Who is Stone Wallace and How Does He Make Your Campus Better?
In the small town of Decaturville, Tennessee, there is Riverside High School. On that campus is a great student, multi-sport athlete, and coachable young man. That young man is named Stone Wallace. In this piece, we will look at what Wallace brings a campus as a student, teammate, and young man.
In The Classroom
As we know the student athlete is not easy to maintain. With this, Stone has excelled in the classroom. We would speak with Eric Quinn, head baseball coach at Riverside, about Stone and he would praise him by saying “He is a great student in the classroom as well”, as well as “He gives his best effort and attitude in class just as he does on the field.”.
When speaking with Stone on what he brings to the table academically his words immediately validated his coach. Stone would say the following about the classroom
“What I bring to the table is I am very determined academically. I hold myself to a high standard when it comes to grades. When I look at a test or assignment I don’t want to just get by. I want to do the very best I can to consume as much knowledge and complete the task as thoroughly as possible. What I bring to the table as an athlete is likewise that of academics.”
“I will always work hard. I won’t stop until there’s no possible way I can do more. I don’t look at someone and say I want to be him or I want to be better than him because god made us all different for a reason. I strive to be the best me I can be and that’s all that matters to me.”
With the world of college athletics in this new era, the student, at times, is forgotten about. As Wallace stated, he is “determined academically” and this is something rare in 2024.
On The Field
As we have mentioned, Stone played multiple sports. If he wasn’t excelling at shortstop or from the mound on the baseball diamond, he was throwing passes to his teammates from the quarterback position. When speaking with Stone on what it takes to flow from one sport to the other. He would speak to this by saying “When it comes to being a multi-sport athlete there’s a lot of things that people don’t see. Leaving one practice to go to another it’s hard and takes dedication. I would leave football and have to go take swings just so I don’t get behind.” which puts the challenges into perspective.
We would then get a response that spoke volumes as Wallace would say “It taught me that it takes a lot of self-discipline to say no to the things that you want to do and go do the things you have to do.”
This speaks to his dedication not only in the classroom but on multiple playing fields. As Stone would mention he would, at times, go from practice to practice to stay in “game shape: for that specific season. In addition, Stone made a statement that we all can relate to and that is to “say no to the things that you want to do and go do the things you have to do.”
Ultimate Teammate
As we spoke to Quinn on how Stone was as a young man he raved about how great of a teammate he was. Quinn would describe Wallace as a “very good baseball player, but an even better person.” This speaks to more than a student or even an athlete. This speaks to how Wallace was raised and that is to be respectful to anyone he comes in contact with.
Quinn would continue by saying that “He is the ultimate teammate. A teammate that always has the team’s best interest at heart.” when continuing to tell us how Stone has impressed him over his career. He would close with words that any coach around the nation wants to hear.
Quinn would give the ultimate compliment on Stone by saying “A teammate that pushes everyone around him to be the best they can be.” followed by stating that Wallace is the ultimate teammate by saying he will “ take ownership and never point fingers and blame others.”
Never Quit
Stone would tell us that being a multi-sport athlete would teach him discipline and mental toughness. With this, Wallace developed a “Never Quit” mindset. This mindset would alter the future for Stone as he looks to his next chapter. Whether in the classroom or on the field, Stone would tell us his ‘Why” in life was quite simple.
He would say “My why in life is why give half effort to something that you love when you know you can do more. Speaking on the terms of baseball and football there is always something that you can be doing to better yourself. I look at sports the way I look at life,” He would follow this up with, again, words we can all use in our lives and that is that he “wants to be the best individual I can be everyday.”
At the end Stone would get deeper into who he is as not only a young man but would show his maturity by saying “ Everyone has bad days but I’ve had to stay dedicated looking at the bigger picture down the road. I just don’t want to look back in a few years and regret not working hard enough and knowing I could’ve been better.”
Quinn would validate this by simply stating that Stone has “ been an absolute joy and honor to have been his coach for the last 4 years.” but something he would say when speaking on how great of a teammate would stand out in more ways than on the field. Quinn would say that “He puts others first and will also hold other players accountable for their attitudes and efforts.”
If there is a college campus or athletics department in this country that isnt needing someone like Stone Wallace on campus we would like to speak with them about Stone specifically. As we have described with quotes from Stone himself as well as his baseball coach, you will not be let down. After all, he is a Stones Throw away from being your next great student, athlete, and leader on campus.
