Bradley wins Region 2 Bryant-Jordan Award
BY BRUCE BRANUM
The Greenville Standard
Jacob Bradley, a senior at Georgiana School, has received the Bryant-Jordan Achievement Award for Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Region 2 (there are eight regions) and a scholarship valued at $3,000.
The Bryant-Jordan Student-Athlete Program was created in 1986 by the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in conjunction with the Alabama High School Athletic Association. It is supervised by the Board of Directors of the Bryant-Jordan Foundation.
The program recognizes and honors Alabama students who have by ability and effort achieved a level of excellence in the areas of academics and athletics that is commensurate with their potential.
Ninety-six scholarships are awarded annually to deserving high school seniors from schools that are members of the Alabama High School Athletic Association. The program has grown from an $8,000 award program to the present over $800,000.
He will go on to the state banquet April 10 and vie for the top award. He joins Richard Boggan, also from Georgiana, as the only two winners from Butler County. Boggan won in 2016.
“Jacob’s perseverance and tenacity are major reasons he’s one of 52 regional winners in the Bryant-Jordan Scholarship Program’s Achievement category, which honors senior AHSAA athletes who have overcome personal adversity to excel,” stated an article from AHSAA.
Bradely noted he had a rough situation growing up. His family moved around between Ohio and Alabama throughout his elementary school years.
When he finally returned to Georgiana, he was was eventually placed in foster care and endured a long, complicated adoption process amid fears he’d be shipped off to live with family members in Texas or Ohio.
“Despite essentially having no relationship with either of his birth parents, Jacob found stability at Georgiana and has thrived as a three-sport athlete for the Panthers’ athletic program with dreams of playing college basketball and becoming a physical therapist,” further stated the AHSAA article.
The article added, “He (Bradley) credits the stable home situation provided by his adoptive parents, Melissa and Charles Bradley, his teammates, and support he received from the faculty at Georgiana – especially basketball coach Kirk Norris – for his remarkable personal turnaround.”
Bradley currently has a 3.11 GPA, is a member of the Math Club and Scholars Bowl team, and has lettered in basketball, baseball and track.
