Coaches at West Point encourage athletes to play as many sports as possible.

Senior Blake Gammon, who is a two-year starter on the varsity basketball team, took advantage of that opportunity this fall by going out for football for the first time since his ninth-grade year.

“It was my last year in high school and I knew I would regret it if I didn’t play football,” said Gammon following practice on Monday. “I played football from second grade to the ninth grade. But I didn’t get to play a lot because I was young and small. I knew football would make me a lot stronger for basketball.”

West Point boys’ basketball head coach Heith Yearwood said fellow coaches want students to participate in as many sports as possible.

“We encourage our kids to play more than one sport,” Yearwood said. “We don’t have that many kids sign (NCAA) Division One scholarships, so we want them to enjoy their high school careers.

“Most college recruiters actually like athletes to play two sports, because they won’t peek out athletically at one sport early and will have time to polish them at the collegiate level.”

Gammon, a 6-foot-3, power forward on the basketball court was the perfect size to fit in at wide receiver on the football field.

Despite not playing the sport or position in nearly three years, Gammon hauled in five touchdown passes and 308 receiving yards this season.

“I guess basketball is my favorite sport, but it wasn’t even close before this fall,” Gammon said. “I forgot how much I missed playing football and now I regret not playing during my sophomore and junior seasons.

“I would like to play football in college and possibly walk on at a college. After I graduate, I plan to work on getting faster and stronger. It all depends on how hard I work.”

With football season over for the Warriors after the first round of the playoffs, Gammon has taken his efforts to the basketball court for the boys’ team who has amasses a 7-4 record heading into tonight’s home game with Cold Springs.

“I think I am about 95-percent back right now,” Gammon admitted about his return from the football field. “I really need to focus more on my moves and pivoting. My free-throw shooting has also been a problem so far. I usually shoot around 80-percent from the line, but have only hit about 60-or-70-percent this season. I missed some key free throws the other night.”

Senior center Blake Overton, who has played basketball and football for his entire high school career, noted one of the challenges for himself and Gammon is getting their hands back.

“It’s pretty tough for both us of right now to catch the ball,” Overton said. “We are starting to get the feel, but we still aren’t all the way back. It’s really hard to adapt.”

While some part of the full-court game is taking a little time for Gammon to regain, he has also noticed some improvements that a year playing football has given him.

“I wouldn’t say I am bigger, but I am definitely a stronger player,” Gammon said. “I play under the goal a lot and I have definitely noticed my strength helping me with my shots when I get fouled. Also, with football there was a lot of hitting and that makes me a lot more physical and explosive under the goal.”

Overton noticed a marked difference in his low-post mate on the basketball court this season.

“With us staying in the weightroom year round, Blake is definitely a lot stronger which is helping his rebounding,” Overton said. “He is also jumping a lot better.”

Yearwood agrees with Overton’s assessment of Gammon’s game.

“Blake is a little more physical this season from playing football,” Yearwood said. “Most of our guys that play football and basketball end up being more aggressive. Blake Overton is one our of best rebounders and strongest inside players because he has played football every year.”

This past summer Gammon spent the offseason practicing on both sports..

“I went to all the basketball camps with the team, but also went to some passing camps,” Gammon said. “I worked out with the football team all summer but did a lot of shooting when I wasn’t working out. The running in football has helped me out the most.”