OPINION

Ledbetter handles things on, off field

What a long, strange trip the year 2020 has been, but there is still plenty to be thankful for, especially if you are Arkansas baseball signee and Bryant quarterback Austin Ledbetter.

Ledbetter (6-2, 201) has helped put his 11-0 Bryant football team in position to win a third straight Class 7A state title and will take a 28-game winning streak into Friday night's seminal round game with Conway.

That's nice and all, but it will not head up his lists of things he'll thankful of when he, his teammates and their parents meet for a Thanksgiving day morning breakfast on Thursday.

Instead topping his list will be that his 44-year-old dad Clay, who suffered thorough heart issues, is still around to see him play and the love, care and support his family.

"My dad had open heart surgery a couple of months ago," Ledbetter said. "It was tough and he had some struggles. He couldn't get out of bed some times. I am doing virtual (school) now so I was home all day taking care of him. Me and my mom, we took off a lot. I just had to keep my head for sports. I had to lead my team and then take care of my dad when I came home.

"You can say that is a big responsibility for a 17- or 18-year old, but I just had to grab the bull by the horns. Things like that pop up in life and you just have to deal with it.

"It was tough for awhile for me and my mom, but we overcame it and he is doing really good. He is back at his job full time and I am really proud of how far he has come with his heart issues."

There was a signature inspiring moment for the Ledbetters during this latest unbeaten season.

A couple weeks after his surgery, Clay showed up at halftime of the Trinity Christian game. Bryant would rally to win 44-41 and Ledbetter out-dueled Shakur Sanders, the son of former Dallas Cowboys and Atlanta Falcons star Deion Sanders, who was on hand as an assistant coach.

"It was such a wonderful feeling," said Austin Ledbetter. "It is hard to put into words."

Ledbetter, who committed to Arkansas' baseball program in the ninth grade, signed with the Razorbacks on Nov. 11 with family members and friends on hand.

"It was a special day," Ledbetter said. "It has been a long time coming after I committed. I had been looking forward to that day. Now that I can say I am going to be a Hog is just so special."

Ledbetter has thrown for 5,622 yards and 72 touchdowns in his high school career while completing 61.2 percent (323-of-524) of his passes.

He became the starter in 2018 after backing up senior Ron Hefley as a sophomore.

He threw for 3,126 yards and 40 touchdowns as a junior in 12 games and has totaled 2,380 yards and 32 touchdowns this season.

"It's been a real tough year, real different," Ledbetter said. "You never knew when you were going to have your players, who and when they would be quarantined. We have had a lot of ups and downs, losing players and things like that.

"Overall, our team has done a really good job staying away from people, social distancing and just doing the right thing. I feel really confident going into this thing. We've had this whole week off (from school) so I don't think we will have the threat of anybody needing to be quarantined."

The meal is going to be special per Ledbetter, who is still considering playing football at Arkansas.

"Just to get everybody together is going to be great," Ledbetter said. "The whole year of 2020 has just been so negative. So we are just going to try and make it as positive as we can. There's just been a lot going on and so it is just going to be great to enjoy the time we can together."

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