Southmoore quarterback Cruz Campbell knew he could compete at the varsity level last year when, as only a freshman, he came in late against Mustang and threw a 40-yard touchdown.

“It’s very valuable to me because last year I had to prove myself, because I was behind a senior,” Campbell said, “to whenever I got the starting job closer to the end of the year I knew I had to go prove to myself that I’m supposed to be playing at this level.”

His touchdown against Mustang “set the tone” for the remainder of the year. He went on to throw 2,403 yards, completing 59% of his passes for 29 TDs – and only four interceptions. “Along with my consistency in practices,” Campbell said, “showed my teammates and the upperclassmen that I could compete alongside them and they respected me more as a player.” Campbell has been working hard to follow up on his debut season with a successful sophomore campaign.

“During the off-season, I have been working hard to improve my overall game. Daily weight room sessions to gain strength and size along with weekly throwing sessions to perfect my techniques and speed and agility training through Edge Sports Fitness will all translate onto the field this year,” Campbell said. He credits his experience with his freshman team during the early season last year. The squad went 9-0.

“I’m confident that same mentality will translate over this season, because a lot of the freshmen teammates also had an opportunity to play on varsity giving them high level experience,” Campbell said.

“Our upperclassmen welcome anyone with a winning attitude who has proven that they can push themselves and that’s why the group this year is special.”