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RUTLEDGE- Jacob Hill knows all about pain and perseverance.

The Grainger senior has suffered through three different ACL injuries since the eighth grade but has fought hard to come back from each one. The final knee injury came during his final season in 2022 but he was able to play through pain and help lead the Grizzlies to a winning record and the TSSAA football playoffs. All his hard work has now paid off as he signed to play football on Monday morning with Ottawa University in Kansas.

“When it happened in eighth grade, it was kind of a shock to me,” Hill said of his initial knee injury. “I worked so hard to come back and then it happened again and then it happened yet again so it’s been a rough process but the love I have for the game kept me pressing on. I didn’t want to give it up. Luckily for me, I have the opportunity to keep playing which is awesome.”

“Jacob is a guy who has faced a lot of adversity throughout his athletic career and I’m glad he has this opportunity to fulfill a goal he set for himself this season,” Grainger head coach Michael Manis said. “He played hurt for most of the season, pretty much the entire year on a torn ACL and missed a few games for us, but the doctors cleared him and he adjusted his role on defense and that paid dividends for him as he played really well for us the last couple of games on both offense and defense.”

Ottawa in a private NAIA school in Ottawa, Kansas which is of course a long way from Grainger County. Hill said the long distance isn’t something that bothered him and in fact, the mileage is something he will embrace. “It’s a 12-hour drive but I like driving and when we went to visit, we went through St. Louis so that was really cool.”

Speed and strength are two components that any football player will need regardless of classification and Hill said he will continue to work on the things which will help him to have success at the Kansas school. “During the summer, I am going to have to continue to get in the weight room as well as working on reps to be crisper and sharper. I have to get faster and work on my hands as well if I want to go in there and compete.”

Hill is not only a tough, gritty football player, he is also a scholar. He has maintained a prefect 4.0 grade point average during his four year career at Grainger and was named the district scholar athlete as a junior. Hill said he plans to major in Pre-Med/Biology with the ultimate goal of a career in the medical field.