BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Union County High School senior Eva Whitehead had several Division I colleges to choose from, but in the end, the University of Alabama felt like the place she needed to take her swimming talent to.
Whitehead, who recently won the Class 1A state championship in the 200-yard individual medley for the second straight year, signed her letter of intent to join the Crimson Tide swim team during a Nov. 18 ceremony in the UCHS media center.
“I’m just so excited,” Whitehead said. “I will always be grateful for this opportunity to go to Alabama. The athletic program there is just amazing.
Whitehead had schools such as Kentucky, LSU, North Carolina State and South Carolina also interested in her. She said Kentucky was high on her list until she visited Alabama. Whitehead used the word “family” several times in describing what it felt like during her interactions with Crimson Tide coaches and swimmers.
“I just knew it was home,” she said, adding, “I feel like they’re going to look after me well.”
John Hulvey, who coaches Whitehead in the Gator Swim Club, said, “Alabama seemed to be the right fit. She’s always said that for a country girl, that was always the dream school.”
UCHS Assistant Principal Stephanie Sellers spoke about earning a chance to compete at the Division-I level and how it’s “no small feat,” saying, “It demands discipline, resilience, sacrifice and an unwavering commitment to excellence.”
“Watching you push your limits and break barriers has paved the way for the next generation of student-athletes at Union County, reminding them not to settle, but to strive for the very best,” Sellers told Whitehead at the start of the signing ceremony.
The assistant principal also talked of watching Whitehead teach her son how to swim seven years ago.
“The patience and the leadership and the heart that you showed while investing in him are some of the same qualities that carried you to this milestone today,” Sellers said. “You have always lifted others while chasing your goals, which is an ability that sets you apart from others.”
Union County Sheriff Brad Whitehead, who is Eva’s father and the UCHS swim coach, saw early in his daughter’s life a determination to accomplish goals she set for herself. He said, “I feel like she’s always had that extra drive. ‘I’m going to outwork everybody. I’m not going to miss a practice. I’m going to eat right. I’m going to get my fluid intake right. I’m going to do what it takes to get to that point.’ I feel like she’s always had that drive in her. She had the next-level drive of, ‘I’m going to do what it takes to get to where I want to be.’”
That drive equated to full days during the school year. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, Whitehead would wake up before 5 a.m., grab a bite to eat and then drive to Gainesville to a pool, where she would swim 6,000-7,000 yards. Then, it was back home to get ready to go to school.
After school, it was back to Gainesville for more practice.
At Alabama, of course, she won’t have to drive approximately 140 miles a day to use a pool. Whitehead said she was looking forward to that, but admitted she got to where she didn’t mind her drives to Gainesville.
“It was like a time where I was alone,” she said. “I could de-stress and calm down, listen to music and just be with my thoughts.”
Whitehead said she looks forward to becoming part of a college swim program and is ready to take on the weight training and the hard work that comes with it.
“I’m excited to add that to my plate and see what it can bring me,” Whitehead said.
Hulvey has no doubt Whitehead is ready to do whatever is necessary to compete in the Southeastern Conference, which he said is arguably the hardest conference for swimming.
“When we’re talking about what takes her to the next level, we’re talking about how she’s determined to keep working,” Hulvey said. “She’s not one of the ones who’s just going, ‘Hey, I’ve got my scholarship, and I’m moving on,’ enjoying life at the collegiate level. She’s hungry to excel and be the best she can be.”
Even after winning state titles, the tendency was to look ahead and think about improving.
“We’re always talking about the next race,” Hulvey said. “Even at state, after she won, we were talking about where we can get better.”
Brad Whitehead said, “She was extremely ecstatic to win the state title, but she was a little upset that she didn’t go a little faster. That’s a drive you can’t put into people. You either have it or you don’t.”
Though she puts in a lot of work in being the best swimmer she can be, Whitehead prefers to downplay her part in her accomplishments, which include the two state championships, a state runner-up finish in the 100 breaststroke this past season, two regional championships in the 200 IM and district titles in the 200 IM and 100 backstroke.
“I’m really humble about everything,” Whitehead said. “I like to give my glory to God because I would not be here without Him.”
Whitehead is used to swimming in high school state events and Junior Nationals, but what will it feel like when she swims for the first time at a college event for the University of Alabama?
“I haven’t really thought about that yet,” she said. “I think it’s going to be exciting and a lot of pressure and a lot of people watching and rooting for me.”
In fact, a lot of those people rooting for her will find themselves rooting for a college they never would have considered rooting for before. Whitehead said she’s had many people tell her, “I don’t say, ‘Roll, Tide,’ but I will for you.’”
