BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Union County High School celebrated three student-athletes, who truly embodied what it means to be a student-athlete during a signing ceremony for seniors Joseph Harris, Trenton Klein and Ashton Newsome on April 24 in the school’s media center.
Harris will go to Lake City’s Florida Gateway College to run cross country, while Klein and Newsom will play football at Jackson, Mississippi’s Millsaps College and Babson Park, Florida’s Webber International University, respectively.
“All three of these young men will graduate with outstanding honors — the highest of honors at UCHS — because they all have a weighted GPA of 4.0 or above,” UCHS Principal Julie Denson said.
Athletic Director/Head Football Coach Andrew Thomas added, “They’re just a great example of what a student athlete is — to be able to put their grades first and do those kinds of things to prep themselves for the next level.”
Track and Field Coach Scott McDaniel spoke highly of all three as well, saying, “As a coach and as a teacher, all of my interactions with each of them, regardless of the situation, have been wholly positive. It’s always been, ‘Yes, sir. No, sir. How can I help, sir?’”
Denson reminded the students that they didn’t make their journey toward being college student-athletes alone.
“You had coaches, you had your family, you had friends and you had teachers,” Denson said. “Think about those people as you travel along to the next place, and remember: Once a Tiger, always a Tiger. You’re always welcome back here.”
TK: from UCHS Tiger to Millsaps Major
Klein, who’s known simply as “TK” to many, said he was unsure of his future, but thanks to a recruiting fair, he became connected with Millsaps and felt right at home. He said he’s grateful for the opportunity, adding, “I’d definitely say I’m excited.”
He’s going to play linebacker, which was one of two starting positions for him at UCHS. Klein was also the Tigers’ starting quarterback. He, of course, relayed the play calls from coaches on offense, but he also did the same on defense.
“I don’t know if a lot of people understand the intestinal fortitude you have to have to go out and play every snap at quarterback and middle linebacker — the mental toll it takes on you to make all the calls on offense and defense,” UCHS Assistant Coach Riley Reed said.
Reed said coaches needed to tell Klein something only once.
“He’s a coach’s dream,” Reed said, adding, “He made me look good for the past couple of years.”
Klein was only listed as 5-11, 188 pounds on UCHS’ 2024 roster, but his size didn’t dictate how well he played. He completed more than 60 percent of his passes as a senior, throwing for 24 touchdowns and 1,400-plus yards. He also averaged 9.5 yards per rushing attempt, which led the team.
On defense, he led the Tigers with more than 80 tackles.
He was the team’s leading tackler his junior season as well.
“What TK was able to do the past two years was really kind of unbelievable,” Thomas said. “He’s not this freakish athlete, by any means. He’s not the fastest guy or the strongest guy or the biggest guy on the field, but he’s so smart and plays so hard.”
Klein admitted how he stacked up compared to other players never crossed his mind when he was on the field.
“I don’t really think a whole lot when I’m out there,” he said. “I get the call and just do what I have to do.”
Regarding his play at linebacker, he said, “My thought right before the play is, ‘Don’t let that guy beat you. Be the guy.’”
It paid off for the Tigers, with Thomas saying, “We went as far as Trenton wanted to take us. We had a lot of success with him the last few years.”
Klein’s play not only helped the Tigers, but helped him become the 10th football player in UCHS history to earn first-team All-State honors twice. That puts him on a list with such greats as C.J. Spiller, Gerard Warren and Andrew Zow.
“I feel like I played to the best of my ability,” Klein said. “Just hearing the names (that came) before me really means a lot. It shows that I can play.”
Klein said he’ll be going to Millsaps with the mindset that he’s going to play, but he knows he’s got to continue to make improvements as he transitions to playing at the next level.
“I’m definitely going to have to get in the weight room and get some size on, get a little faster and just study,” he said. “Get the play book and know every little thing I can and know every position, just in case they want to move me around.”
Klein said it was “awesome” to be able to sign alongside Newsom. The two have played together since they were in Pop Warner.
“Seeing him succeed and the both of us having a chance to play at the next level — it’s a great thing,” Klein said.
Klein said he and Newsom also helped each other make their dream of playing college football come true.
“I feel like we’re always pushing each other in the classroom and on the football field to be better,” Klein said.
Now, he’s ready to make strides for the Millsaps Majors.
“I’m really excited for it,” Klein said.
Newsom to stay in state and become a Webber Warrior
Like Klein, Newsom is set to play linebacker for a college program, taking his talents to Webber International University, which is in Polk County.
“It’s unreal,” Newsom said. “I’ve wanted to do this since I was a little kid. Now, finally being here, it’s just a big accomplishment. I really enjoyed the process of working every day. It’s just a huge sense of accomplishment.”
“Work” is a key word when it comes to Newsom.
“I don’t know that anybody worked harder than Ashton,” Thomas said. “He was an extremely hard worker in the weight room and, obviously, in the classroom. Probably over four years, I heard about 50 words come out of his mouth. He’s one of those leaders whose actions spoke a lot more than his words.”
According to Reed, you wouldn’t have expected those few words that Newsom spoke to be negative in any way regarding what he was being asked to do by coaches.
“A guy who never complained, never moaned about anything,” Reed said. “He’d just put his head down and keep banging.”
Newsom is ready to employ that work ethic in an attempt to keep improving and putting himself in position to make an impact at Webber. A lot of that work, he said, needs to happen in the weight room.
“That’s what really sets you apart from everybody else,” Newsom said. “Some people don’t take pride in it, but I really do. I think it’s a huge steppingstone in getting to the next level.”
That work resulted in Newsom being the Tigers’ second-leading tackler this past season behind Klein.
Newsom credited Klein with helping him get the chance to sign with a college, saying, “He’s always going to push you to do the best you can. He’s my best friend. I love him. He’s just a really great guy.”
As you can imagine, Newsom was excited to see his friend also get the chance to play in college.
“I love it,” Newsom said. “He really deserves this. He probably works harder than me or just as hard as me.”
When asked what it’ll feel like when he steps onto the field for the first time as a Webber Warrior, Newsom said, “It’s going to be very exciting. I’ve already watched their spring that, and that was a great experience. I’m really excited.”
Harris to run with the FGC Wolves
Even though UCHS doesn’t have a cross-country program, Harris is the fourth UCHS student-athlete in the last three years to get a cross-country opportunity in college. He’s been a member of the track and field team, running the 800m and 1600m and also competing as a member of the 4x800m relay team.
“I’m excited. I love to run track,” Harris said. “Being able to go (to college) for cross country — that’s definitely going to be an experience. I’ll just love to be able to continue to run in a collegiate program.”
It was an opportunity he didn’t know he was going to have until approximately a month ago.
“This, overall, has been a very cool experience that I didn’t think was ever going to happen,” Harris said.
Harris has been running since he was in fifth grade. As for being a distance runner, he said, “I just wasn’t fast. The longer I ran, the faster I got. That’s where I fit in. That’s what I was best at.”
Running long distance is tough, Harris said, describing how in some races he wishes the race was just over.
“After a while, everything kind of goes numb,” he said. “I kind of just lock in and get after it.”
McDaniel has seen Harris “get after it” in the latter stages of his races.
“Joseph’s last 150 meters — he is emptying the tank,” McDaniel said.
Harris said he needs to learn to adapt to running cross country and also “step up his game” against others good enough to earn their chance to run for Florida Gateway.
McDaniel believes Harris will succeed because of the effort he puts forth.
“I believe that if you try really hard at something, you have to hide from success,” McDaniel told Harris, adding, “You better have good camouflage because it’s going to find you because of your effort.”
