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Photos by Erin Nelson.
Emmi Claire Willoughby, a student athletic trainer at Briarwood Christian School, stands on the field at Lions Pride Stadium at Briarwood Christian School.
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Photo by Erin Nelson.
Emmi Claire Willoughby, a student athletic trainer at Briarwood Christian School, hands a can of oxygen to Briarwood football player Luke Reynolds (8) as he comes off the field in a game at Helena High School on Oct. 6.
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Photos by Erin Nelson.
Willoughby comforts an injured player in a game at Helena High School on Oct. 6.
Emmi Claire Willoughby can be seen walking down the hallway at Briarwood Christian School, balancing two stacks of red paper cups.
She spots two people she knows, flashes her typical big grin and continues heading toward the football office, where she will restock the cabinets with those coffee cups. They will be used by coaches and other personnel with little to no thought as to how they got there in the first place.
Willoughby refers to herself as a “catch-all” person at Briarwood, eager to do anything and everything to help out, particularly within the athletics programs.
But that is quite an oversimplification of the senior’s impact over her four years at the school.
Willoughby has been a standout student, a quick learner, a helping hand and many other things during her high school years.
Not just a water girl
Willoughby can be found on the sidelines each Friday night during the fall, assisting Briarwood athletic trainers Kyle Southall and Bailey Fawcett before, during and after the Lions football games.
Sure, Willoughby fills up water bottles throughout the night and uses them as she roams the sidelines during the action and navigates team huddles in timeouts.
She ensures hydration needs are met on practice days as well, making sure water containers are filled and placed appropriately.
But don’t call her a “water girl.” It’s certainly an important part of what she does, but she’s far more than that. She considers herself a “right-hand woman” for Southall and Fawcett on Friday nights. She can also often be found in the athletic training room during the week after school, answering questions or even taping the wrists of a couple volleyball players with floor burns.
“It is a big deal, because the boys have to be hydrated,” she said. “I also help with first aid. I can do some of the basic stuff.”
Southall is the director of sports science and performance at Briarwood and has seen Willoughby’s skill set grow over the years. Basic taping, first aid, logistics, the list goes on. He calls her one of the best when it comes to field setup for football practices.
“She can do it as good, if not better, than I do,” he said. “She can look at a practice script that coach [Matthew] Forester makes out and go, ‘We’re getting ready to change drills, so I need to move the water.’ It never holds up things and is smooth and seamless.”
Finding a new path
Willoughby and her family moved to Alabama from Georgia ahead of her freshman year. She started her high school journey intent on being a successful athlete in volleyball, basketball and track and field.
However, hip problems kept her from playing any sports during ninth grade. She tried to make a comeback following months of rehabilitation, but basketball tryouts were the final straw for her.
“I went out for tryouts and was just in excruciating pain,” she recalled. “This is obviously not for me.”
That’s how she initially met Southall, when she was the athlete needing help with her hip during basketball tryouts.
Not long after that, though, an email sent out to the student body opened the door for a new path. Briarwood head football coach Matthew Forester was asking anyone with interest in being involved in the football program to reach out to him.
Willoughby mentioned the email to Jay Mathews, who is the school’s athletics director, the football team’s quarterbacks coach and also her health teacher at the time. She was interested in helping out on the athletic training side of things, a side of athletics she had become quite familiar with during her injury rehab.
Although there was no student training program at Briarwood, Forester and Southall brought Willoughby into the football program. She began learning the ropes and has yet to look back.
“They took a chance on me,” she said. “That’s how it all kind of started.”
Leading by serving
The summer following her freshman year, Willoughby woke up at 5:15 every morning to get to football practice. She admits that wasn’t always the easiest thing to do, but the last thing she wanted to do was not follow through on her commitment.
“I was blown away,” Forester said. “At the end of the summer, she was still showing up at 6 [a.m.], I think every morning, helping being a part of it. And then she was here all fall camp. She really did a good job taking care of the athletes, doing her role, figuring out what that was.”
Her servant mentality and consistency are traits that Forester can point to as an example for his players. They have certainly noticed it, and Willoughby feels as much a part of the football program as any player or coach.
“They’ve taken me under their wing,” she said. “They’re all very protective of me. And, you know, I get to be out here every day. So, I feel part of this team.”
There was also the time that she rushed to the aid of a baseball umpire in the midst of a cardiac event during her sophomore year. Her understanding of the automated external defibrillator on hand allowed her to initiate care for the umpire immediately until Southall arrived on the scene.
“It’s neat to see her growth and maturity and all those things,” Forester said.
There’s always guys that can fill positions [on the football team]. But we’ve really only had one of her. We’re looking at next year thinking, ‘What in the world are we going to do without her?’
Matthew Forester
No slowing down
Willoughby was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, a form of dysautonomia, two years ago. POTS causes a person’s heart rate to increase abnormally upon standing, leading to fainting episodes in Willoughby’s case.
Cases of POTS in America have doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Dysautonomia International. For Willoughby, she has learned to understand and manage the signs and symptoms with the help of doctors and medication. She knows of one other classmate who deals with POTS as well.
One thing POTS has not done is slowed her down. Even in the immediate aftermath of her diagnosis, she kept showing up at football practices. She wasn’t going to use fatigue as an excuse.
“I want to honor the Lord, and the Lord calls us to be diligent in our work,” she said. “I take a lot of pride in what the coaches think of me and I want to set a good example for the boys.”
The current plan for Willoughby is to head to Auburn University next year, although she’s not 100% set on a path just yet. After all, she knows how quickly things can change.
“I’m not quite sure where the Lord wants me yet, but definitely something in the medical field,” she said.
At Briarwood, though, the true scope of things she takes care of, big and small, will likely not be fully realized until next school year.
“There’s always guys that can fill positions [on the football team],” Forester said. “But we’ve really only had one of her.
“We’re looking at next year thinking, ‘What in the world are we going to do without her?’”
