Buddy Wood a successful three-sport athlete, student

In larger high schools, this is the age of athletic specialization, with three-sport athletes something of a rarity.

Not so in the area’s many smaller schools, which depend upon the versatility of their young men and women in order to offer a full slate of competitive interscholastic activities.

Even at that, though, it’s uncommon for a high school athlete at any level to achieve the level of success enjoyed by Riverside senior Buddy Wood, a three-sport all-Great Northern League player who by the time he graduates this spring will have earned 12 letters, four each in football, basketball and baseball.

What’s even more uncommon, though, is for a young, successful athlete to demonstrate the level of maturity and appreciation observed by all his coaches at Riverside and noted by basketball coach Brent Monroe:

“Buddy has a true appreciation for his coaches and everything they’ve done for him. He is truly thankful, and he has an adult perspective in that way. He is family- , team- and school-oriented. He really cares about the people around him.”

Wood comes by his athletic ability naturally and is indeed a chip off the old block. His father, Dave, graduated from Rogers High School in 1971 as a four-sport letterman and one of the best all-around athletes in the area during that time.

Wood recognizes the difficulty of competing at a high level in three sports but enjoys all of them.

“Whatever’s in my season is my favorite sport. It’s tough because in the summer I’ve had to give up baseball because of summer league basketball and team football camps, but everyone has to make choices and decide what you want to improve in the most.”

His dad, who coaches the Riverside girls basketball team, offered the perspective of his own experience.

“The hard thing for a versatile athlete now is that there are so many who specialize, you’re competing against kids who put all their time into one sport. Of course, the flip side of that is when a kid’s playing a bunch of different sports, there’s not as much pressure to be great at one of them.”

Buddy doesn’t have a favorite, and he’s not sure which sport is his best. It may be baseball, he said, although that’s the one in which he’s invested the least time and where he’s getting the fewest looks from college coaches.

If he uses recruiting interest as the standard, his biggest upside may be in football, although Monroe thinks that Wood could compete at a big-school level in basketball.

Whatever he’s doing next fall, Wood will remember his high school experience fondly.

“You know,” he said, “I don’t want it to end. Sometimes I think I’d like to be in high school forever. Riverside’s a great school. I’ve enjoyed it very much.”

His biggest high school football thrill, he said, was going to the state playoffs his sophomore year, while in basketball it was playing with his brother Weston in the latter’s final game at Riverside two seasons ago.

In addition to his athletic pursuits, Wood is a 3.94 student and involved in a number of other activities at Riverside, including his position as an ASB officer.

Although his college destination and academic goals are still uncertain, he thinks he may want to stay around sports as a teacher and coach when his playing days are over. His coaches, he said, have been among his best role models, and it would be tough to leave a part of his life he’s loved so much.

Searching for words to summarize what Wood has meant to Riverside, Monroe finally decided he couldn’t find the right ones.

“I really don’t have a way to describe very well what kind of a person Buddy is. He’s a natural athlete, but more than that he’s a great person, a true leader. He’s a unique young man.”