Anthony Sharp wasn’t convinced.
After all, Bryer Bolton scored a touchdown so he had to be OK.
Right?
When Victory Christian football coach Chris Hamm left the sideline to check on his junior quarterback, Sharp did what any good backup would do.
“I went down to check on Bryer and Ronnie McDaniel, the guy who helps me with offense, said the whole time I was down there checking on him Anthony kept saying, ‘He’s going to be all right, He’s going to be all right,’ so he was definitely nervous,” Hamm said. “But it wasn’t evident in his play. He stepped in did a good job that night.”
Sharp left the sideline and took over for Bolton, who suffered a broke arm, and directed Victory Christian to a victory against Heritage Christian.
But that was only the start.
Sharp showed Friday he has settled in quite nicely as the Eagles’ new starting quarterback. The freshman right-hander threw for a career-high three touchdowns and ran for a career-high three more to lead Victory Christian to a 58-14 victory against North River Christian.
For his accomplishments, Sharp is The Dispatch’s Prep Player of the Week.
All told, Sharp was 3 of 6 for 87 yards with one interception. He also led the Eagles with 114 rushing yards.
Sharp, who transitioned from wide receiver to quarterback, has had nearly three full games to adjust to being the team leader, but he said the initial whirlwind surrounding Bolton’s injury left him little time to fret about his teammate and how he was going to do thrust into the starting lineup.
“He has been our leader, so it was kind of hard to grasp (that he was out),” Sharp said. “After I knew he was going to be out, I couldn’t have time to just sit there. I knew someone had to step up and take his place.”
Sharp took snaps at quarterback in two-a-days so the Eagles would be prepared in case of an injury. He also played quarterback on the junior high team last season, so he didn’t have to learn a new position, which has helped make the switch go a little faster.
“He is a good athlete,” Hamm said. “He is smart and has football knowledge, too. He commands the huddle well and gets the play called. I have been very proud of the way he has performed.”
Hamm said the performance was Sharp’s best against that caliber of competition. He said Sharp did a good job of taking what the defense gave him and picking his spots to run the ball. He said Sharp gives the offense a different dimension aside from the option plays and designed runs that were suited for Bolton.
Sharp hasn’t allowed his emotions or his youth to affect his performance or the play of his teammates. He said he has stressed to the rest of the team that everyone needs to step up and “some people have to mature faster than other” — including him.
“I think I can do better and have room for improvement,” Sharp said. “Coach told me I have been more of a roll-out passer, so I think I can try to stay in the pocket more and make better decisions throwing the ball.”
Sharp said Friday’s effort was one of the best of his career, regardless of the number of touchdowns he scored. He said he listened to Hamm and didn’t try to force anything throwing the ball.
With a victory at 7:30 p.m. Friday against Christian Football Association rival Tuscaloosa Christian on Homecoming, Victory Christian will secure the No. 2 seed in the playoffs and earn the chance to play at home in the first round of the playoffs. That might be a lot to put on a freshman quarterback in only his third start, but Sharp has shown he is up to the challenge and will be ready.
“I think if our players can execute and do what we know what we can do we will be fine,” Sharp said. “When you get thrown in there like that you don’t really have much time to think. You just have to try to execute and know you’re holding the weight of your team on your back and you have to pull through for them.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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