Former Louisiana high school quarterback moved to write letter of encouragement to current QB

The Bolton High School Bears have had it kind of rough lately.

So once Judge Richard Starling, Jr., who quarterbacked the Bears from 1973-75, got word that the team was having a tough season, he decided to put pen to paper and handwrite a letter of encouragement to quarterback Connor McLain.

“I just know football can be a very difficult challenge and hard sport to participate in, and I just felt it would maybe give him a little encouragement,” said Starling.

“I know you are facing a tremendous challenge this year and I want to thank you for your efforts. Please try to remember that ‘tough times’ don’t last but ‘tough people’ do,” wrote Starling.

He also wrote the letter because he likes helping young people. It’s something he’s enjoyed doing for the past 20 years. And since Bolton is his alma mater, he likes to help anyone from Bolton.

“It was a really nice letter,” said McLain. “It's always nice to hear from someone that has been through what I'm going through now. I know Bolton has a very rich history of football. It was really nice that he reached out to me and made it known that I have people out there that are behind me and supporting me through this.”

So far this season the Bears are 0-4. Last Friday North Caddo beat them 62-0. They’ve scored a total of 12 points for all four games played so far. McLain scampered in for both those touchdowns, said Mike Tudor. He attends Emmanuel Baptist Church where McLain’s family worships. He described McLain as “an amazing, smart, gritty, funny kid.”

“It takes much grit to endure the pounding and weekly defeats, but he is determined to finish the season,” said Tudor.

The Bears had a lot to deal with before the season even started. Last year the Bears lost their coach. Then it was announced that Bolton would become a magnet school and not have sports, so a lot of the players transferred to other schools, said McLain’s mother Heather Wise. Then that decision was reversed. So, when the team started football practice this year, they only had 18 players. Other students had to be persuaded to play and now the team currently has 36 players.

"Because of all of the indecisiveness, people left,” said Wise. “But because he was going to be a senior, he didn't have those options because you have to get eligibility from LHSAA and we weren’t sure if he would if he moved.”

McLain stayed at Bolton where he has been a kicker and punter for all four years. But now in addition to punting and kicking, he stepped into the role of quarterback.

It’s a position the 17-year-old said he briefly played as a freshman.

“I didn't have any substantial playing time. I never really saw the field at that position, but I always just saw myself as the kicker and punter. But when we needed a quarterback, I decided that I was going to step up and do what I could to help the team,” he said.

Starling knows from his own experience that football is hard enough when things are going well.

“You can imagine when it’s not going quite like you’d like,” he said.

“It's tough going out there every week. And we go out there every week and we have it on our minds that we're coming Friday and we're going to win,” said McLain. “It has been a long season, but a letter like that really refreshes me, kind of gets me going again and reminds me what I'm doing this for and who I'm really playing for and that rich Bolton tradition.”

When he’s playing, he's playing for all the former players and everyone who wore the Bolton name across their chest.

“I felt like football taught me a lot of things, especially when things didn’t go that well,” said Starling. “That you can draw on those experiences and when things got tough in life, it’d help you to hopefully be a success, however you define that.”

McLain would like continue his football career after high school. He’s spoken with a couple of coaches, mostly as junior colleges. The college he would like to attend is Southeastern Louisiana State University in Hammond and play football there as a kicker and major in sports management.

He said he has been playing football since he was a little kid and found that the sport was a very good way for him express himself, just like people do with the arts.

“It’s also a very good way to relieve myself of everything else I have going on,” he said. “When I go out on that football field, it’s just I forget about everything else.”

McLain is also involved in the arts. He has performed in Bolton Conservatory Theatre productions and is All District Choir.

At the Oct. 27 game against Bunkie, McLain will have an extra duty to perform. He will be singing the National Anthem.

“I'm just so terribly proud of him for stepping up and doing what's needed because he absolutely loves the game of football,” said Wise.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Former Bolton quarterback writes words of encouragement to current QB