Athlete Spotlight: James Wood's Brady Hepner

Posted: August 19, 2014
By KEVIN TRUDGEON

James Wood High School 17-year-old senior
Sport: Football
Position: Quarterback/safety
Parents: Mike and Barbara Hepner
Hometown: Winchester
Nicknames: When I played Winchester Baseball when I was 9 years old I was called “moondog” because we were at a tournament and I kind of mooned some people and some parents saw me, so they started calling me “moondog.”
What do you love about football: I like the physicality of it, you can take your anger out and everything. And also the bonding a team can have, because you have to work as one as a team and you have to know each other to become one unit.
Biggest strength in football: [Strength] I’d say how diverse I am, I can play multiple positions and I do. And also my leadership, having played varsity for three years I think I’ve learned a lot. [Weakness] I’d say how hard I am on myself, how I strive for perfection. If I make a mistake I need to be better about looking past it.
Funniest person on the team: [Senior] Dustin Feathers because he’s always known for just making jokes. If someone says something he always turns it around to make it funny.
Pregame routine/ritual: When the national anthem is going on I always whistle along with it.
Most memorable moment in football: I would say scoring my first varsity touchdown my sophomore year in the first varsity game I played in. Cam [Butler] threw me like a 20-yard touchdown when I was playing wide receiver against Heritage.
Most embarrassing moment in football: I left my locker open my freshman year and Coach Derek Cooper took all my stuff out, because he said he never liked quarterbacks, and he left one spike in there. And I was late coming down for that practice and I had to go in and tell Coach Cooper that I didn’t know where all my stuff was.
Favorite athlete: [Former Baltimore Orioles great] Cal Ripken Jr. because he came in day in and day out and just played the game that he loved.

Favorite sports team: Dallas Cowboys.
My grandpa and my dad grew up liking them, so I grew up liking them.
My friends are all Redskins fans, so it’s kind of fun.
Three people you can have dinner with, dead or alive: Daryl off of “The Walking Dead” for one, because I think he makes the show and I just figured it’d be cool to meet that person; [former Dallas Cowboys running back] Emmitt Smith because he’s my favorite Cowboys player; and probably Tim Riggins off of “Friday Night Lights” because he’s a big football player on the show and just seems cool and has a good personality.
Most interesting person you follow on social media: I’d say Ron Burgundy off of “Anchorman.” He always has funny stuff and quotes from the movies.
Favorite thing to do in town: Me and a bunch of my friends go around to a bunch of ponds and we go frog-gigging a lot where you go around and just catch frogs, big bullfrog and stuff.
Best live sporting event you’ve been to: I don’t remember it that well because I was young, but I went to an Orioles game in Cal Ripken’s final season.
so that was pretty cool.
Plans after high school: I plan to try and play football in college or go to a four-year school and go into the medical field. I’d like to go to VMI or Shepherd, but it’s still up in the air.