Grant Ritchison played on the offensive side of the ball in the beginning of the season, but when he had an opportunity to switch to defense, he welcomed the change.

“I’ve found myself having more of a defensive mentality every day,” the Seymour High School senior said. “I decided I wanted to switch. You have to be strong mentally to play the game of football, just to pick yourself up after the play, even if you lose the play. You’ve got to pick yourself up and go after the next play.

“I enjoy the competition, just looking your guy in the eye and you know you have to beat him.”

Ritchison began playing football his freshman year at Scottsburg and moved to Seymour the second semester of that school year.

He went out for football at Scottsburg at the urging of some friends.

“Some of my buddies said, ‘Hey, you’re tall and athletic,’” Ritchison said.

After sitting out his sophomore year, he came out his junior year and said he has enjoyed his time with the Owls.

He played in junior varsity games his junior year and this fall has seen playing time at cornerback on defense and punt return on the special teams with the varsity.

“I line up across the wide receiver, and I’m basically on him the whole time,” Ritchison said of his defense. “When the receiver comes out, I look at his hips to see what his move will be. He’ll try to fake you out with his head, but his hips don’t lie. Then you kind of glance at the quarterback to see if it’s a run play, and if it’s a run play, I run into it.”

He enjoys playing man coverage on pass defense.

“There’s two types of coverage. There is man and zone,” Ritchison said. “In zone, we kind of back up and see what the receiver is doing. In man, you just press up on them and beat them up for 5 yards. I prefer man coverage.”

He said he has enjoyed his time on special teams.

“I play right side, and I’m on the outside,” Ritchison said. “Instead of a corner, I’m called a jammer, which is basically the same thing as a corner. You’re running with the guy, and you’ve just got to beat them to whereever they kick the ball.”

Ritchison said he enjoys the physical part of the game.

“A couple of schools have been a little more athletic than us. You’ve just got to stick to the fundamentals and practice hard every day,” he said. “You get drilled into your head what your job is, and you have to get your job done.”

He emphasizes the importance of practice.

“We’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing, basically sticking to the fundamentals, getting our jobs done,” Ritchison said. “The most important part is getting our jobs done. We’re definitely coming in in the clutch. We don’t let the scoreboard and the time get in our heads. We just focus on our job.”

Ritchison said transferring to Seymour was a great decision.

“I like the environment here. Everybody is just so friendly. I remember when I moved here, I was just scared to talk to anybody, and people just started talking to me,” he said.

“The teachers are lovely. They know what they’re doing. They know how to teach you. If you don’t understand it the first time, you’re not really scared to ask questions or get some one-on-one time, and they make sure that you get your work done.”

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Name: Grant Ritchison

School: Seymour High School

Parents: Troy Ritchison and Julie Ritchison

Siblings: Brantly and Shaye

Sport: Football, three years

Organization: Newspaper

Plans after high school: Attend University of Southern Indiana

Favorite food: Barbecue chicken

Favorite TV show: "Shameless"

Favorite musicians: Rich the Kid and Drake

Favorite movie: "Grown Ups"

Favorite team: Jacksonville Jaguars

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