Interview

By Yuyou Ma

Interview with Terry Hou, junior at Del Norte High School. He plays offensive lineman on his school’s football team. He has won two prestigious awards; The best offensive lineman of the year in his team, and one of the best offensive lineman in all of San Diego. He is the only Chinese-born American to have done so. 

Football: An action-filled, explosive sport that has swept America in a frenzy since its invention in the 19th century. However, despite this excitement, some Asian-American parents think that the sport is rather dangerous, and discourage their children from practicing it. But Chinese-born American athlete Terry Hou tells us otherwise. Recounting his success on the field, the awards he’s received, and much more, Terry shares his inspiring football journey, and encourages others to pursue the same path. But what does starting football really entail?

When first starting, the world of football may feel intimidating and unfamiliar, but the process becomes much simpler when broken down into categories. Specifically, the basics for beginning football can be divided into equipment, training, and competitions.

Let’s start with one of the most essential parts of playing football: Equipment. Football equipment includes gloves, shoulder pads, cleats, shin guards, a mouth guard, and a helmet. Additional or specialized gear may be required in some cases, which will not be covered in this article. If you think you or your child needs any sort of atypical gear, it is best to ask a coach or expert.

Some popular brands for football gear (as well as all-around major sports brands) include Nike, Under Armour, and Adidas. High school football teams will supply a helmet and shoulder pads, which are only for use during the season. (It is to be noted that shoulder pads are actually a chestplate that protects both the shoulders and the upper chest.) A fee of $400 is paid at the start of each season for this gear, which is to be taken away, repaired, and repainted at the end. (Off-season training is usually done without a full set of gear.) Another option is to buy your own gear at one of the mentioned brands (or any other reliable companies). But, as Terry said, high schools generally provide state-of-the-art gear, so most opt to wear the given gear instead of purchasing their own. Cleats, shin guards, gloves, as well as all other non-provided gear will need to be independently purchased.

The purpose of football gear, as well as gear for any other sport, is to reduce injury. Helmets are to protect from concussions and head/brain injuries. Shoulder pads are considered the main part of football gear, since it is the most essential. This is because most players hit with their shoulders, so they have to be well-protected with hard pads. Padding for the upper chest protects the player if they are to get hit or tackled. Shin pads serve the same protective purpose, but for the lower legs, since the players will be wearing cleats for better traction. Mouthguards make sure players don’t sustain dental injuries or lose teeth. Having the proper gear and equipping it correctly is absolutely essential to mitigate serious injury.

But even with the proper gear, football players may get injured. Football has a reputation, especially among non-American families, for being dangerous. But really, how risky is this sport?

Well, from Terry Hou’s experience, “It is a pretty competitive sport, so you’ve got to expect some injury, but as long as you do the right things and wear the right gear, [you’ll] be okay.” He went on to say that he had gotten a concussion when he was new to playing varsity games, and had attempted to hit with his head. Terry has also fractured a knee and some bones while playing the sport, although he seemed very nonchalant about the whole ordeal, saying that none of the injuries took very long to heal. Furthermore, most people on his team don’t receive major injuries very often. In general, concussions aren’t very common and aren’t that big of a problem. Most injuries sustained in football are minor, like rolled ankles, and will only take a few days to recover from. 

So, now that the topic of gear and injuries has been covered, it’s time to talk about the training. Football training almost always depends on how seriously the trainee takes the sport. Less training is required if football is only seen as a hobby or just something on the side to obtain exercise. But if football is taken more seriously, like if the trainee is on a football team or hopes to achieve a future through football, then they will need to dedicate more time to practice. Terry’s football team follows a rigorous schedule, training four out of five school days. Their day starts off at 6:30, with an hour in the weight room, continues with strength and conditioning in their last period, and ends with an hour and a half of general training after school. (It should be noted that Terry is in his junior year, in which he receives more training time than in his sophomore year, and most likely less training time than his senior year.) The team has Friday off, but otherwise, this is their schedule every school day. The training is necessary to keep all of the athletes in tip-top shape, season or off-season.

So what happens during summer break? It turns out that Terry’s high school, along with many high schools, offers a training camp during the summer. Camp starts a week after school ends, and lasts throughout the entire summer. The trainees follow a similar schedule during this camp as they do in school. It is not mandatory, but most serious athletes chose to participate to keep themselves in shape when not competing. The entirety of Terry’s team showed up in the break between his sophomore and junior years, and still plan to as long as they play. 

And what about additional classes? Well, since Terry joined the team in his sophomore year while most join in their freshman year, he took private lessons for a season to catch up to the rest of the team’s ability. Having this additional training every Saturday morning proved to be somewhat difficult for Terry, since he sometimes had games on Friday night and had to go to a lesson the next morning, but not unmanageable. And he was very determined to catch up to and even surpass the skill level of the rest of his teammates. “For us, we’re not the strongest and we’re not the tallest,” Terry states, talking about the players of Chinese ethnicity, “So if we’re gonna be better than them, … the white kids, we have to be a technical better.” And he’s determined to do whatever it takes to reach this goal.

Now, all that training has to go into something. That’s where competitions come in. There are no short of competitions in the world of football - competition systems set up in the summer, several extracurricular game opportunities, and, of course, school matches during the season. Anyone who ventures on the path of football playing will be well acquaintanced with these three. These are usually not too worrisome, only the usual competition stress and concerns.

What worries most players are travel competitions, especially if it’s their first time competing. But Terry assures us that there is nothing to be worried about. Travel events are all very organized, with all the team members arriving at games on a school bus. The locations Terry has traveled to have been no more than a few hours away. Missing school is not a big issue either, as Terry states that he and his team only missed four classes in total last school year, due to having to leave early. Travel competitions only occur two or three times a season for Terry, and are most commonly an hour or so away. All expenses for the trip are covered by the school. So all the players have to worry about with travel competitions is winning the game.

So there you have it: the three basic categories of equipment, training, and competitions. But Terry Hou’s story includes much more than just this information. He shares details about the awards he’s won, his journey as a Chinese-American athlete, and his social life as it relates to football. He also provides helpful tips for beginners and more experienced players alike on managing competition stress and keeping up with academics while dedicating to a sport. Most of all, he tells us stories of courage, perseverance, and determination.

Despite, or perhaps because of starting a year later than his teammates, Terry was determined to catch up to their skill level. And he did - being selected for two prestigious awards within a year of starting the sport. He earned the title of offensive lineman of the year in his team, as well as one of the best offensive lineman in all of San Diego. He was also the first Chinese-born American to win these awards.

Now, what do these awards mean to him and those around him? “I know how much you’d have to work to win this award - It’s not about the award itself.” For Terry, it’s about the lengths it takes to achieve it. The award is only a marker of that work, an acknowledgment of all that he’s done. Furthermore, his awards helped boost his self-confidence and be more sure of his skill level, which has been hugely beneficial to him when competing.

Before starting football, athletes may worry about receiving stress from many factors. Some common worries are that one’s parents won’t be supportive, the coaches may be too tough, and that one will let their teammates down. But, in reality, Terry didn’t face much of this at all. “My parents are really supportive of me playing the sport… I don’t think I’ve faced any stress from them telling me not to play [football], especially from my mom - she encouraged me to train more, to get better. I would like to thank them and the fact that they’ve been so supportive,” he says. As for competition stress, “I think it [competition stress] depends on the person - when I first started playing, I was a bit afraid of competitions too. But once I trained more, I became more confident, more sure of myself. And now I love competitions because you know where you are [ability-wise] in a bunch of people, and it also makes your skills better too.” In summary, Terry has only ever faced the “typical” stress, nothing too serious. 

But Terry can’t speak for everyone. In the case competition stress becomes too much to handle, Terry has some advice. “One of the most important things you can have while playing [football] is confidence.” He says. “You can never be scared. You can’t be like ‘Oh my god, this kid is so much bigger than me’. So what? You can still take him down. It doesn’t matter how big they are. You always gotta have confidence. You can’t look down on yourself. You gotta know, ‘I’m the biggest one here. I’mma take everyone down.’”

It also gets better over time. According to Terry, the more experience you have, the more you’re sure of your skills, the less stressed you are about everything.

And if you’re worried about dedicating to football impacting you or your child’s academic life, you may be relieved by the fact Terry experienced none at all. He stated the reason for this as him only taking two AP classes, which isn’t an overly heavy academic load for him. He says his practice and study time is split roughly 50/50. If an athlete has more AP classes, leading to a higher workload, some practices may be missed. Terry said that good coaches will always be understanding if a few practices are missed due to academic work. If the academic workload is too heavy, and the athlete in question wants to focus mainly on sports, that may also need to be adjusted for. But, overall, if you or your child is a less dedicated athlete, there should be nothing to worry about, academic-wise.

Furthermore, playing football has positively impacted Terry’s social life as well. He has gained many trusted friends in his team, whom he socializes with regularly.

So what would Terry say he gained most from playing football? “Well… definitely, football taught me two things: If you put in your effort and attitude, you’re going to get the result, and to never quit on hardships. Those are both important [lessons], but I think the most important thing to me is my friends that I made [along the way].”

Terry would also strongly encourage more Asian Americans to play football. “It’s also good for the community… to let them know that Asian kids can play football too.” There are many possible reasons why a lot of Asian Americans aren’t playing the sport. Firstly, the sport doesn’t exist in China and other Asian countries - it was invented and popularized in the US. Additionally, most Chinese parents prioritize academics before everything else. Some of Terry’s Chinese friends’ parents would like for them to study all day, leaving no room for dedicating to a sport. Also, football has earned a reputation as dangerous, leading many parents to want to keep their kids away from the sport entirely. But, as Terry said, “What they don’t understand is that sports are one [of the most] important parts of growing up in life - it teaches [people] what it’s like to be part of a team, to try their best to win games - it’s a lot of mentality - you’re going to be encouraged to play for the team, to step up for them.” Maybe, if parents understood this a bit more, we could see more Asian-Americans playing football - both in high school teams and on the big screen.

And Terry’s advice for people who would like to start football? “You just gotta be you. You gotta have that confidence in you. Join the team, see if you like the sport. If you do, and you want to dedicate yourself to it, then train more, work hard, and practice. Eventually, you’ll get better and better, and [then you’ll] achieve success.”

Playing football in high school is also beneficial to college applications. Football athletes are often known for having a determined, tough attitude, which colleges look for. A scholarship may also be earned through a process of compiling a highlight of moments from each season and submitting it to a college coach. Awards are obviously beneficial to a college football application as well. And if you or your child wants to pursue a future in football, you’re in luck - just by living in San Diego.

This year, San Diego teams won three out of five state championships. Terry says that it’s one of the best cities to play football in. San Diego provides many opportunities and schools for potential athletes, including UCSD and San Diego State University.

But you shouldn’t be too picky, as only 7% of high school football players go on to play college football. In this way, whatever college you get, it’s a plus. Terry believes that it’s more important to find a college that fits you, individually, since pretty much everywhere is a good choice for your future.

At the time this article is written, Terry is pursuing his dream of becoming a professional athlete. Terry’s dream school is SMU (Southern Methodist University) in Texas. He knows that he still has a long way to go - since in college, football is different than it is in high school. He will play football at a more difficult, more official level than ever before, and will be well on his way to becoming a star athlete. He knows it will be more challenging than ever before, but he’s beyond willing to commit, like he has before, to achieve his dream of joining the NFL.

“When you’re on the football team, people know who you are. They know you from Friday nights, when your name shows up on the big screen. And at that moment… you on the big stage, everyone watching you… you know that all the effort you put in [to get there] is worth it.”