For PVHS senior, Turner Helton, the football field is no unfamiliar place. He first began playing football when he was only four years old, and he grew up with all of his family either playing, coaching or cheering on from the sidelines.

“Basically my whole family has been involved in football,” Helton said. “My dad, uncles, and grandparents all coach, so it’s almost like a family tradition.”

Helton is a current captain and the quarterback for the PVHS Varsity football team and adds a lot to the environment on the field. Sky Shaw, a fellow Varsity captain alongside Helton, is a good friend of his and says they have been playing together for three years now. As his teammate, Shaw recognizes all of the contributions Helton adds to make the team what it is today.

“Turner does a great job of getting the younger kids in line,” Shaw said. “He always sets the team up for great games each Friday.”

Coach Guy Gardner also adds to Helton’s attributes to the team. “He brings leadership, competitiveness, and work ethic that is contagious,” Gardner said, “[and] he is very knowledgeable and intelligent in the game.”

Recently, Helton committed to playing Division One football at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Though not formally announced until recently, this was a decision Helton had been working toward for a while.

“[The recruitment team] contacted me during my junior year after I went down to a camp at the school,” Helton said. He returned this September as a senior and made his final commitment after receiving an official offer.

Aside from the opportunity to continue playing the sport he loves, Helton also acknowledges the other aspects of Western Kentucky University that made him confident in what his next four years will bring him.

“The campus was really nice,” He said, “I made a lot of great connections with the coaches and it just felt like the right fit for me.”

For both the coaches and teammates who have seen Helton grow in his football career, this commitment comes with a lot of pride and excitement for his future.

“He’s so determined and focused,” Gardner said. “For me, it wasn’t if he was going to play at [the collegiate level], but it was where.”

“I am really happy for him,” Shaw said. “We’ve always talked about playing at the next level, so it’s cool to see him make his dreams come true.”