Solomon Willis '23 Recruiting Profile

Hello, my name is Solomon Donnell Willis, and I am the son of Lynn and David Willis. My parents have always instilled in me to work hard for what I get and to bring joy and encouragement to everyone in my life. Losing two of my grandfathers at an early age helped me realize how important family is and that time is precious, so it is best to use it to gain knowledge and help people. I started playing football early in Pop Warner at the age of 6 and fell in love with the sport. Through my playing multiple positions that others didn’t want to play, i.e., Center, Defensive Tackle, and Defensive End, which allowed me to grow in the game and be more versatile with my playing abilities.

Through playing not just football but golf and basketball I have developed the ability to adapt to my surroundings through applying what I learned and excelling to higher levels of not just in sports but in academics and life. I have learned that working hard and making the smart choices outweighs the consequences of poor decisions and unkind actions. I have learned that life can be filled with disappointments, heartbreaks and low points; however, life also has joy and happiness which is the course I have chosen. Even when things go wrong, I choose to have joy and encourage others like my teammates and family. 

As I journey through high school, I have set goals of gaining and maintaining a 3.8 GPA or higher, being a leader on and off the field and setting the example for underclassmen to follow. I want to know that I made a difference at Augusta Prep and that others can use my example to follow. I will and am currently displaying kindness, joy, and encouragement to my teachers and classmates. I am also preparing myself for the next levels of academics and athletics at the next level through ensuring that I not just absorb the knowledge and skill sets in class, but ensure I retain and fully understand it as well as push myself physically and mentally in the athletic arenas. In doing so have learned to balance student life and athletics as I prepare myself to become a doctor and a surgeon. I feel this is the best fit for me due too, I want to help people with their injuries and hopefully bring happiness to their life by fixing or repairing whatever is troubling them.  

When I was younger, I was always bigger, stronger, and faster than most of my opponents in any sport, so I never really had any trouble doing well but towards middle school I started noticing that the other players were catching up and passing me in size. This showed me to gain an advantage getting in the weight room and consistently working on my speed, strength and conditioning was critical to myself and my team. I have a goal every day I wake up and that is to bring joy and better someone’s day. I do not care to always be in the spotlight or look for praise in others because I want to see everyone succeed, not just myself. I feel I am gaining more confidence in myself to become a leader on and off the field and will continue to help others.