Louisiana: Interview with Red River Class of 2017 LB/QB Greg Wallace
Written by Charlie Beuttel
@charlie_cds3
Red River High School in Coushatta, Louisiana had an impressive season in 2015 as the Bulldogs finished 8-4 and reached the second round of the 2A state playoffs where they suffered a heartbreaking 50-22 loss at Rayville. Despite having four losses, Red River seemed to be in every game in fact in two of their four losses, they only lost by a combined three points including when they lost to Arcadia, 21-20, on Sept. 11 and then 28-26 at Green Oaks on Oct. 2.
The Bulldogs used their lock down defense to keep their opponents under 10 points in four of their eight victories as they only gave up on average 18.25 points a game. One of the leaders of this tremendous defensive unit was 5’11”, 215 pound, junior linebacker Greg Wallace.
Wallace put together a monster junior campaign racking up 84 total tackles, six forced fumbles, five sacks, four fumble recoveries and one interception. After the season he won several individual honors.
While playing linebacker last year he was also the backup quarterback but due to the starting quarterback graduating, Wallace will play both linebacker and quarterback in his senior season and the new backup quarterback will be his younger brother, Tank McDonald, who is 6’2”, 190 pounds.
The star linebacker is currently receiving interest from several schools including Georgia and LSU.
Wallace also works hard in the classroom where he has a 3.0 GPA and an ACT score of 24.
He plans on having an even better senior season and lead his team past the second round of the playoffs. In an exclusive Recruiting News Guru interview, I sat down with Greg to recap his junior season, discuss his recruiting process and find out how he is getting prepared for his senior season.
Interview
Greg, what are your thoughts on your individual performance in your junior season?
“I feel like I helped my team a lot but I could have done better if I didn’t have to deal with a nagging injury.”
Did you receive any individual honors?
“Defensive MVP of the district and first team All-District as linebacker.”
What was your most memorable moment in the 2015 season?
“When we beat Jonesboro at home in the first round of the playoffs.”
Do you have any interest from any schools?
“Mississippi College, LSU, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Southeastern.”
Do you have any college offers?
“No sir.”
Have you gone on any visits?
“No sir but I’m going to Southeastern this weekend.”
Have you gone to any camps?
“I will be going to the National Underclassmen Camp in a couple weeks and I attended the LSU and Stephen F. Austin camps last summer.”
Are these schools interested in you to play linebacker or quarterback?
“Not sure yet but I’ve been getting mail from defensive coordinators and defensive line coaches.”
How does Red River look going into the 2016 season?
“We should be pretty solid as long as everyone continues to work hard we should be pretty good.”
Do you have any team or personal goals for your senior season?
“A team goal is to get passed the second round of the playoffs and my personal goal is to make sure everyone plays together and connect as a unit. I just really want to win.”
How fun is it to have your little brother as your backup and to have him with you on the sidelines on Friday nights during football season?
“It’s really fun to have him since he has been watching me since junior high. I want to show and teach him things and it’s great that he is willing to learn.”
What is your fastest 40 yard dash time?
“4.73.”
Do you have a NFL or college football player that you try to model your game after?
“Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee and Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.”
What is your current GPA?
“3.0.”
Thank you for your time and good luck in your senior season.
“Thank you sir.”
Photo credit: twitter.com/@greg_wallace03; Greg Wallace (#3) stands next to his teammate SaV’on Richmond