The Tampa High School graduate has made a big impact on the field

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – You often see talented players making an impact in the open field, but one of the most important positions in football is the one protecting the quarterback.

The offensive lineman.

“God gave me the ability to play football, so I’m going to use it as much as I can,” said Tampa Catholic senior Eddie Pierre-Louis.

He is the heartbeat of Tampa Catholic’s offensive line.

“Right now he plays tackle for us, but he can also play guard. Some colleges have recruited him as a center. He also plays defensive line. He’s really athletic, he even runs track,” Tampa Catholic head coach Jeris McIntyre said.

That’s right.

Eddy Pierre Louis, who is 1.95 meters tall and weighs 145 kilograms, runs the 100 meter dash.

“At first I thought, ‘Are you serious?’ And then when I saw him running, I thought, this kid can really run,” McIntyre said.

“I actually had no desire to run track until my running back coach told me to just run, big dog, so I got into it. I didn’t know what I was doing. I ran the hundred with just shoes and no spikes,” said Pierre-Louis.

“While he was running, I felt like he was moving somehow. The crowd cheered,” McIntyre said.

“They were like I had never seen a big boy run so fast,” Pierre-Louis said.

“Everyone was like, ‘The big boy is moving,'” McIntyre said.

Pierre-Louis hopes it will one day help him in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine

“He showed me the way on and off the field and helped me develop. I want to be in the same situation as him, so that was a dream that me and him had as children,” Pierre-Louis said.

Family is everything to Pierre Louis – especially his mother, who is the greatest inspiration in his life.

“The fact that she just has a lot of jobs and can come to my games and still support me and still give 100% to come out like that shows me a lot and that she’s a single mom. “I love my mom,” Pierre-Louis said .