This is the third installment of the News Courier series featuring Limestone County’s top leaders on the gridiron. Players were chosen by their coaches for their leadership both on and off the field and in the classroom.

ARDMORE—Clay Wales isn’t a big rah-rah type guy.

When the bullets start flying and the going gets tough, don’t expect the Ardmore quarterback to sweat it any. He’s going to be steady no matter what.

Wales spent half of the season last year playing quarterback for the Tigers and feels more confident in what he can do this season now that he has a bit of experience under his belt. And because of that, Head Coach Tracy Malone feels like the team will follow him.

“The guys believe in him.” Malone said. “He’s a leader in the school. He’s a real good student, plays three sports, he’s in every club and organization there is and he’s well thought of in the community. So, I think he’s definitely got the respect of the team and of the coaches, and I don’t think you could ask for anything else.”

Because of the leadership he shows at Ardmore High School, Wales has been selected to the News Courier’s list of Limestone Leaders.

“Clay is very steady,” Malone said. “He’s a pitcher, so with baseball its ‘if I make a bad pitch, I get another one,’ and in football its ‘hey, we just had a bad play. Let’s go, we got another down.’ That’s the thing I think he brings more than anything, is just that steady presence.”

Wales had ulnar nerve repositioning surgery on his elbow back in February, but because of the strenuous rehab he went through, he’s not worried about re-injuring it. If anything, he said he feels like it’s stronger.

“I feel like its back to strength,” Wales said. “I had a lot of pain and soreness getting to that point, but it hasn’t really bothered me any. It feels a lot stronger now, and I feel like I’ve got a lot more velocity on the ball than I did before.”

One thing’s for sure, Wales doesn’t want to go through another 1-9 season like they did last year. And in order to make sure that doesn’t happen again, he and his teammates have been spending a lot more time in the weight room.

“We feel a lot more confident this year,” Wales said. “When we first started in the spring, everybody was eager to get back. We don’t want last year to happen again. We’ve really been anticipating this season more. Things just seem to be going a lot smoother.”

No matter what happens, Wales is ready to get his senior year started.

“I’ve been looking forward to it for a long time,” Wales said.