NATCHEZ — Trinity Episcopal senior Joseph McClatchy said it was an honor to be around his fellow local athletes.

McClatchy won the runner-up scholarship award, totaling $2,250, at the Miss-Lou Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame’s annual banquet Feb. 23 at the Eola Hotel. For McClatchy, the experience was one he would never forget, he said.

“It was a real honor being around those guys, like (Cathedral’s) Caleb (Upton) and (ACCS’s) Kevin Campbell,” McClatchy said.

“They’re all just really great people, and they’re leaders who have done a lot for the community. With the guest speakers and the mayor being there, it was just an honor.”

McClatchy was second to Campbell when the Miss-Lou chapter handed out its scholarship awards, with Upton placing third. Being a part of the banquet was something his father, Robert McClatchy, stressed to him at a young age, McClatchy said.

“He always talked about when he went to the foundation’s meetings when I was growing up,” McClatchy said. “He had always dreamed of me being the guy that would step up and do things like that.”

McClatchy, who played center for the Saints’ football team and is currently fielding grounders at first base for the baseball team, has a 3.7 GPA and scored a 29 on the ACT. He said his father and mother, Sherrie McClatchy, have always stressed the importance of academics to him.

“They’ve always pushed me to strive for (academic excellence),” McClatchy said. “Athletics at Trinity is a really big thing, but they’ve always told me that academics are the next step.

“Athletics teaches you things about life, moral lessons, and the bonds you make with people are special, but academics are what excels you and gets you through the barrier.”

Robert said he’s always felt like the Lord gifted him in the academic arena, and he said seeing his son as a part of the banquet made his father proud.

“I went to the banquet for the first time 15 years ago when a guy I worked with, Louis Foster, encouraged me to go,” Robert said.

“When I saw how good of a program it was, I said it would be a great honor for (Joseph) to be a part of it.”

Robert also said his son serves as a good role model for his two younger sisters, Lydia and Kate.

“Lydia is a straight-A student, and there’s a bit of a competition for her to score higher on the ACT than (Joseph) did,” Robert said.

And Joseph said he enjoys being an example for his sisters, since it’s already something he’s used to doing with his teammates and classmates at Trinity.

“You always have people looking up to you, and when I was a freshman, we looked up to the seniors,” Joseph said. “I always try to set an example on the football field and in the classroom.”

When it comes to the ACT, Joseph said Lydia already has the basics down.

“I just tell her to pay attention in school and don’t mess around like I did my freshman and sophomore year,” Joseph said. “I buckled down my junior year, but she’s been focused the whole way. I just tell her not to get distracted.”

With Trinity offering such a challenging curriculum, Joseph said you have to be prepared to invest a lot of time if you want to excel both athletically and academically.

“You have to prepare yourself, and you have to give yourself the time,” Joseph said.

“It’s very time-consuming, and a lot of people either stick to academics or sports, but when you juggle both of them, you have to come in from practice and give more time to studying and staying up late.”

Joseph also said the Trinity teachers help challenge the student body to do well in the classroom.

“Probably 80 percent of the people at Trinity are involved in athletics, and they understand that, but they still push you,” Joseph said. “They’re not going to give you this day off of say that they’re moving the test to a different day.”

Trinity head football coach David King is also someone who makes sure to preach grades to his players, Joseph said.

“He’s big athletically, but he’s always taught us the importance of God, your family and academics above sports, even though it’s important to keep winning,” Joseph said.

If he had to pick one sport between the two, Joseph said he would give football a slight edge over baseball — but only slight.

“Baseball is a close second,” Joseph said. “I really like the summer experience, and it’s just a one-of-a-kind sport. You have a better bonding experience, and the atmosphere is great.”