By Jordyn J. Bennett
FOLSOM, Penn. — It’s hard to miss a 6-foot, 200-pound running back toting the rock up and down the field, however, even the most prominent prospects fall by the wayside.
Ridley High School Football senior running back Tahir Mills has all the intangibles any college coach would love to see darting out their backfield. Mills is a blanched blend of speed and power, running a 4.52 40-yard dash, and posting marks of 270 and 405 pounds on bench press and squat respectively.
Despite his physique and attributes that are remnant of your NCAA Football 14 created player in Road to Glory mode, his recruitment has gotten off to a slow start. His sense of worry about the next chapter of his playing career is just as relevant as his fear of a defender lined up across from him: neither one of those things exist.
“(My recruitment) is not big yet,” Mills said. “But after this season, I know it’ll blow up.”
Big words for any person to live up to, but in the first game of his senior campaign, he’s already shown he is going to back it up. In Ridley’s 34-29 victory over Central Buck East last Friday, Mills dashed for 264 yards and three touchdowns, only carrying the ball eight times.
Mills did most of his damage on the outside, noticing early in the game that CB East was stacking the box. The running back capitalized on opportunity presented by the defense and was motivated by his yearn to win.
Even with those factors steering him to an epic performance, his breakout game started off the field with a phone call from his grandmother.
“I called my grandma to see how she was doing, ‘cause I just wanted to check on her,” he remembered. “She said she was coming to the game.”
It was the first game Mills’ grandmother had attended since his first varsity game years ago. The young Green Raider recalled his team getting demolished in that game. It was a feeling he didn’t want to relive again.
Mills has always been inspired by strong women. He credits his mother as his biggest motivation, seeing her as the hardest working person he knows.
“I just want to make it so that she doesn’t have to (work) anymore,” he said.
He plans on doing that by utilizing education just as much as football.
Mills holds a 3.0 GPA and has a love for mathematics. He plans to utilize his passion for numbers for the rest of his life throughout college and his career.
“Accounting,” Mills said about what he plans on studying at the next level. “Math is not really a challenge for me.”
Neither was CB East’s defense.
Numbers are going to play a big role in Mills’ future both on and off the field. Whether in a text book or a box score, when you put them all together, things add up to a bright future for the young ball carrier.
“We just getting started,” Mills said. “If you see me now, (know that) this is only the beginning of what I can do.”