MOCKSVILLE— Davie County’s two linebackers Patrick Lowery and Neil Rice combined
for 28 tackles in the War Eagles’ 34-6 win over Salisbury last week.That’s not a scary stat for anyone who
has seen Davie play. Lowery, a 6-2, 195-pounder, and Rice, a 5-10, 225-pounder, are always
combing the field, looking for opposing ballcarriers.
What is scary is that they’re
only sophomores.
“We thought we’d be
adequate there,” linebacker coach Mike Herndon said of the position. “Heck, now
it’s one of our strong suits. In two years, nobody is going to want to play us.”
How can Lowery and Rice be so
effective while being so young? Simple, really. It’s in the genes.
If the name “Rice”
sounds familiar, it should Neil is the second of the Rices to make a name for himself,
following in the footsteps of J.J., now a freshman at Davidson College.
If the name “Lowery”
sounds familiar, it should. Patrick is the son of Davie athletic director Buddy Lowery,
who started on defense at East Carolina from 1972-74.
Both were born with football in
their blood. And obviously, plenty of talent.
“I saw J.J. play so I saw the
instincts,” said Davie head coach Doug Illing. “Neil has some of the same.
“Grinning, he added, “I
haven’t seen Buddy play but I’m sure that would be a scary sight
too.’’
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Herndon says the first thing he
told Lowery and Rice was that they had to be blood brothers.
“We try to teach them that
they’re buddies,” Herndon said. “And they’re good friends. When I look
for one, the other is going to be there. They’re very tight.”
They weren’t together last
season. Rice was a starter on the varsity as a freshman while Lowery was a defensive
tackle on JV.
While Rice was expected to excel,
Lowery has been a big surprise — to the opponents.
“We saw last year as a
defensive lineman that Patrick was very aggressive — probably too aggressive,”
said Illing. “But he’s an exceptional linebacker.”
Herndon agreed, “At first, we
didn’t think he had enough lead in his pencil to play linebacker but now,
there’s no doubt about it. He’s not scared of anything.”
That’s what three inches and
20 additional pounds can do.
Lowery, who has followed his dad
around the Davie campus since he was old enough to walk, can thank his dad for a lot of
the success. His father also coaches him in wrestling.
“I talk to him a lot,”
Patrick said. “I’ve seen some of the things he’s done and I know he was
pretty good. But he doesn’t put any pressure on me.”
“I leave the coaching to the
coaches,” said Buddy. “Ijust reinforce good habits.
Not only does Lowery have those
East Spencer genes in him (his father was a star at North Rowan), Herndon says wrestling
under Dad only helps.
“Wrestlers and football
players go hand in hand,” he said. “They’re tough individuals. And you can
see that in Patrick.
Herndon thinks last week’s
game was Lowery’s best yet. He was in on 17 tackles.
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While Lowery runs down opponents,
Rice is the burly linebacker who takes the blocking fullback head-on. The fullback’s
head is the one who’s usually mired in the mud when the play is over.
It is the hitting that motivates
Rice and it has since he watched his older brother.
“I used to watch J.J. play
and all I could think of was getting to play with him,” he said.
That dream happened last year when
he was a defensive end. He was moved to linebacker when J.J. was injured. Now, he is one
of the mainstays on a team that has relied mainly on defense in a 5-0 season going into
tonight’s battle with 5-0 North Davidson.
“I love to hit,” said
Rice, who had 11 tackles against Salisbury. “That’s all I want to do. Sometimes,
I overrun a play because I try to hit so hard.”
People can remember the day that
South Davie Middle school coach Barry Whitlock raved about a new seventh grader named J.J.
Rice. Then, he raved about brother Neil. Now, he is gushing over yet another Rice —
seventh-grade phenom D.J.
The first two Rice brothers were
1,000-yard rushers at South Davie but went to star on the other side of the line. Look for
D.J. to follow that pattern
“I’ll take defense over
offense anyday,” Neil said, adding, “D.J. can be good if he works at it.”
And let’s not forget that
there is still another Lowery on the way. Fourth-grader Eric is currently looking pretty
good in little league football.The older Lowery thinks Eric can be a good one too —
if he has Patrick’s work habits.
There’s no “if”
about it. As Neil Rice and Patrick Lowery are proving right now, they’ve got the
genes.
And unfortunately, Davie’s
opponents know what that means. |
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