Editor's Note: The Rogerville Review Football Preview will publish in the Midweek edition on Wednesday, Aug. 21.
ROGERSVILLE — Unlike a lot of his teammates, Mason Emery wasn’t born into Big Red Nation. But he’s certainly found a home there.
The senior linebacker came to Cherokee his sophomore year from the Sacramento area of California.
“When I moved here, when anyone moves anywhere, you don’t know anybody. You don’t have any friends. The moment I came down here, when (Coach Josh) Hensley had me come down, it was like I had friends immediately. I already felt a part of it,” Emery said.
That togetherness — the family-like atmosphere — was unlike anything Emery had experienced at his larger California high school.
“The school I come from was massive… When you’re on the football team there, it feels like half the coaches barely even know you. But here, everyone knows everyone. We’re all working to one goal,” Emery said. “There, you’ve got your freshmen team and JV team. We didn’t even practice together. I didn’t know the juniors and seniors. I knew their names, but I never spoke to them except maybe once or twice. Here, I can be a senior out on that field, and I can coach up the freshmen and help them out.”
Emery quickly made his mark with the Chiefs. He earned all-conference honorable mention as a sophomore. He was on target for his junior season until a broken hand forced him to the sidelines during summer practice. It required surgery, leaving Emery searching for a new way to help his team.
“When you’re always playing and you’re always in the game, it’s very clear your impact on the game. You make a big tackle. You make a big touchdown. It’s right there. Everyone knows your impact. But when you’re on the sideline, you have to really find a way to make an impact,” Emery said.
He spent six of Cherokee’s 10 games on the sideline, a place he hadn’t spent a lot of time during his playing career.
“Not being out there, I was doing whatever I could to make sure I was still helping out my team. Whether it was coaching up Matt (Carpenter), who was playing linebacker for the first time in a game, just giving him some help, or whether it was talking to Big (Tyler) Hensley about the game and communicating what I was seeing. It’s just finding a way to make any sort of impact you can, to help out in any way,” Emery said.
Being the outstanding student he is, Emery used his time on the sideline as a learning experience.
“My sophomore year, the game felt so fast. That’s the biggest difference as you get older. The game doesn’t slow down, but it slows down for you. From that different perspective (on the sideline), you really see it. You see the gaps open up. You see the guards moving. You see the offense changing formations. It’s a lot easier to see that stuff,” Emery said.
Back to 100% and “ready to roll,” Emery is coming in with high hopes for the season.
“I want to win as a team. That’s goal No. 1 — have a winning season and make the playoffs. We’re all thinking that,” said Emery.
But he does have some unfinished business on his list of personal goals.
“Last year, my goal was to be all-conference. I couldn’t. I physically didn’t play enough games. So, this year, I want that all-conference more than ever,” he said.
He’s also focusing a lot of attention on his responsibilities as a senior.
“The biggest thing is you’ve got to lead by example. You’ve got to bust your hind-end every single rep. Because if you’re not, the guys below you are seeing that and they’re not going to try their hardest,” Emery said.
Competition, he said, is always a good thing — and he should know. He’s been playing baseball since he was 4 years old. He also competed in soccer before steering more toward baseball and football, both of which he plays for the Chiefs. He’s also a competitive disc golfer.
“I love disc golf. It’s a great way for me and my dad to get out. We try to do that three or four times a week. Also, we play with other guys in the community, which is awesome. It’s a great community that’s super welcoming,” said Emery, who could opt to play any one of the three sports at the collegiate level.
“I plan on going to college and majoring in sports management, because I just genuinely cannot see a life where I’m not involved in sports."
Given a choice, football is always at the top of the list.
“I have played baseball longer. But football is just different,” Emery said. “The environment is just different. It’s addicting almost. Playing on Fridays, it sticks with you.”
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