VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (WTKR)- A Super Bowl sparked a passion. Now, A.J. Hudson is turning that passion into a legacy.
Hudson, a senior running back and receiver for Frank Cox High School, traces his love of football back to Super Bowl 50, when he was a first grader watching the Denver Broncos take on the Carolina Panthers. By second grade, he was ready to play.
"I first started playing in second grade," he recalled. "In the fall going into second grade I wanted to try out after me and my friends talked about it. We got on the same team and I just fell in love."
Born with a partial right arm, Hudson faced plenty of challenges learning the fundamentals of the game. Beyond his team's practices, he and his father put in extra work to overcome them.
"We would go out there every night," remembered Hudson. "I had practice three times a week when I first started, but we would stay after. We would be at the house in the mornings catching, taking handoffs and all that."
His head coach at Cox, Tyler Noe, has watched Hudson's development firsthand.
"Watching him catch footballs is one of the most impressive things in the world because it doesn't bother him, it doesn't affect him," Noe said. "He goes up there, catches it, comes down and he continues to run."
Doubt from others only added fuel to Hudson's drive.
"People doubted me," he said. "People said I couldn't take a handoff or I couldn't play football. That always kind of stuck with me."
That motivation has helped shape him into one of Cox's most important players — and one of its most respected leaders. Hudson noted that he doesn't hear many doubts anymore, but his drive hasn't decreased.
"Great leader," Noe pointed out. "Kids look up to him. Even his friends look up to him, coaches, I look up to him. He's just a great kid and a great leader for this program and these other kids that are out here."
Hudson does not see his limb difference as a defining characteristic, and those around him have taken note.
"He does not like when people talk about it as a hindrance to his ability to play football because to him he's just a football player," Noe said.
For Hudson, the lessons he has learned on the field extend far beyond it.
"It's not even football-wise," he added. "Learn to adapt to anything outside, in the classroom, on the field, so nothing's really been a big problem."
Hudson is also mindful of the example he sets for others who may be watching — much like he once watched and was inspired.
"I try to be the best role model I can," he said. "If I can be any inspiration to those people in the stands, I'd love it."
Noe said Hudson has looked to NFL player Shaquem Griffin as a model for navigating his own journey.
"When Griffin was playing in the NFL, he leaned on him a lot and watched him a lot, just to see how he maintained it," noted Noe. "I think he's definitely an inspiration for a lot of kids out there who are watching from the stands."
With college aspirations on the horizon, Hudson is focused on finishing his high school career strong — and leaving a message for anyone who needs to hear it.
"Don't let the talk get to you. Keep striving to do your best and you can do anything you put your mind to."
Hudson and Cox open the season August 28 at Ocean Lakes.
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