No matter what side of football one is on, the journey to achieve a dream is an uphill battle.
Coaches have to prove every year that they are better than the competition. Veteran players have to maintain an edge over younger, more talented athletes. Even incoming freshmen, garnering four and five-star ratings, have the challenge of blocking out external factors and focus on the game. Despite these aspects, there is one group in the collegiate football pyramid that has the most difficult hill to climb: walk-ons.
While coaches get paid salaries and star players receive scholarships, walk-ons have to fend for themselves. They have to pay for an education, they sweat the most and they toil the hardest for one goal: to earn an opportunity to play the game they love, obtain a scholarship, and maybe gain the admiration of others on the road they took.
At the University of Alabama, Nick Saban is the most respected figure.
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After him, fans of Crimson Tide football spend the majority of its time getting to know the full-time starters and marquee contributors. They want to feel close to the program and it is the reason why they highlight, circle, underline and discuss non-stop about the names they want to see excel. Regardless of that, Saban has had a few walk-on athletes break through and earn the respect of coaches, teammates and dozens of fans. Some names that stand out include Michael Nysewander, Jamey Mosley and Levi Wallace.
The job was demanding for all three, but all they could think about was making the people around them proud.
All three were national champions for the Tide and two of them — Nysewander and Wallace — were starters on championship teams. Ty Perine, a native of Prattville, Ala., looks to achieve the same goal, and the duo of Rashad Johnson and William “Dabo” Swinney (head coach of Clemson) had the same story of arriving as walk-ons yet carving out major success at Alabama.
When it comes to Hoover (Ala.) High School, some of its notable football alums came through the Crimson Tide — including John Parker Wilson, Marlon Humphrey, Corey Reamer and Josh Chapman. All of these had scholarships, but the latest name to come through the Buccaneers’ program is one that shares the story of his high school coach.
Alajujuan “Juan” Sparks is an offensive lineman entering his freshman year for the Tide. He played three seasons on Hoover’s varsity team (2017-19) on the offensive and defensive line, helping the program win a state championship in 2017 and compile a 26-8 overall record during his tenure.
Since being hired as head coach of Hoover in 2008, Josh Niblett has won six Class 7A state championships — including back-to-back titles in 2012-13 and 2016-17. He has coached some of the best players that went on to be great college and pro athletes, but there was something about Sparks that won him over.
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“He is just an unbelievable kid,” Niblett said to yours truly of Touchdown Alabama Magazine about Sparks. “He is well-liked and respected by his peers. He is a really good athlete.”
On the team that won a state title in 2017, Sparks was dominant on the defensive front.
As talented as he was, in terms of stuffing running backs, sacking quarterbacks and creating negative plays, Niblett saw Sparks being more productive on the opposite side.
“He has always been physical and playing defense gave him that, but we moved him to offensive line in the spring of his senior year to help with his future,” Niblett said. “We changed up our scheme offensively and Juan ended up playing guard and center. He can do anything on the line, so he has value. Once he started grasping things and not thinking as much, he was great. He’s got light feet and he grasped whatever we did, especially blocking in space and on screens.”
For Niblett, he said the biggest thing Saban and Alabama needs to do is keep Sparks focused on sharpening his craft.
He is passionate about Sparks because Niblett has once been in the young man’s shoes. He too walked on at Alabama in 1992 and played under Coach Eugene “Gene” Stallings from 1993-95.
Niblett said the job of a walk-on is showing up to work every day.
“You work for your opportunities,” he said. “You have to continue to get better. The more you do, the more respect you earn. It is not easy at all, but Juan will work his tail off. Writing stories about these types of guys is instrumental and impactful for them.”
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One quality Saban cannot get enough of is having great players in the locker room and per Niblett, Alabama is getting that in spades with Sparks.
His winning personality and determination won Niblett, but Carson Haley — Hoover’s offensive line coach — witnessed the maturation of Sparks as an offensive guard during his senior year in 2019.
“I knew he had a lot of potential when we traveled to Georgia last year to play a team out of Florida,” Haley said. “He was creating holes and making plays out there on the perimeter. He played at a different speed that night. Seeing that early in the year, after making the switch to offense in the spring, showed me that he has a bright future playing this game.”
In going back to Sparks’ character, Haley said he is someone you just want to have on your team.
“Juan has a contagious personality and an energy that brings out the best in his teammates,” Haley said.
The 6-foot-4, 345-pounder looks like someone who could be a powerful offensive tackle; however, Haley sees him as a guard.
“Juan is an athletic guard that is physical and violent with his hands,” Haley said. “He is good in the box and works well out in space. I am very proud of him and it was an honor to coach him.”
He has a personality that resembles former Tide quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, and a work ethic that won’t be denied.
In graduating a winning program to join another one, the hope is that Sparks can win over Saban, the team and the fans to become the next walk-on that has a special place in Alabama history.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
