McEachern junior on why she likes playing receiver, ‘where all the hype is at’
Ava Couzens, a junior at McEachern High School, is hoping to lead her team to its second consecutive state championship. McEachern will take on Pope High School in the GHSA Division 5 championship game on Dec. 17.
Along with playing wide receiver, quarterback and safety for her flag football team, Couzens also plays basketball at McEachern.
Here’s a short Q&A with Couzens discussing that balance and what she enjoys about flag football.
Q: You’ve played many positions on this team. You play receiver, quarterback and safety. What position do you like to play the most?
“I’m not going to lie, I’ve always wanted to be a receiver. I always end up not being strictly a receiver. I’m always kind of a running back, but I like being a safety. You have to use your mind a lot. People think it’s so easy to just sit back there, but you have to see it all. You have to override it all, and I like that.”
Follow-up: What makes you want to play receiver more?
“I feel like it’s where all the hype is at. You get the ball, you get to catch it. But I’m liking where I’m at right now. Kind of like a running back and a double quarterback, too.”
Q: You’re also on the basketball team. So, between the two sports, which one do you enjoy doing the most and why?
“I’ve played basketball my whole life, so that’s what I strive the most to do and be the best at. I feel like, since flag is still developing, nobody really knows what to expect. You know what the peak you can reach is for basketball. You know who’s the best. So, I think basketball because it is challenging to me. I will say that flag and basketball give me different things to do, so it’s hard to really say. One is more challenging, and another one allows me to go crazier and have a little more fun.”
Q: Flag season is coming to an end, and basketball season is right around the corner. I’m interested in how the balance has been between going to games for flag while also practicing for basketball season. What does that look like for you right now?
“It took the school a long time to actually allow us to do that, practice and play at the same time. So, we have a schedule where on these days I’ll go to basketball for an hour, and then I’ll go to flag an hour after that. You would think that it is really draining, but it’s really not. It is well-balanced. They give us time to get our bodies well-rested.”
Q: How are you able to handle the pressure when your team needs you the most in big moments during the game?
“I actually do struggle with that sometimes. I used to be really mentally hard on myself, even when I’m doing well. Thinking that I always have to do better. But I’m realizing if I do that now, it’s kind of unacceptable. I can’t do that anymore. I’m an upperclassmen. People are looking to me. I just try to remember, you’re going to have bad moments. It’s just what’s going to happen. So you just have to override that. And if you do, you know that everybody else will hop along on that, and that it will all be OK.”
Ady Wahl is a student in the Carmical Sports Media Institute at the University of Georgia.
