On Air with 912 Sports

By Kevin Price

Photo by Michael Brinson

Big Man On Campus 

Brunswick High’s Kanaya Charlton described

himself as a “normal-sized baby.”

 You might find that hard to believe since the

senior standout offensive lineman for the Pirates now stands 6-foot-5 and tips the scales at something like 335 pounds, give or take. Charlton, the featured MVP for this issue of 912 Sports magazine, is one of Southeast Georgia’s premier high school football players and a Florida

State commit in its 2022 recruiting class.

He says he weighed 7 pounds and 8 ounces at birth and measured 19 inches from head to toe.

He ended up being bigger than most kids his age, though, growing up, which isn’t surprising considering his mom and dad are both tall people themselves. Charlton’s dad is 6-foot-7 and his mom is 5-11. He said he had a great grandfather who was 7-foot-1.

Charlton hit a growth spurt in middle school, when he climbed to 5-11 and reached 220 pounds. Three years later, he enrolled at Brunswick High, measuring 6-2 and weighing 310. Charlton has been steadily growing ever since. He’s three inches taller now, also some 25 pounds heavier, and a whole lot stronger as well. But, that’s not all.

Charlton’s a much better football player, and he’s way more outgoing. Both are positives for this 16- year-old kid who won’t turn 17 until October.

There was a time when he stayed inside as much as he could because he was shy and kept to himself. And even when he started playing football, he really didn’t like it all that much. “He’s a presence physically and the way he’s matured,” said BHS head coach Sean Pender. “His presence is more than just his size. He’s really matured as a young man. He’s a captain for our team and one of our vocal leaders.”

Charlton was actually born and raised in Miami, Fla. He moved to Brunswick with his family when he was in sixth grade and attended middle school at Jane Macon. That’s where he first played football. He wasn’t able to play while growing up in South Florida because he was always over the

weight limit for his age group in the recreation leagues, he says.

He wasn’t a big fan of the game at first. “It was a lot of running. I wasn’t used to it,” Charlton said.

His mom insisted that he stay with it, though.

Charlton would be given the nickname “Blind Side” by his middle-school team, a moniker which still follows him today with the Pirates.

Of course, his nickname stems from the movie with that same name which is based on a true story about Michael Orr who went on to become a first-round draft choice in the NFL back in 2009.

Charlton eventually took more of a liking to

football, too. “About eighth-grade, just playing the game and playing more, it started to grow on me,” Charlton explains.

He had a burning desire to improve his skills as a result. Because he had such a big upper body, Charlton didn’t have the arm strength to complete a push-up as a ninth-grader, said his offensive line coach Garrett Grady.

Now, Charlton can bench press some 365 pounds. “He’s dedicated himself in the weight room. He

doesn’t miss in there,” Grady points out.

Grady also challenges him on the practice field. “We know how good he is and push him to the level he’s capable of. That’s our job,” the coach said. “We stay on him like everyone, even though he’s a big-time recruit.”

Oftentimes, Charlton has to be revved up to play at a peak level. That has nothing to do with getting all parts of his big frame working in unison. It has more to do with his easy-going demeanor. Usually, it’s Grady who gets the big guy’s motor running hot.

“Sometimes, he’s too nice,” Pender said. “Some days, he’s fired up and beats everyone’s tail.

Keeping him at that level on a consistent basis is the challenge. Grady is usually the one who has to get him angry, get him mad.”

The college coaches figure they can do that also, if need be. They were always enamored with his size and potential when they were coming to campus to recruit former offensive lineman Warren

McClendon, now starting at Georgia, and Caleb Cook, currently in his first year at Georgia Southern.

Charlton, a three-star recruit, had 22 offers

including those from Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma. He eventually committed to Florida State following his

official visit with the Seminoles on June 25. That didn’t come as a surprise.

“It just felt like home,” he said about choosing Florida State. “I connected with the coaches and feel like I can help the program.”

Going into fall camp, FSU had the nation’s     7-th-ranked recruiting class for 2022, according to 247 Sports. The class includes 18 commitments with five being offensive lineman who are all ranked

inside the top 500 nationally. In their five previous signing classes combined, the Seminoles only signed four offensive lineman ranked in the Top 500.

The Pirates use Charlton at left tackle out of

necessity. He likely will play guard in college.

“He’s working to be a complete lineman,” Pender said. “He down blocks extremely well and zone blocks as good as anyone. His passing blocking has improved a whole bunch. He’s very strong and pretty fast for his size.” He’s also smart. Charlton has always taken pride in doing well in school. His grandmother and mother

were both teachers and preached the importance of taking education seriously to him at a young age.

“They taught little kids. I used to go to school with them,” Charlton said.

He currently owns a 3.9 grade-point average and is taking Advanced Placement Micro-Economics this semester. He will complete all his requirements for graduation this fall and plans to early enroll at FSU in January so that he can take part in spring practice with the Seminoles early next year.

But right now, he is still towering over most

everyone else as he walks the hallways at BHS. Those seeing him for the first time stare in amazement as he passes by. Charlton can

sometimes hear them whisper something about him to a friend nearby, too.

He would really rather it not be that way. “I just try to life my life like a normal human being,” he says. But, even Charlton admits his senior year has turned out differently than what he would have imagined when he left Florida for South Georgia.

“I’m amazed. I never thought I’d make it this far with football,” he said. “Wow! It’s always crazy to think about.”

 By Kevin Price 

Photography by Charles Smith 

The Real Deal

John Ford’s first impression of Tucker Wilson was a favorable one. And, the new Effingham head coach didn’t get a false read, either, when he first laid eyes on his

soon-to-be senior linebacker.

He saw the real deal.

 “When I walked in here in January, I saw a real strong kid working his tail off at the other end of the weight room. He was quietly going about his business, working hard, just doing all the right things” Ford said.

 “When you kind of get to know him, you realize how polite he is, how respectful he is and just what a great young man he is.”

Wilson certainly personifies what it means to be a student-athlete. He plays two sports at Effingham - football and baseball - and he is good at both.

He was one of the leading tacklers last season for the Rebels as a starting linebacker and figures to be a standout for the team’s defense again this fall. Wilson is also an outfielder for the Effingham baseball team.

Wilson is a star student, too. He carries a 4.0

grade-point average while taking college prep classes. He has also taken several Advanced Placement courses to earn college credit including one in government, one in English composition and one involving English literature. In the current semester, he is enrolled in accelerated pre-Calculus, Economics, Forensics, AP English and weight training, of course.

Wilson comes from an athletic family. He has an older brother who currently plays baseball at Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon and also an older sister who also attends Brewton-Parker

and plays on the softball team. He also has a

younger sister who is now a freshman at

Effingham and plans to play golf for the Lady

Rebels this spring.

Wilson said he enjoys playing baseball, but he is more passionate about football.

“I like football more,” he says honestly. “It’s just more exciting. I like the physicality of it. I like hitting people.”

Wilson played football previously for the

Effingham County Jaguars, a travel organization with several teams for different age-groups. He also played at Effingham Middle before going to

high school and playing for the Rebels.

He has started on Effingham’s varsity defense since his sophomore year and will start at middle linebacker once again this season under the new coaching regime.

Wilson said the offseason with Coach Ford in

charge was fun and the Effingham players were looking forward to playing games when the season began back in late August.

“He’s brought a lot of energy and excitement to the program,” Wilson noted. “I’m excited about the football season.”

Ford knew when he accepted the Effingham job back in the winter he wasn’t about to immediately make the Rebels a powerhouse like Roswell or Buford, schools where he previously coached.

He would like to have winning seasons consistently in Springfield, and Ford knows that would be easier to do if he had a bunch of Wilson-type players in his locker room.

“He just does everything right. He’s everything this game should be about. He’s made of the right stuff,” Ford said. “He’s just a kid with the utmost character. I guess the only thing negative about

him is I only get to coach him for one year.”

The Rebels went 3-7 last season, 2-8 in 2019 and 7-5 in 2018, their last winning season when Wilson was a freshman in the program.

Wilson, who is 5-foot-11 and 215 pounds, would like to help get the team back on the winning track in his final season, but he also has extra personal incentive to play well. He wants to play college football and having a strong senior season will

help his chances to land a scholarship.

“I love to play football. I’m ready anytime,” he

said. “I’d love to play in college.”

Ford has already seen enough from Wilson on the field to think he will get that chance.

“He’s done a good job with everything we’ve

asked him to do,” Ford said. “We’re trying to put all the kids in position to succeed, and he’s one of them for sure.

“He’s not quite as tall as some of the schools

would like, but I think he’s gonna have a chance somewhere. He’s just too good a kid. Somebody’s gonna want a kid like that in their program.”

Ford noted that Wilson attended recent camps at Mercer University and LaGrange College and played well while there.

Wherever he goes to school beyond Effingham, Wilson said he may purse a degree in civil engineering.

“I like building things and designing things,” he said. “I took a engineering class in middle school and we did some of that, and that kind of sparked my interest in it.”