Why West Mecklenburg High School football now has its ‘Shaq’ ... to go with its ‘Kobe’

Beady Waddell was excited.

“We’ve got Kobe and Shaq — that’s what I call them,” Waddell said, pointing to two imposing West Mecklenburg High football players nearby.

“Kobe and Shaq!” he repeated, with a laugh.

Mark Foster, a senior safety/running back/kick-returner who Waddell said in preseason “might be the best player in our conference,” is Kobe. Waddell knew in preseason that Foster would be on the roster.

Shaq? Well, that was a surprise.

Edge rusher Elijah Littlejohn, a junior with more than a dozen offers from SEC, ACC and Big Ten schools, joined the West Mecklenburg team more than a week ago. A standout at West Charlotte a year ago, Littlejohn had transferred to Charlotte Christian and played in the Knights’ opening victory Aug. 23 over Cox Mill.

But it simply wasn’t working for Littlejohn.

“I’ve known coach for years,” he said of Waddell. “I just wanted to play for him.”

So Littlejohn, a 6-3, 205-pound game-changer, moved to West Mecklenburg. In his first game with the Hawks, last Saturday morning at Rocky River, he had two sacks and three tackles for loss in the Hawks’ 32-6 victory.

West Mecklenburg, which has battled for relevancy in the powerful Queen City 3A-4A Conference, already had several Division 2-level recruits, along with Foster, who is getting FBS and FCS attention. But now, with Littlejohn, the Hawks can make some noise.

Leading the way is a pair of standouts that Waddell likens to the one-time Los Angeles Lakers’ duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal.

“This is a playoff team,” Littlejohn said.

The Hawks (1-1) host Ashbrook (1-0) at 7 p.m. Friday in their final nonconference game.

‘I’ve always trusted him’

Littlejohn got to know Waddell when he was in middle school, playing in Gaston County. Waddell was coaching there at the time.

“We bonded, and I’ve always trusted him,” Littlejohn said. “At times, he’s like an older brother. I can talk to him about things that are on my mind.”

“I’ve worked with him over the years,” Waddell said. “I’m happy he’s with us now.”

Waddell said Littlejohn is a “west-side guy” and feels at home with the Hawks. Littlejohn agreed.

“Everyone really treated me well,” he said. “I’ve known a lot of these guys from back in the days of middle school ball. It was a very smooth transition.”

Foster, a 5-10 senior who earned all-conference honors a year ago, said Littlejohn’s arrival confirmed that West Mecklenburg is a force this season.

“We’ve got all that we need here,” Foster said. “Elijah gives us that edge rush. Now we have an excellent defense.”

Littlejohn said he played some basketball in his younger years but quickly realized football was his game.

“And I enjoyed defense,” he said. “I like hitting people, stopping plays.”

‘I really think we can do it’

Making the move from also-ran to the playoffs isn’t easy — especially when you’re playing in a conference with teams like Hough, Mallard Creek, Chambers and West Charlotte. West Mecklenburg is a 3A school, but the Hawks will still need to win enough games to pad their RPI rating and land a playoff berth.

“I really think we can do it,” said Littlejohn, who was a big part of West Charlotte’s strong run in the 3A playoffs a year ago. “The chemistry is good on this team. It’s going to be a matter of focusing.”

Foster added, “With this defense, we shouldn’t be allowing more than 14 points on the (score) board.”

Littlejohn has offers from schools like Alabama, Tennessee, Michigan, Wisconsin, Kentucky, and the FBS schools in the Carolinas. He said he will be in no hurry to make a choice.

“It could be another year before I do that,” he said. “I want to go where I’m wanted. But in the meantime, we have business to take care of here.”

Foster doesn’t have as many offers, but he and Waddell believe it’s because Foster has moved from linebacker to safety in the past year.

“I think coaches are waiting to see how I do there,” Foster said.

Waddell added, “Coaches are asking me about him all the time. I think he’ll make a good college player.”

In the meantime, Waddell is enjoying having his Shaq and Kobe around.

“They’re the kind of players who can help lead us to some big things this season,” he said.