Belmont Hill Senior, Ricky Copeland, first began his love for football at five years old when he watched the Jets play the Bengals. Captivated by the orange uniforms (his favorite color), Ricky started playing flag football shortly after. Ricky began playing tackle football for his Pop Warner league in fourth grade and, the following year, won with an undefeated record. Now, as Ricky gets ready for this season, the wide receiver/corner back is “looking forward to having a real impact on the team on the field.”
Over the summer, Ricky committed to play college football at Carleton College in Minnesota, a huge step in his football career. Reminiscing about past football memories, Ricky recalled the St. John’s Prep game, the first of his Belmont Hill career. This game was especially important for Ricky because it was his first time playing for a school team. In Pennsylvania, the football team was for seventh- and eighth-graders only, and when he was finally in seventh grade, COVID disrupted everything. As it was the first game of the season, the whole team was fired up. Wearing 84, Ricky stepped out on the field in a Belmont Hill Jersey for the first time. With seconds left before halftime and on the goal line, Ricky was given his shot. “Coach Doar literally just called the play, throw it up to Ricky.”
With a pass from Luke Clifford ’27, Ricky completed the first touchdown of his Belmont Hill career. Ricky’s first year on varsity was his sophomore season, where he was mostly on the scout team and “went with the flow.” The following summer, he began training more for his upcoming Junior season, taking his role on the team more seriously, but he used the wrong methods and lost much of his progress within the first few weeks of school.
Following his Junior year, Ricky attended numerous camps and other competitive environments, which eventually helped him gain confidence. After meeting a trainer at a WPI camp, he worked with him every Saturday during the winter and eventually started working with his son, who was a wide receiver coach. This summer, Ricky turned his full attention to preparing for his senior year, saying it was marked by working out and football. Rather than just trying to bulk up, Ricky worked more intensively and intentionally, focusing on blocking, long snapping, and his football IQ. As one of the only seniors who’s been on the team for the past three years, Ricky says he feels “like it’s important that I help the other seniors keep everything under control, make sure the intensity’s there, but also bring a little laughter at certain moments.”
Throughout his years waiting for his chance, Ricky said that one thing remained constant: his faith. After suffering an ankle injury in 2022, where he tore a ligament, Ricky began to build his relationship with Christ. Ricky describes it as not a religion: “I think of it as a relationship, you know, as a follower of Christ.” His relationship with Jesus has influenced all aspects of his life, especially his pre-game warm-up, where, after eating team breakfast, he returns to the locker room, listens to his gospel playlist, says a couple of prayers, and reads affirmations in his Bible. When asked why religion was so important to him, Ricky said, “Without that foundation, when you slip or when you fall, you have nothing to go back to… You know that even if you do stumble, you can get back up.” Ricky doesn’t have to wait for his opportunity anymore, as a starting long snapper and wide receiver, Ricky can finally show off all his hard work. The Panel wishes Ricky the best of luck in his last season at Belmont Hill!
