said.

  Burt has been playing for almost his entire life (around age two or three) and gives credit to his parents for seeing something different in him early on in his life. 

   “I just love football and my parents must’ve seen that early,” Burt said.

  This year he was chosen as a team captain being the only junior. He was voted unanimously by his teammates.

  “He was selected because he is respected by his teammates due to hard work and dedication to the program,” Garcia said.

   It can be just as important to have a good relationship with teammates as it is having the dedication and time to play football. Getting along with his peers on the team is one of Burt’s greatest strengths.

  “He keeps a good relationship with everyone whether it be backfield players or the linemen,” teammate Ashton Rulewicz said.

  It is no surprise that football can be a very demanding and mentally challenging sport that can affect any player’s game. Conflict can arise fast and it’s the coaches and team captains job is to resolve the issues quickly.

  “My goal personally is I want to help build my team to come together as a whole and as a captain,” Burt said.

  After many games and putting their all into it, an unpredictable loss can be hard especially after the many hours of practice, working out and getting into shape. Some people take it harder than others and it can affect the way they feel about their performance and themselves in general.

  “I try to pick people up when their head is down from the play before,” Burt said.