COLUMBIA, S.C. — It's not often you come across students like senior Chase Brown, but when you, do you never take it for granted.
“I’m just honored. It feels good to be awarded these things, but I try to stay humble and just keep on working, just keep on doing my best and be me, that’s what I say,” Brown said.
Many who know Brown would agree his hard work ethic and love for academics is just one of the characteristics that make him special and adds to the person that he is on and off the football field at Blythewood High School.
After moving to South Carolina from Alabama before starting his sophomore year at Blythewood, Brown quickly found a home playing as a running back for the school's football team.
“Out motto is like all in, locked in, so we’re taught to stay together," Brown said. "We're brothers at this school and on the team, and we enjoy our time together and work as hard as we can to have a good season."
Brown's strength and endurance on the field are rivaled only by his academic achievements, with his classes including high-level courses like AP calculus, economics and more, all while obtaining a 4.95 GPA.
But that’s not all.
“He is a finalist for the Richland County Player of the Year, and there is multi criteria and one of those criteria is really the academic piece," Coach James Martin said.
As head football coach, Martin says Brown's talent goes far beyond his jersey, as he witnessed him overcome injuries and challenges, one thing he admires most about him.
“Getting injured last year, I wanted to be with the team, so I worked hard to make it back, and I worked hard in the off season, like worked out, made sure to habilitate my ankle," Brown said as he recalled his recent injury.
"Then I came back and had a good first game," Brown said. "Then I got hurt again, so it's been tough, but I've been trying to work through it.”
Through it all, Brown never stopped being loyal to his team.
“He just running the football and lands on a helmet, and we realize he’s got an indention in his hand and wants to still play but we can’t put him out there," Martin said. "We find out the hand's broken and so he’s overcome that, but it hasn’t stopped. He still comes to every practice and just being a leader."
After graduation next year, Brown plans to apply to local colleges and study to become a doctor.