Hillcrest football's Avery McFadden is always on the move, until he finds a fishing hole
SIMPSONVILLE − For a guy who never stops moving, Avery McFadden sure picked up an interesting hobby.
“I like fishing,” he said.
The Hillcrest football star was selected the Region 1-AAAAA offensive player of the year and special teams player of the year in 2022. He is No. 10 on the 864Huddle Dandy Dozen featuring the top Upstate high school football prospects for the class of 2024.
McFadden is a two-time all-state senior wide receiver who also plays some running back and might slip over to take a direct snap at quarterback. He returns kicks. He returns punts. He can play cornerback, covering the best receiver on the other team. The only thing he doesn’t do is cover kicks.
“I wish they would let me cover kicks,” he said.
Fishing is his change of pace from football.
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It started this spring when McFadden went out with one of his buddies, Logan Coldren, an all-region senior running back for Hillcrest in 2022. They started fishing area ponds and lakes.
McFadden got hooked.
“There is a relaxation to it,” he said. “And still challenging.”
McFadden (5-foot-10, 175 pounds) has offers from Coastal Carolina, Georgia State and James Madison. Last season, he had 69 catches for 1,333 yards with eight touchdowns. He scored four times on kick returns.
“Really, really talented guy,” Hillcrest coach Bennett Swygert said. “He’s going to line up everywhere for us – in the slot, out wide, you might even see him at tailback. You might see in receiving some snaps. I’m pretty sure he could be one of the top three cornerbacks in the state without ever taking a practice snap.”
Favorite phase?
“Just football in general,” McFadden said. “I like doing it all.”
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Hillcrest went 9-2 last season, including 3-1 in the region to finish second to T.L. Hanna, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to Byrnes.
Swygert, a first-year coach and a former quarterback at South Carolina, came to Hillcrest after five years as offensive coordinator at S.C. State. He takes over an offense that was by far the best in the region, averaging 40.9 points per game.
“We're going to try to be a little more balanced,” Swygert said. “But (McFadden) hasn’t said anything like, ‘Hey, Coach, we were in Air Raid last year and we threw it 50 times a game and we scored a lot of points.’ I haven’t heard any of that kind of stuff.
“He doesn’t say a whole lot. But he’s a fierce competitor. He hates losing. We lost a last-minute deal in a 7-on-7 to Clinton, and he got a little hot. I think he expects the same thing from all of his teammates that he gives, and not everybody is always there. That’s when he gets a little boisterous.”
That’s not often.
“I see a lot of hard work,” McFadden said. “I see a lot of people who really want to win. I see a lot of determination.”
Todd Shanesy covers high schools for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Suggestions, complaints and story ideas are welcome at todd.shanesy@shj.com. He can be reached at X, formerly known as Twitter, through @toddshanesySHJ.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Hillcrest football: Avery McFadden slows down only when fishing
