COFFEETOWN HS SPORTS

Carlos Valdez knew he couldn’t let this high school football moment slip away.

So when the Briggsdale sophomore entered the huddle against Otis High, he brought the same approach that carries him each and every day of his life.

Even if it gave him a few butterflies.

“When the coach called my number to go in, I was so nervous but super excited,” Valdez told the Otis Telegraph.

A boating accident took both of his legs when he was a boy.

To hear Valdez tell his story is to know that the accident didn’t take a single ounce more.

“It was hard at first, then I realized I can’t stop because life is not going to stop for me. Life is going to continue, and I don’t want to slow down or be held back, so I’ve got to keep up with life and keep going,” Valdez said.

It took a little persistence to haul in his touchdown grab

But Valdez is pretty good in that arena.

The passes intended for Carlos both fell incomplete on first and second down.

That’s when the Briggsdale receiver dug a little deeper.

“I have to catch it now. I don’t want to miss it again, that would be embarrassing,” he thought.

There’s nothing embarrassing about Valdez’s drive to even make it on the football field.

He knows how to ride horses and ski.

But all of that pales in comparison to catching a touchdown pass under those Colorado Friday Night Lights.

So that’s what Valdez did.

The accident makes it difficult for his left and right arms to communicate. So he just caught it with one hand instead.

“I was so nervous but when I caught it, it was so exciting,” Valdez said.

“And everyone came out on the field and picked me up and started to throw me around and everyone was giving me high fives.”

Valdez’s persistence on the high school football field embodies his approach to life

First couple tries don’t work out?

On to the next thing.

“Anything that comes my way I just deal with it as it comes and keep pursuing it through.”

Valdez says lunch and science are his favorite subjects, and he aspires to be a neurosurgeon.

Let this kid eat.

I like his chances.