Meet Farmington football player, recent graduate Evan Gomez
FARMINGTON, N.M. — Evan Gomez started his football career around seven years ago in middle school. Ever since then, he has fallen in love with the sport and looks forward to pursuing it in the future. The young athlete is competitive and determined to go after his dreams, both in and outside of football.
Evan is an eighteen-year-old that graduated from Farmington High School this year. He already knows where he is going to continue his educational career. Evan has committed to representing Farmington at Ohio Northern University. 鈥淚 want to make a name for myself and show what Farmington has to offer,鈥� states Evan. He is excited about the opportunity to continue both his passion for football and education.聽
Though he is looking forward to the future, there have been many challenges in Evan鈥檚 journey. One of the biggest obstacles Evan has faced so far in his life has been his weight. His body image directly impacted his mental health in a negative way. “I was always a pretty big kid but it was really rough on my body and I wasn’t very athletic,鈥� shares Evan. Yet, Evan did not give up or quit going after his goals.
Evan made a concerted effort to change his lifestyle and slowly but surely, integrate fitness into his routine. It was difficult, as there were days that were harder than others. Nevertheless, Evan kept persisting. He developed a strategy to become healthier.聽Evan decided to commit to different workout programs. He also went on his own time to workout and learned more about fitness. 鈥淚 would go to Ironwood gym and their staff really helped me work on my athleticism and getting stronger overall,鈥� states Evan. Evan showed his grit by persevering through the pain.聽
The dedication and determination is a shared ideal from Evan鈥檚 father. The best piece of advice Evan has received was from his dad. Evan shares that 鈥渉e told me that no one was going to hand it to me, that I had to work for everything that I was going to have.鈥� Evan has taken this advice to heart and applies all of himself in everything he does, especially football.聽One aspect of the sport Evan greatly appreciates is that of community. Evan states 鈥渢he thing I love the most about football is that it brings unexpected people together and they really become your brothers after all the sweat, blood, and hard work.鈥� Each person works hard for two goals; to get better at the sport and to win.聽
Outside of the sport, Evan also enjoys exploring the area and spending time with the people he loves. 鈥淚 like to hang out at a place called Locke Street eats and on the weekends with family and friends. I also go watch whatever they put on, whether it’s comedy or a concert or even car shows,鈥� states Evan.
Evan is really happy and grateful for where he is in life. One of the people Evan is most thankful for in his life is his coach, Jeff Dolton. 鈥淚 really just want to thank Coach Jeff Dolton at Farmington High for really helping me out through high school sports and for the amazing programs that he has put together for his teams.鈥� Another individual that has been an inspiration to Evan is Mr. Billy Dutremaine. Evan shares he is thankful to Mr. Dutremaine 鈥渇or taking me under his wing and mentoring me this past year and for the projects that he’s built for this community. These two have really helped me be the best man I can possibly be.鈥� Evan is looking forward to college and hopefully continuing his football career professionally.
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