Before every game, Aiden Ilai does two things. First, he texts his parents “I love you,” and then he prays.
The junior quarterback has big shoes to fill. Following the graduation of Luke Dunham — who can now be seen on national television wearing a burnt orange jersey for the Texas Longhorns — McCallum was left quarterbackless. Ilai stepped into the role this summer, putting in extra work outside regular practice to prepare for the starting position.
Offensive coordinator Rudy Alvarez, who is new to McCallum this year, said that Ilai grasped the concepts quickly.
“He’s eager to learn and he’s very bright,” Alvarez said. “He understands the game, he understands the mechanics of his position and he’s far more ahead than a lot of kids his age.”
Although he had little varsity playing time prior to this season, Ilai has been watching and taking notes from the sideline.
“I’ve always kind of felt ready at some level,” Ilai said. “Even when I was on the bench I was always paying attention to everything.”
Ilai had his first test against Anderson in the inaugural Shoal Creek Showdown on Aug. 28. The Knights lost 37-2, and Ilai says he quickly learned what the full scope of playing as a varsity quarterback is like.
“I tried not to make the moment too big, but against Anderson I kind of did,” he said. “I got in my head a lot. I was trying to do a lot of stuff that I just wasn’t coached to do. I was able to learn from that week that I can’t do that. It’s not JV anymore, it’s gotta be on point.”
Ilai says the key to avoiding mistakes is keeping calm, which is something he initially struggled with but has since been improving on.
“It’s not something that’s perfect. I think hopefully it’ll come with more games,” he said. “Having a clear mind helps because pre-snap, if I’m not calm, I won’t look at the coverage super well, maybe I’ll take a glance at it, but not do the full read like I’ve been taught to.”
Since Shoal Creek Showdown, McCallum won its other two non-district games, beating Travis 52-13 in the Battle of the Bell on Sept. 4 and scraping by Dallas Pinkston 34-28 in overtime on Sept 12. The Knights started the brunt of district play with a 45-14 win in Elgin on Sept. 19, but then lost to Bastrop 69-7 on Sept. 25 and to Pflugerville 56-21 on Oct. 10. The Knights defeated Connally 36-34 on Oct. 17 to even out their district record to 2-2 and move up to fourth place in district standings. They then lost to Liberty Hill 58-7 on Oct. 24.
McCallum will continue district play on Oct. 31 against Navarro, and then face Crockett on Nov. 7 to finish out district play.
Although the Knights are 4-4 overall, Ilai says he is still feeling the effects of having little experience.
“Sometimes I have a problem with myself where, in some sort of way, I feel like I haven’t earned that spot,” he said. “There’s been guys that have been working, have been on varsity and have put up good numbers and been really good players, so it’s hard to be a leader when I haven’t done it yet.”
Coach Alvarez says it will take time, but Ilai will adjust to the role.
“I see Aiden growing in his position, but I feel like he still has a lot more that he can achieve, even after the season’s over,” Alvarez said. “He’s got a very high ceiling.”
Senior wide receiver Cooper Hensley agreed with Alvarez’s sentiments.
“I think he has been a good leader,” Hensley said. “Stepping up as a junior, he is doing a great job.”
Ilai says that Alvarez’s guidance has helped him with his confidence and avoiding overthinking.
“His [Alvarez] thing is, if you make your decision, you gotta live with it. It helps me be more confident in [the decision] I’m making and not second guessing it,” Ilai said. “Sometimes we’ll come in with low energy and he’ll bring the energy up, he’s good at getting everyone going. Also he kind of has this chill mindset, it’s perfect for me.”
Ilai says his pregame ritual is what allows him to stay grounded and clear himself mentally to prepare for directing the offensive flow.
“Mentally before games, I really just like to chill out because I think when I overwork myself I start getting in my head a lot,” he said. “I try to take every play play-by-play. I could’ve had the best play of my career or the worst play, but I try to forget about it and move on to the next play.”
Ilai says his main goal for this season is to win a playoff game. To get there, he plans to go the extra mile and continue to grind.
“I’m just gonna keep working. I’m gonna try to be the best myself I can be. I want to be the best me,” he said. “I just want to be the best player I can be and the best person I can be, so that means doing extra stuff when maybe other people won’t. I’ve always thought, if you’re going to go do something, why don’t you try to be the best at it?”
