By Ken Hansard

            Jacob Grant wears a lot of hats for the Baxter Springs’ football team, and he wears them quite well.  Grant, a senior for the Lions, plays wide receiver on offense and is a free safety on the defensive side of the ball.  In between his iron man duties, he is also the Lions’ kicker.  Grant doesn’t just play those positions – he plays them well enough that he was awarded Honorable Mention All-State at wide receiver and was additionally named First-Team All-State as a kicker. 

The Lions are coming off of a 4-5 season last year, and even though they will depend on a lot of young players stepping into key roles, Grant feels confident that they are ready to do so successfully, “We have a lot of young kids that have to step up and fill spots on the team, but they are some tough kids, and so far they have filled those spots pretty well and hopefully the transition will go smoothly.”

While part of the seamlessness of the transition must be accredited to young kids who are coachable, the other side of the coin is that execution doesn’t happen by accident, and much of what Grant’s younger teammates have done to this point can be attributed to coaching and to senior leadership. When asked about his role with the Lions, Grant commented, “I see myself as a leader and a playmaker. I have a big responsibility to lead this team, and I plan to do so in every way possible. One thing we worked on a lot in the off-season was accountability. We stressed staying focused and working on being accountable each and every day to make sure we are prepared.”

In the end, Jacob’s goals are pretty simple, “I’m looking forward to playing my senior season with all of my friends and ready to make a big run to finish out the year, but first, We’re all just ready to play our rivals – Riverton – in our first game.”

Jacob also plays basketball for Baxter Springs. In the classroom, he carries a stellar 4.0 GPA into his senior year.

Jacob’s plans for after high school are still undecided, but he does know that he wants to continue his education collegiately.