Richmond Senior rising senior running back Walter Ellerbe Jr. was one of 22 athletes selected to be on WSOC-TV’s “Big 22 Players to Watch” team this summer.

The Big 22 list is comprised mostly of players from around the Charlotte area,

with only Ellerbe and Stephone Anthony chosen from the Richmond and Anson County areas.

The Big 22 list is chosen from nominations submitted by area coaches, who submit a list of five players from their team and five players from other teams to be candidates of the list. From there the list is narrowed down by the Channel 9 staff and the team is selected.

With the performance that Ellerbe put together last year — 1,500 yards and 25 touchdowns — it was a safe bet that he would garner some preseason attention. But Ellerbe knew it would take hard work to continue his success.

“Being picked for the Big 22 list made me feel like I’ve been working hard and doing all the right things I need to do on the football field, and that I need to continue doing these things,” Ellerbe said after practice on Friday.

“Coming off my performance last year, I’m not going to say that I have set goals for myself on the field,” Ellerbe added. “I’m just going to do like I did last year and let it happen naturally.”

Richmond head coach Paul Hoggard couldn’t have been prouder of Ellerbe for garnering the award and the attention.

“Walter is very deserving of the award and the recognition that comes with being named to the list,” Hoggard said. “Walter is one of the best I’ve seen on the football field. He is a great kid, a great player both on and off the football field. He has a lot of God-given abilities that make him a great player,” said Hoggard.

While Richmond always has a giant target on its back when it comes to football, the WSOC-TV contest could garner the program statewide recognition for having one of the best running backs in the state.

“This will give the team statewide recognition that we have earned and fully deserve,” Ellerbe said.

Ellerbe accredits his success on the field to his teammates.

With the new season looming on the horizon, Ellerbe and the Raiders will be facing two athletes in the football schedule this season who also made the Big 22 list.

Linebacker Stephone Anthony from Anson High School will face Ellerbe and the Raiders at Raider Stadium Friday, Sept. 3, and Richmond kicks off the season against Providence and quarterback Chauncey Concepcion at home Friday night, Aug. 20.

While Ellerbe will have nothing to do with the game plan against Concepcion, he will be going face to face against Anthony trying to repeat his success from the previous year.

Fans can vote for Walter Ellerbe to be the winner of the Big 22 competition by going to www.wsoctv.com. Voting begins Aug. 18 and continues through Oct. 22.

Footage from Ellerbe’s visit to Bank of America Stadium and the Panthers practice field can be seenn Aug. 18 on WSOC-9 at 8 p.m. during a special prime-time airing of the channel’s high school football coverage.



n Contact sports reporter Travis Anderson at 997-3111 ext. 44 or via e-mail at tanderson@yourdailyjournal.com