WELLINGTON, Fla. — It looked like No. 73's chances might be a dream deferred. But here she is.
No, that's not a typo. Here she is.
Azaria Williams is a defensive linewoman for the Wellington Community High School Wolverines.
"I don't know why," Williams said. "I just had, like, the drive to just want to play."
Often, female football players are the team's placekicker.
But Williams is different. She likes tackling folks.
When she tried out for the team her junior year – eventually playing and starting on the junior varsity team – she had never played before.
"At first, I was a bit iffy," Williams admitted. "But then I would, like, go home, I would practice, I would look at videos on my position and then, eventually, I started to get better and better."
Head coach Ross Pryor promoted her to varsity this season.
"I think that she played almost every game this year," he said.
Pryor said he doesn't cut her any slack because she's a girl.
"There's a lot of times that we're running sprints and she'll be lacking, and I get on her just as much as anybody else," he said.
Williams said her new role on the varsity has taken a toll on her, but quitting isn't in her vocabulary.
"I think I'm working hard to, you know, get more play on the field," she said.