WEEKS IN, WEEKS OUT: Bulldogs loss is Brevard College's gain

At an early age he knew he wanted to play quarterback.

And this past football season, Cole Weeks, under center, led the Freeport Bulldogs to an 11-2 finish including a District and Regional championship in Class 1A.

“He’s by far the most complete quarterback we’ve had at Freeport,” said Head Coach Jim Anderson. “He can run the ball, he can throw the ball and he makes good decisions.”

Weeks’ latest decisions was to sign with Brevard College, a NCAA Division II school located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, to play football next year.

Last year the Brevard Tornados finished 7-4 in the South Atlantic Conference.

“We’re so proud of him,” Anderson said. “I know he’s going to be successful and certainly going to be missed.

“We really can’t fill his shoes,” Anderson said. “We’ll just have someone to step in and follow up.”

Weeks, who has been the starting quarterback at Freeport since his sophomore year, is the all time leading passer in yardage with 3,127 yards and second in touchdowns with 31 to his credit. Josh McKay is the all-time touchdown passing quarterback at Freeport with 35 in the years 2001-2003.

But throwing the ball is something the 6-foot, 175-pound senior has always loved.

“Since I was in sixth grade, I’ve always liked throwing the ball,” Weeks said.

As a matter of fact, as a youngster, he asked the Coach Jeff Wood, who was coaching the youth city league at the time, if he had an opening for a quarterback.

Coach Wood did, and Weeks got his first chance at quarterback.

He later played middle school football for Coach Gene Martin and then hit the varsity field under Coach Anderson.

“There was no doubt that was what I wanted to play,” Weeks said. “I feel like I’m more in control” at quarterback. “And I wanted to be in a leadership role.”

This past season, Weeks led the Bulldogs to an 11-2 record and the school’s first-ever Regional championship.

But it wasn’t all on his shoulders.

“Our running game this year … we had such a good one, that I didn’t have the pressure on me to throw all the time,” he said.

On week three of the season, the Bulldogs defeated the Jay Royals, a first for Weeks in his time as a Bulldog.

“After that game I wore the same underwear every game,” he said, noting they were his lucky charm.

However, looking back, Weeks said he didn’t wear them the night they played Trinity Christian of Jacksonville in the State semifinals and lost.

“I blame it on the underwear,” he jokingly said.

Although Weeks loves the gridiron, he’s spent time on the baseball diamond as well as the basketball court for Freeport.

He played varsity baseball all four years, in various positions from pitcher to catcher, and from third base to shortstop. Weeks also played basketball as a sophomore and junior.

“Ever since I was a little kid I loved baseball,” Weeks said. “But once I got into high school and played under those Friday night lights and got pumped — football jumped over baseball — especially after what we experienced this year. There is nothing like it.”

At Brevard College, Weeks, the son of Donna and Charlie Simmons of Freeport and Chris Weeks of DeFuniak Springs, hopes to major in Exercise Science.

“I think that will give me a good opportunity to coach at the college or professional level,” he said.