Benjamin Wilson, basketball
Benjamin Wilson is a three-sport athlete at Uniontown and maintains a 3.2 GPA that he hopes will carry him to a medical career someday.
If his life path goes as planned, the medical career would follow a career in the National Football League.
“I love football,” Wilson said. “It would be my favorite and track would be second. My uncle, Tory Epps, played football here and went on to play as a pro. That’s how I fell in love with football was watching him play. He played at Memphis and was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons. He also played for the Bears and went to Tampa Bay as well and played in the Arena Football League, too.”
Epps died from a blood clot at an early age, but still managed to motivate his young nephew.
“I applied to Memphis because I would like to follow in my uncle’s footsteps,” Wilson said. “I know the NFL is the ultimate goal, but I just want to follow in his footsteps and maybe go to his alma mater and bring back some memories of him.”
Wilson, son of Muriel Grant of Uniontown and and Ben Wilson of Philadelphia, is Uniontown’s winter sports male selection in the Centennial Chevrolet Scholar/Athlete Spotlight program. He has a sister, LaFayette School fifth-grader Aziriah Wilson, who is a dancer.
Wilson was a wide receiver and free safety on the football team, plays center for the basketball team and runs the hurdles and high jump and triple jump events for the track team. He stepped into Uniontown’s starting lineup in basketball this season and has played well in the early going.
“I like basketball, too. My father was good at it,” Wilson said. “Basketball keeps me busy because I hate just sitting at home, doing nothing, so I like to keep myself active, busy, keep myself out of trouble.”
Wilson has plenty of time to decide on a college and would like to get away from the area when he leaves for school.
“I want to get out of the Uniontown area, but I’m not sure where yet,” Wilson said. “I hope to play a sport in college, any sport that helps me get aid to the college. I like all three of them, but football is my favorite. If I can get something for basketball or track, I’m definitely going to take it.”
“Most of the colleges I have visited, I have applied to,” Wilson said. “Waynesburg I applied to, Robert Morris, Seton Hill, Memphis, Cal U and Alderson-Broaddus in West Virginia. I like English. I like to read, I like to write, I like poetry, but that’s not what I plan to study in college. I’ll study either radiology or nursing. I like biology, too.”
Wilson wouldn’t mind going to Seton Hill University in Greensburg.
“I like the campus itself at Seton Hill,” he said. “It’s a pretty close-knit campus and it’s not too far from home. I don’t really have a problem staying close to home or going away, but Seton Hill is right in between. Plus, I would have some friends there from LH and from Uniontown, as well. I just like the school. Dontay Jacobs is in school there and so is Jeremy Perkins.”
Before he goes off to college, Wilson would like to help the basketball team do great things and better his finish at the WPIAL track meet.
“Last year, I made it through the WPIAL finals in the high jump, but didn’t do quite well enough to reach states. I definitely want to exceed that this year. I finished 15th in the WPIAL, but I felt I could have done better. In the high jump, it’s not all about what heights you clear, but also what you can’t do, so all of the scratches can bring you down fast. So, that’s one of my goals is not to scratch as much this year. I also want to go for more height. Last year’s state qualifier was 6-2 and I was only at 5-9, so I want to get at least 6-0 this year.”
Wilson is part of the Upward Bound program and is quite thankful for all he has accomplished and all he hopes to accomplish in his future.
“Definitely God. I want to give him thanks at the end of the day for giving me all of the opportunities that I have,” Wilson said. “All of my coaches have helped me achieve plenty, regardless of what sport I am playing. Also, my family, in general, for always standing behind me in whatever I do and always being supportive of me. My mom, the biggest thanks just for pushing me and being my greatest motivation.”