J&C Male Student-Athlete of the Year: Lafayette Jeff's Brady Preston

The Journal & Courier sports department is proud to present the 22nd annual Student-Athlete of the Year awards. 

The selections were based on a student-athlete's athletic and academic achievements, along with community activities. The winners were asked to write about what high school athletics meant to them. The male recipient for 2022 is Brady Preston of Lafayette Jeff.

Preston had a 4.36 grade-point average. He competed in football, basketball and baseball for the Bronchos, helping Jeff's football team win two North Central Conference championships while playing quarterback and serving a pivotal role for the basketball team's appearance in the 2021 regional championship game while also starting at catcher for the baseball team since his freshman year.

Preston also is a member of the National Honor Society and spirit advisory while volunteering for the community Christmas dinner, serving as a bell ringer for the Salvation Army and helping set up and tear down for school events. He recently was honored as the state's winner of the National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete award. Preston will attend Butler University, where he also will continue his football career.

As a young kid, I grew up watching Broncho legends such as Jesse Berry, Peter Ripke and Darian Green. All I ever wanted to do was score touchdowns, hit home runs and dunk basketballs just like them.

I cannot blame myself though, because that was every kid’s dream, as it should have been. But as I grew, so did my circle. Meeting new people allowed me to broaden my education and understand what it meant to be a high school athlete.

Education. Many times when a person thinks of education, they think of a classroom setting.

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They think of a teacher educating their students on the specific curriculum they need to be taught. School does educate us, but when looking at who I am as a whole, it was not only the education I received in the classroom but the education I received on the playing field that completed me.

When I was not in the classroom, I was competing for whatever sports team I was part of at the moment. With the time spent on the football field, basketball court and baseball diamond, I was bound to learn many things from different coaches, mentors and teammates.

Time. “Time is of the essence” is a lesson taught by every coach.

As an eighth grader, the upcoming four years at Jeff High School seemed like a lifetime. I thought I had all the time in the world to play sports and hang out with my friends. Yet, before I knew it, high school sports were done. I had played my last game as a Broncho and was preparing my college class schedule for next fall.

My time spent in high school has meant everything to me, but it went too quickly. My short time as a Broncho taught me to embrace my future encounters because they will be over sooner than I can imagine.

Listen. Such a basic word, but also an important one.

Athletes spend most of their time listening to coaches, teammates, mentors and referees. Being able to listen is one thing, but being coachable is another. All success happens from being able to listen effectively. Taking what has been heard and applying it for the purpose of improvement is what it means to be coachable. I wanted to win, and listening to what was being coached was an integral part of that. My coaches wanted what was best for my teammates and me, so making sure we were coachable factored into our success.

“If you love the sport, you will do whatever it takes for the team to win.”

This is what high school sports meant to me. I wanted to win more than anything. Whether it was changing positions, being a role player, or catching an entire baseball season, if it meant helping my team win, that is what I did. Being the best teammate possible was the most important thing to me. Seeing the team succeed after doing my job was one of the best feelings.

High school allowed me to find the meaning in the little things. Sports is not all about the big moments like winning trophies and setting records.

They allow you to create memories that last a lifetime. Practices, bus rides, team dinners and deep post-game talks are just a couple of my most fond memories. I look back on those and cannot help but want to relive them over and over again. I realize that I will never have these experiences again but I am more than grateful for each of them.

Above everything else, the most meaningful part of high school sports is the relationships created these past four years. I have met men and women who have made large impacts on me and will be crucial for my future success.

Coach (Pat) Shanley believed in me as a 12 year old and always made sure to coach me hard. Coach (Mark) Barnhizer gave me a chance as a freshman and made me realize what was needed to win basketball games. Coach (Clayton) Richard taught me more than I could have ever imagined in the one year I spent under his belt.

I hope my younger self would be proud of the man I have become (even though I never dunked a basketball).

J&C STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

2001 — Attica’s Josh Smith and Twin Lakes’ Jessica Bragg

2002 — Benton Central’s Blake Schoen and West Lafayette’s Jessica Gall

2003 — McCutcheon’s Clayton Richard and Lafayette Jeff’s Liz Honegger

2004 — Twin Lakes’ Clif Cobb and Harrison’s Alison Steele

2005 — Central Catholic’s Thomas Haan and Lafayette Jeff’s Lanae Stovall

2006 — Lafayette Jeff’s Greg Tao and West Lafayette’s Olivia Ghiselli

2007 — North Montgomery’s Jake German and West Lafayette’s Monika Freiser

2008 — South Newton’s Ben Welsh and Attica’s Mary Mattern

2009 — West Lafayette’s Matt Lancaster and Benton Central’s Skyler Gick

2010 — West Lafayette’s Daniel Wodicka and Harrison’s Natalie Newton

2011 — West Lafayette’s Kyle Patton and North Montgomery’s Kelly Kyle

2012 — South Newton’s Luke Welsh and Harrison’s Taylor VanArsdel

2013 — Crawfordsville’s Jake Zurawski and Lafayette Jeff’s Erin West

2014 — Delphi’s Kolby Myer and West Lafayette’s Shelby Mann

2015 — Harrison’s Tanner Watkins and Seeger’s Rebecca Haussin

2016 — West Lafayette’s Cooper Williams and Central Catholic’s Cameron Onken

2017 — North White’s Jake Quasebarth and Central Catholic’s Emma Gerrety

2018 — West Lafayette's August Schott and Central Catholic's Sami Royer

2019 — Rossville’s Dawson Jacoby and Frontier’s Kc Clapper

2020 — Carroll’s Ayden Ayres and McCutcheon’s Bailey Burton

2021 — Twin Lakes' Lewis Dellinger and Carroll's Megan Wagner

2022 — Lafayette Jeff's Brady Preston and Benton Central's Tressa Senesac

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: J&C Male Student-Athlete of the Year: Lafayette Jeff's Brady Preston