WHITEHOUSE, Ohio — Mason Alberts is no stranger to big moments on the football field.
Last year, as a wide receiver, he helped the Anthony Wayne Generals to one of their best years in school history.
He started this year as a receiver as well, but in week one, starting quarterback Garret Pike went down with an injury and Alberts led the team to a come from behind victory at Findlay.
In week two, Alberts made his first career start at quarterback and got some advice from former Generals quarterback Max Denman, that helped to calm the nerves.
"Definitely was nervous," said Alberts. "Obviously going in to play quarterback, leading your offense, it's definitely nerve racking. I saw Denman before the game and I asked him 'is it normal to be this nervous before a game?' He told me yes and gave me a hug. That kind of calmed me down just learning from someone else who had already been in this position."
In his first game, Alberts looked like a seasoned veteran. He accounted for six total touchdowns. He threw for one. He ran for four more. He also returned a kickoff 97 yards for a score. If there were any doubts about Anthony Wayne for this year, he quickly answered most of those questions.
"Just rolling with the game," said Alberts. "Things opened up and I saw Bobby on a lot of the throws that I had. Overall, our team had a great game."
"The nice thing about Mason is he's able to learn, he's able to listen, he's able to take things one week at a time," said Anthony Wayne Head Coach Andy Brungard. "The biggest thing this week is not to get ahead of ourselves. We had one big week. It doesn't mean this Friday is going to be great. It means we have to continue to work on things and get better as we go."
Last week, the Generals defeated St. John's. This week, they get another TRAC foe in 2-0 St. Francis. Anthony Wayne has won 19 straight weeks, and a big reason why is their ability to adapt to the talent they have and put players in the best possible situations to help the team.
And on top of all that, they're never satisfied.
"Mason had a great game, but there's a lot of things we have to get better at as we watch film," said Brungard. "The best part about having Mason is the people that we have around him. We have a Tight End that's committed to BG. We have (2) offensive lineman that are already planning to play at the next level. We have a wide receiver like Bobby Miller and Kyle Ray and Ben Wyrick. When you add the different pieces to that puzzle, it definitely makes it a dynamic offense."
And right now, Mason Alberts is the guy directing the traffic and elevating this team from the quarterback position. Mason Alberts is our athlete of the week.