‘48 for 48:’ Elberta High football players, coaches share memories of Avery Pickle

The Elberta High football team gathered Tuesday morning for the first time since the death of senior linebacker Avery Pickle over the Fourth of July weekend.

There was no practice on this day. There will be time for that.

“Football can wait,” Warriors’ head coach Nathan McDaniel said. “Today, we just gathered and explained what grief looks like and how to deal with it. We honored Avery the best ways we could. His mom and his family were with us. We got to talk and communicate.

“We did our very best to honor him today. We will get back to some type of routine tomorrow. Kids need structure. They need routine. I need that. Today was good. It was hard, very hard. But it was needed. We laughed a lot and cried a lot.”

Pickle, 17, died late last week from an apparent “accidental drowning,” according to a lead investigator with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Department. Captain Nathan Lusk said there was “nothing to suggest foul play.” His body was discovered Friday. The complete autopsy is awaiting a toxicology report.

On Tuesday, after he met with his team and members of the community, McDaniel -- along with seniors Austin Harrison and Corbitt Williams -- made their scheduled appointment at Baldwin County High School Media Day in Daphne. Much of their 25-minute time at the podium was spent remembering a friend, teammate and brother.

“Avery meant a lot to all of us,” Harrison said. “He and I also were on the wrestling team together. We made sectional trips together. He was really the glue that held both of those teams together. He gave speeches and made sure no one got down on themselves. Sometimes in football games when we were down going into halftime, he would grab us and just say, ‘Don’t worry about that. Let’s go and have fun.’”

McDaniel said Pickle was the fourth player he has coached during his career who has died. It’s the first current player he has lost, however.

“It’s tough,” he said. “There is nothing harder. If you are not in this profession, it’s hard to understand how these young men all become your sons. You are around them more than their parents sometimes, especially during the season. When you get that kind of news, there is nothing harder. You grieve as a parent, as a brother. It’s not easy.”

McDaniel said there were plenty of Avery Pickle stories rehashed on Tuesday morning. He expects that to continue for quite a while.

“He embodied what it means to be a high school football player,” he said. “He was a great kid, friends with everyone. He could talk to that wall and carry on a good conversation. His legacy will not be his death. It will be the thousands of people he touched in his life. We are going to do everything we can to honor him and pass along his memory. He was something else and, by the way, a heck of a football player.”

The Elberta coaching staff has placed a sign above the door above the door of the fieldhouse that reads “48 for 48.” Pickle’s number was 48. There are 48 minutes in a high school football games. Players can touch that sign as they head out on the field.

“Don’t let a day pass that you don’t tell people you love them,” McDaniel said. “That’s how you get through tragedy. It’s a neat hashtag on a sign, but we try to live it and that’s how we will get through this and how we will help his family get through it.”

Williams, also a linebacker, said Pickle was his best friend.

“I was supposed to be with him that day,” he said. “But I went to the gym. This season will be so much more than dedicating it to him. Knowing what he would have wanted in certain situations will drive us. It will be a chip on our shoulder and that will mean so much more than dedicating something. We don’t know if we have another day. No one does. Live and play like it’s your last.”