Despite his small stature (5-7, 180), senior RB Eric Redwood is a big-time runner for Serra. | Eddie Garcia/Prep2Prep |
Serra High School’s senior running back Eric Redwood is an undersized senior at 5-foot-7, 180 pounds. But don’t let his small frame fool you.
Redwood compensates with explosive speed, confidence and passion.
“When people tell me I’m too small to play at an elite level, I use that as motivation and it drives me to do better," he said.
From the time he started playing football at age 9 to where he is now, Redwood has always been one of the most determined players on the field.
Serra football coach Patrick Walsh called Redwood a player who "doesn’t like to be tackled, and that is a mindset that comes from within”.
Redwood had big shoes to fill this year after the graduation of Serra's all-time leading rusher Erich Wilson (now at the University of Washington).
Asked about filling the void left by Wilson, Redwood said “I go out everyday and do my best”.
Redwood’s personal goal as a senior is to “beat the rushing record in a single season”. To accomplish this task he needs to beat Wilson’s incredible single-season mark of 2,106 yards. At the moment, Redwood has rushed for 931 yards and 15 touchdowns on 120 carries.
He's shown his ability, determination and knack for coming through in the clutch on numerous occasions this season. In a come-from-behind overtime victory against Buhach Colony, he willed himself to score a touchdown to bring the Padres to within one point. Then he bounced off several would-be tacklers to score the 2-point conversion that gave Serra the win in overtime.
Against Bellarmine in a 35-34 loss, he rushed for nearly 200 yards and four touchdowns, including an incredible, long fourth-quarter run down the left sideline in which he broke several tackles to tie the game 28-28.
Redwood plans on attending a college with a respectable football team. He is considering Fresno State or Nevada but still remains undecided.
One reason he might favor Fresno State is because his dad played football there. The elder Eric Redwood starred at Serra and Fresno State and played for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.
“It’s an option for me, but it’s not my No. 1 choice in a career," Redwood said. "I would like to do something in life that involves football, perhaps coaching”.
An athletic role model for Eric is the Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
“I love his work ethic and the way he comes back after injures. He is the hardest working player on the field and that’s what I strive for," he said.
Redwood's teammates praise his commitment to excellence and refer to him as a “Ball of Fire”.
The talented ball-carrier gets his work ethic from his mother, he said.
“My mom has been the biggest influence in my life because she is such a hard worker, and she takes care of my sister and me so well.”
With four regular-season games left in his high school career, Redwood wants future Padres to remember him as “a hard worker and a player that never gave up.”
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