Shhhhhhh: Hicks remains Armwood's best kept secret
The defensive guard doesn't get the attention of teammate Jariette Buie, but his numbers prove maybe he should.
By SCOTT PURKS
Published December 9, 2003
EFFNER - Armwood defensive guard Fred Hicks is a big old dude at 275 pounds, but at 5 feet 11 he isn't as tall as a lot of college recruiters would like.
Armwood football coach Sean Callahan says it's a "bunch of baloney."
"The recruiters who have gotten to know Fred Hicks say his character gives him two more inches," Callahan said. "I happen to think he's 7 feet tall.
"He's our (defensive) leader. Our anchor. And he's been that way for years. He has been a team captain since he was a sophomore. And how many times have you ever heard of that? A sophomore being a team captain? I've certainly never had one (in more than 20 years of coaching)."
No big deal to Hicks. He says he's only there to get a job done, and if that means his example makes him a leader, so be it.
"I guess it comes from the way my dad raised me," Hicks said. "He told me to work hard and do the right thing. Have respect and earn respect.
"I don't think about it. It's just the way I am."
On the field, off the field, wherever.
This season he has 94 tackles with 26 solos, ranking him first among Hawk defensive lineman. He also has seven sacks.
And yet he still hasn't drawn near the attention that Hawk defensive end Jariette Buie has.
Buie's college shopping list includes Miami, Florida State and you name it. Hicks's list is pretty good - South Florida, Louisville and East Carolina - but not nearly as long.
"You see Buie's physique (tightly wound 6-3, 235 pounds) and see the way he runs and hits, and it's hard not to be impressed," Callahan said. "But Hicks has a lot to offer as well.
"Fred Hicks is the first to arrive at practice, the last to leave. He's a good student (3.0 GPA) and he's even smarter on the field."
Here's a little something more recruiters could think about: Hicks has 39 more tackles than Buie.
Granted, Buie often gets double teamed, but Hawk linebacker James Jolly said Hicks deserves his due just the same.
"I don't know why (Hicks) gets overlooked," said Jolly, third on the team in tackles with 133. "But we sure know what's up. We know how good (Hicks) is.
"I tell you this much, we like to see it when Buie gets double teamed because it frees up other people like Hicks."
When thinking about it, Hicks, unlike Buie, is the more typical Armwood defensive player: under the radar, yet often devastating.
Together they have allowed 162 yards and 10 points a game, intercepted 24 passes, given up an average of 1.91 yards per rush, and, of course, been a big reason the Hawks are 14-0 and playing for the Class 4A state title Thursday night against Lake Gibson.
And right in the middle of it, as he has been for three years, is Fred Hicks, a player Callahan said is one of his favorites of all time.
"If I were starting a football team Fred Hicks would be one of the first guys I'd want on it," Callahan said. "He makes everyone around him better, and he always gets better. One day he's going to be on the cover of some college's media guide.
"Then he's going to be on some corporation's board of directors. He's going to make it big some day. I know it.
