Hammer Time at Cedar Creek
Photo courtesy of Cedar Creek School Cedar Creek football has installed “The Hammer,” as a weekly award given to players such as Gray Worthey (5) and Lawson Lillo (1), who define traits of the Cougars’ style of play.
It was the first thing William Parkerson said the Cedar Creek football program would be built on.
Not even three months on the job, the first-year head coach of the Cougars laid out his vision to players – asking them to buy in to a simple, yet often overlooked philosophy.
Play fast. Play physical. Play aggressive.
For a team with fewer than 30 players on the roster, Parkerson knew it was going to be hard to overwhelm opponents with rotations of skill and fresh bodies. If the Cougars wanted to be successful, following the philosophy was their best bet.
But with any new head coach comes a need to motivate, inspire, and reward a young team’s want-to week after week.
And what better way to reward blue-collar traits than a blue-collar worker’s tool of choice: the sledgehammer.
The Hammer Award, a special honor created by Parkerson and his staff, is given weekly to a player who plays with the traits the Cougars believe give them a competitive edge, including fast, physical, and aggressive.
“Just a guy who plays with the traits that we think contribute to winning football; just being physical, tough, playing with extreme effort,” Parkerson said of who gets the award. “ We want to be a blue-collar, tough football team. So, the sledgehammer, there’s nothing more blue collar and tough than that.”
Early in the week, after the previous game, Parkerson will meet with his staff and run through potential recipients based on their performance and effort.
By Friday morning, the winner is revealed and will carry the hammer as the team runs out on the field. In week one, Lawson Lillo won the award after 26 tackles and two catches for 31 yards against Glenbrook. In week two, Gray Worthey received the recognition after rushing for 45 yards and a touchdown on offense to go with 12 tackles on offense against Vidalia.
And in week three, it was left tackle/defensive lineman Bryce Martin. Lillo, a senior, embraced the idea of the hammer from the moment he heard it and sees it as a good way to test the Cougars’ tenacity.
“I thought it was a cool idea,” Lillo said. “I think Cedar Creek highlights grit, intensity with the new award, think it’s an aspect of our team that we need to reinstall is to be fast and physical and play every single snap as hard as we can because we’re not a big team, we’re not the fastest, but when we play relentless and ‘earn the hammer’ as we say, we can win games.”
Worthey, a fellow senior, enjoys the hammer award as well.
“I think the hammer represents a player who left everything out on the field and tried their hardest to get the team the win,” Worthey said. “I have definitely bought into his motto. I enjoy it because if everyone plays that way you will have a good football team. I feel like I’ve played football my whole life behind that motto. Any team who plays with those three things is bound to be a great team and will see positive results.”
Parkerson said the award is not something he or his team thinks about once the game gets underway but instead acts as the top measuring stick for who laid it all on the line for Creek, win or lose.
“It’s something to fight for and they look forward to carrying that on the field Friday,” Parkerson said.
