Aledo star delays college choice while he rushes toward another state title

Ryan Newsome sits in front of his locker in an empty Aledo field house, tossing a football from one hand to the other.

The 5-foot-9 senior wide receiver, perhaps the state’s fastest player, has a lot on his mind.

His Bearcats face Tyler John Tyler at 2 p.m. Saturday at Hanby Stadium in Mesquite.

A win will send them to the state championship for the fifth time in six seasons.

A loss will more than likely mark the final time many of his senior teammates put on a pair of cleats.

He wants to win for his teammates. To give them one last shot at a state title.

The Bearcats have left their mark on high school football’s biggest stage, winning four state championships in the past five years.

“I really want to make it happen for my teammates,” Newsome said quietly. “I’ve had a pretty good career here and I want those guys to get one more shot.”

“Pretty good” is quite an understatement.

In his junior season, his first at Aledo after stints at Arlington Grace Prep and Hurst L.D. Bell, Newsome accounted for 26 touchdowns, seven of which came on punt returns, tying the national record. He also placed second in the 100-meter dash at the state track meet.

“It got to the point where other teams were just punting the ball out of bounds, sometimes for less than 20 yards, just to prevent him from running them back for touchdowns,” former Aledo coach Tim Buchanan said. “Ryan is just flat out fast. He ran a 10.38 fully automatic 100-meter dash. There’s not 10 kids in the state who can do that.”

What separates Newsome from other speedsters is his ability to translate that speed to the football field while wearing pads and eluding tacklers. His skill set is so highly regarded that he’s received more than 40 scholarship offers.

Next up is a producer from an Oklahoma radio station. “Ryan, congrats on your performance last week, the guys at 247 said you were outstanding. Give me a call if you can, I’d love to talk to you.”

“These were all from today. At first it was exciting, but after months and months it starts to get overwhelming, you know I have homework to do, too,” Newsome said with a laugh. “One day Oregon State sent me 50 letters, all at once. The mailman stopped me and said ‘Who are you, man?’

“I told him I was just Ryan Newsome.”

There have been official visits to Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas, and UCLA, the five schools the senior said he’s narrowed his list to. But he has no plans to make a commitment until after the season.

“We had a young man on our football team who wasn’t doing what he was supposed to in the classroom and violating team rules off the field,” Buchanan said. “I was getting ready to kick him off the team when Ryan walked into my office, sat down and looked me in the eye.

“He said ‘Coach, football is all he has. Football may not need him, but he needs football and if you’ll let him stay, I’ll be responsible for him.’ For a kid to take responsibility for someone else like that, that says a ton about his character. Whoever signs Ryan is going to get a lot more than a football player.”

Newsome keeps a Scripture verse clipped onto the frame of his locker.

“The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.” Psalms 34:10

“I’ve overcome a lot the past few years,” he said, referring to the three moves in two years. “I’ve spent a lot of time on my knees praying for guidance on my decision. But that decision can wait a few more months. We’ve got two more games to win.”

This story was originally published December 11, 2014 at 10:52 AM with the headline "Aledo star delays college choice while he rushes toward another state title."