PREP PREGAME: Gordon's basketball success should help MA on the gridiron
Braden Gordon fends off a tackle of Chase Lashley in last year’s meeting between MA and Trinity. (File Photo)
By TIM GAYLE
He’s one of the state’s top recruits as a junior and can play virtually any position on the football field.
The biggest challenge facing Montgomery Academy coach Ethan McBride this season is figuring out a way to utilize the talents of Braden Gordon.
“He’s a national recruit, which we’ve never had at Montgomery Academy,” McBride noted. “I think we are really lucky. The way I think about him is the way Debo Samuel used to be with the 49ers. What position does he play? He plays receiver, he carries the football, they line him up in a Wildcat thing.
“If we do our job right, Braden’s snap count should be similar. Hey, he’s split out wide; hey, he’s in the slot; hey, he’s at running back; hey, he’s at tight end. That’s what we should be doing as coaches, trying to put ourselves in the best position to have success and moving him around obviously helps with that.”
Defensively, it’s more of the same. The 6-foot-3, 208-pound junior burst on the scene last year as a dominating edge rusher. McBride may tweak Gordon’s duties this fall in an effort to enhance Montgomery Academy’s defense but he doesn’t want to take away from what Gordon does best.
“If you watched him last year, he was on the edge, he played some linebacker, we played him in the ‘flex’ thing we do,” McBride said. “We want to get him to the ball and on offense, if you’re trying to run the football, you’re typically trying to make sure he’s not where you’re at. When it is an obvious pass down, find ways to get him one-on-ones because he’s an elite pass rusher. He’s got to be one of the best in 3A, if not the state, in his pass rush moves.”
It certainly seems that way, at least if you’re checking out the recruiting web sites. Gordon is being recruited by seven Southeastern Conference schools, including Alabama and Auburn, along with Notre Dame, USC, Michigan and Ohio State.
What makes his story more remarkable is he sat out his freshman year to comply with Alabama High School Athletic Association transfer rules. He had attended Floyd Middle Magnet School and then decided to enroll at Montgomery Academy. Because Floyd is Brewbaker Tech’s feeder school, Gordon had to sit out his freshman year despite the fact that Brew Tech doesn’t have a football program.
He captured everyone’s attention on the football field last year by leading his team in tackles for loss (14) and sacks (11) and finishing third in tackles (50), then showcased his athletic talents by leading the Eagles to their first-ever basketball state championship. Gordon, who scored 44 points in a December game against 6A Pike Road, averaged 22 points and seven rebounds in his final four games in the regionals and the state tournament.
He believes that state championship team will help the football team this fall.
“Even though it wasn’t football, it helps just winning,” he said. “You want winners and some of the guys on the team, you just want that winning mindset, that you know what it takes to win.”
Gordon said he feels more comfortable in his second season with the Eagles.
“I would definitely say it is (more comfortable), mostly because I’m more confident and I have a little more faith in myself that I can do what I need to do to help the team,” he said. “And just reps. The more reps you get, the more comfortable you’re going to feel. I weigh more, I’m a little faster, a little stronger. With everything coming together, it feels good.”
Offensively, replacing receiver DJ Vinson will be difficult, but Gordon believes the offense could be even better in 2025.
“We have multiple receivers that will be ready to do what they have to do,” Gordon said. “I don’t think I’ll have the numbers that DJ had, but I think as a team we’re going to be better. The ball will be spread around more. And our other receiver, Jarrett (Friendly), will have a big year. He’ll get the ball a lot and I’m cool with that. As long as we win, I don’t care who gets the ball.”
That’s because defense is his first love.
“Because I get to hit people,” he said. “It is fun because I get to do multiple things but I get to do multiple things on both sides of the ball.”
His role on defense could change a little, but don’t expect him to move off the line in obvious passing situations.
“I’ll be playing a little more off the ball and covering, but I’ll still be down on the line,” Gordon said. “I’ll be helping the linebackers. It helps having Knox (Wingate) to help me learn.”
Wingate, the team’s leading tackler who makes the calls to align the defense, quickly returns the compliment.
“Having him makes everyone else’s job easier, especially in the secondary,” Wingate said. “Quarterbacks aren’t going to have a lot of time with this guy coming after them. That’s just how it is. And in run defense, if they try to run at him, he’s probably going to be there and if they run away from him, we’ve got a lot of guys on the back side. It’s nice having him there. It makes the rest of us look a lot better.”
Montgomery Academy opens the season on Friday at Tallassee’s J.E. “Hot” O’Brien Stadium. The battle between the 3A Eagles and the 4A Tigers should be one of the most exciting openers in the state, a game Gordon hopes will propel his team to a better season than last year’s 10-2 finish.
“The expectation is I want to win a state championship,” he said. “But we’ve got to work. We’re not going to win it in a day. We’ve got to build to that. Every day, keep building and building. There’s no guarantees, but if we keep doing what we’ve got to do, we’ve got a better chance of getting to that point.”
Meanwhile, he’ll have to face increased scrutiny from coaches and media over recruiting.
“For me, it hasn’t gotten to be a headache or a hassle because I’m not in the home run stage of it yet,” Gordon said. “In a year or so, I’ll be there. It hasn’t gotten too stressful for me. If it is a problem, it’s a good problem to have. There’s a lot of worse problems to have out there.”