After 10 Years At Connie Maxwell, Anderson Finds His Niche And Home At Linebacker

Sept. 8, 2009

By Kevin Fiorenzo, Greenwood Index/Journal

As the most talented player on Emerald High School's football roster, Kadarron Anderson was a do-it-all force playing four positions, but he's found his niche at Furman University.

Upon the graduation of two starting linebackers, Anderson, a 2007 Emerald graduate, registered 10 tackles in his first career start at middle linebacker in the Paladins' 45-21 win over Presbyterian on Saturday.

The Presbyterian game opened the second full season Furman has operated a 4-2-5 defensive scheme since adopting it near the end of the 2007 season. With his speed and background as a free safety at Emerald, Anderson has fit in well with the new scheme, which was employed to better defend the high number of spread offenses the Paladins face.

"I think he's more suited to the type of offenses we're playing nowadays," Furman co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Steve Wilson said. "We're playing a lot more spread teams than we used to play, and usually it's an asset when you can tackle in space like he can."

Earning a preseason starting role has been another milestone for Anderson, who lived in the Connie Maxwell Children's Home for 10 years until he graduated from Emerald.

Anderson's mother, Sheila, decided when Anderson was 8 years old she would no longer be able to financially support five children as a single parent. The difficult decision was made that Anderson and his brother, Demarco, would live at Connie Maxwell.

"I still did get to see my family a lot, but I just wasn't living with them," Anderson said. "It was tough at first, but the older I got the more I understood the decision that was made."

Undergoing such a drastic life change at a young age might have had negative repercussions for some, but it only made Anderson stronger. Carson-Newman assistant head coach Mike Clowney, who was in the first year of his three-year tenure as Emerald's head coach during Anderson's senior year, said he was impressed at the character Anderson showed.

"For a lot of kids that would be a downer for them," Clowney said. "For Kadarron, with his personality, life doesn't just stop, and he worked to get as much out of it has he could. They did a great job with him (at Connie Maxwell) and gave him the opportunity learn some values."

Anderson was a standout nearly right away at Emerald and collected 342 tackles, 12 interceptions, eight forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries in his career with the Vikings.

During the 2005 season, in which Emerald reached the Class AA Upper State title game, Anderson made 128 tackles, including 21 in a third-round playoff win against Newberry. He stood out at free safety his senior year while also filling in at wide receiver, wingback, quarterback, punt returner and kickoff returner to compensate for the Vikings' lack of depth.

"I think it was for us at that time very big that he could play multiple positions," Clowney said. "He was the best athlete on that football team, and we used him as many ways as possible to get him involved."

As he neared his high school graduation, Anderson was looking closely at playing at Furman or Presbyterian, but the deciding factor for him was the Paladins' winning tradition. Furman won the Division 1-AA national title in 1988 and reached the championship game in 1985 and 2001. It is consistently ranked near the top of national polls and plays a challenging schedule.

Two weeks after today's game against the Blue Hose, the Paladins will face recent Big 12 powerhouse Missouri on the road.

"I chose Furman because they have a really good tradition, and they're a good academic school," said Anderson, who is a business administration major. "It was mostly the players that convinced me. When I visited, they showed me a good time, and I liked what they stood for. I wanted to be a part of this tradition."

Now he has a chance to be an impact player for Furman for the first time. Anderson totaled 18 tackles and two sacks in 12 games last year, but this is first season in a starting role. He's looking forward to seeing what he can do in a defense suited to his assets.

"It kind of fits my strengths," Anderson said. "It's been a learning experience for me, but I kind of bought into it right away."