Cole Walter knows all about the football tradition at West Potomac. A ballboy at the tail end of the program’s glory days in the late 1990s, Walter watched the Wolverines compete annually for Northern Region and Group AAA state titles.
His father, Travis, played football at Groveton, the school that later merged with Fort Hunt in 1985 to form West Potomac. His cousin, Jesse Boyd, quarterbacked the Wolverines to the Northern Region title game in 1994.
“All that stuff is there in the history books. West Potomac’s tradition can match up with anyone,” said Walter, a junior in his first year as the starter at quarterback for the Wolverines, who are 4-0 for the first time since 2000. “But at the same time we don’t depend on that history anymore. We know what this team can do.”
It’s been seven years since West Potomac last qualified for the postseason and the Wolverines posted losing seasons from 2003 to 2005. But Walter and company are building on last season’s 6-4 record. They have already notched a victory over Centreville, a perennial region power, and last week opened Patriot District play with a win over Lee. In Northern Virginia, only Edison and Westfield have scored more points than West Potomac (132).
“Cole sees the field well, he reads coverages better now and he can put the ball through a tight window where he wants it,” said West Potomac coach Eric Henderson. “You can’t ask for much more than that.”
Walter took over at quarterback for star Chris Farquhar, who now plays lacrosse at Drexel. The 5-foot-9, 200-pound Walter has thrown 14 touchdown passes and boasts a completion rate of 62 percent. Part of that success is thanks to one of the region’s top receiving contingents. Seniors Robert Byrd and Andre Swinson and juniors Kristian Rodriguez and David Pearce have have all scored at least two touchdowns. The 6-2 Byrd leads the Wolverines with seven.
Return to glory
» West Potomac plays at Patriot District rival Hayfield tonight at 7:30 p.m. The Wolverines won last year’s meeting, 35-13.
» Senior RB Josh Wells will sit out tonight’s game for West Potomac. The team’s leading rusher with 86 carries for 509 yards and three TDs, Wells pulled a hamstring muscle during last week’s 31-7 win over Lee, according to coach Eric Henderson.
» Jesse Boyd, the older cousin of current West Potomac starting quarterback Cole Walter, quarterbacked the Wolverines in 1993 and 1994. He played wide receiver as a senior in 1995 and returned five punts for touchdowns.
