The Wolfpacker

58 ■ THE WOLFPACKER WHERE ARE THEY NOW? The latest "giving back" endeavor for Washington is becoming the head varsity football coach at Heritage High School in Wake Forest. He coached his son, D.J., throughout his youth career and was an assistant at Ravenscroft High School — where his son plays and is the first Afri- can-American student body president — for three seasons. When the head coaching opportunity presented itself, he once again couldn't say no. The team finished 5-7 in his debut as the head man, but Washington is concerned with far more than just wins and losses. "I never knew how much weight comes with the words head coach," he said. "There's a big difference between head coach and assistant coach. "It's truly a challenge, but the joy comes in the kids — seeing them make plays, seeing them trust the position you put them in, seeing them excited about showing you their report card. I definitely stress their education." Washington has even instituted what he calls the Husky shake. He might give players a high-five or fist bump, but he refuses to shake their hand at this point. He's saving that for when they cross what the coach refers to as the finish line. "They know that when they graduate high school, I will be there at their grad- uation, and that's when we will shake hands," he explained. "That's my thing with all of the kids that I've got in the program. "That's a constant reminder to those kids that we're all a work in progress, that they are nowhere near done. I don't care if we win a big game, that's not the end goal. "The end result, for me, is to see those kids cross the finish line, and then I pass them on to hopefully another col- lege coach or wherever they go to school. Somebody else will help them along the way to get to the next point in their life. That's really my calling, helping those guys graduate." Throughout his journey, Washington knows he has been fortunate. "NC State definitely meant everything to me," he said. "It was the right place for me at the right time with the right coach- ing staff. "I just hope all kids that have the op- portunity to play college ball can find that right place. Some kids play in places that just aren't the right fit, but it was defi- nitely the perfect place for me." Whether he is helping an entire city or a singular kid, Washington is going to do everything he can to build them up for success in the future. It's the only way he knows. ■ Washington was a three-year starter at cornerback for the Wolfpack and led the team in inter- ceptions (four) his senior year, before being selected in the first round of the 1994 NFL Draft and embarking on a 12-year pro career. PHOTO COURTESY JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

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