Wilsons keep it in the family at Westford Academy

First thing every Saturday morning during the fall — the best of any sports season in their household — Westford Academy quarterback Alex Wilson and his 12-year-old sister, Skylar Wilson, watch game film together.

They’ve seen many of the ways the star senior dominated this year, leading the Grey Ghosts (7-3) to a third straight state tournament trip as the Dual County League player of the year. They’ve been able to see sophomore brother JJ Wilson stand out on the offensive line, as well as his prowess at defensive end as one of Westford Academy’s other top players.

Two years ago, game film showed Alex playing with older brother, Drew Wilson. Before that, it was Drew playing with older brother, Jack Wilson, who transferred to Milton Academy and is now a sophomore offensive lineman at UNH.

The Wilsons are a big family with seven boys and Skylar as siblings, and they’re all over that tape.

Even their mother, Amy, too.

“There’s been instances where we have film and we’ve had to mute the film because all you hear is my mother screaming the whole time,” Alex said. “It’s awesome. She’s there every game. I can’t remember a game she wasn’t there.”

With 30 wins over the last four years, the 23 seniors on Westford Academy’s roster are the winningest class in program history. Head coach Bruce Rich, who took over when Alex was a freshman and Drew was a junior, credits a lot of that success to the Wilsons — especially Alex.

He’s starred on offense, accruing 2,350 total yards and 23 total touchdowns this year. Defense has been much of the same at safety, producing 93 tackles in 10 games.

His performances are a major driver for the team’s success, but Alex’s program-first decisions have impressed Rich even more. Like switching from running back to quarterback for his senior year when a need presented itself, having never played the position. Even just staying with the program despite opportunities to go to private school stood out, as well as recruiting friends to play and then inspiring them to fully buy in.

“He kind of set the precedent of what we want our football team to be,” Rich said. “He knew (switching positions) could potentially hurt him in recruiting purposes because now he’s focused on quarterback, but he’s going to do it for the team. He’s a tremendous leader.”

Ask Alex about it though, and every fiber of that stems from the motivation he gets from Amy and his siblings.

“I’ve always said that football’s not just mine, but my family’s way of life,” he said. “Family is like, my biggest motivator. Not just having them on the field, but knowing you have your whole family, your band of brothers, on the sidelines or in the stands cheering for you – you’re not just trying to play good so they have something to watch, but you’re playing good to represent them.“

“All of our older brothers have played, but they also set a standard of being a high-level player and a team player,” he continued. “It’s not just playing football itself, but excelling once you’re on the field, excelling as a leader on the team. They really set … the example for the rest of us to follow and try to live up to it.”

The opportunity, then, that Alex had over the last two years to further pass that on to JJ isn’t one he takes for granted. He’s said it’s one of his favorite parts of his high school football experience, taking advantage of the time together that he didn’t fully take to when he got to play with Drew.

Rich has seen the impact the brothers have on one another on many occasions. And for JJ — already a standout with 60 tackles, 10 tackles for a loss and seven sacks on defense this year — playing alongside Alex has meant a great deal to him, too.

“It’s awesome. Big role model in my life,” he said. “Definitely brought us closer the last two years. … Friday night lights wouldn’t be the same for my first two years without him. Honestly, I’m just grateful to have my brother on the sidelines.”

JJ takes after Jack and Drew as offensive linemen, which is fitting that he’s Alex’s protector with how everyone in the family goes to bat for each other.

When he first took over, Rich remembers talking in front of Drew about Jack’s decision to transfer to a private school — which can be a touchy subject at a public school. Everyone at Westford Academy was mostly supportive about it, but Drew was ready to come to Jack’s defense.

“You mess with a Wilson, you’re going to get the wrath of the other Wilsons,” Rich said. “They’re protectors, that’s just what they do. These guys have each others’ backs.”

Both JJ and Alex feel that strength of support, which starts with Amy.

“The biggest supporter in our lives,” JJ said. “On the field, off the field. Anything we do, she’s right behind us.”

“Again, on top of being our biggest fan, she’s also our biggest motivator,” Alex said. “She’s the strongest person I’ve ever met in my entire life. She’s never shown a sign of weakness to us or anyone else. … I think that’s where we get our resilience and our hard work from.”

Westford Academy football has been the beneficiary of that resilience and hard work for a while now, and continues with JJ and maybe younger brother Ben, if he decides to play.

In the meantime, the Grey Ghosts get one more game with Alex under center, looking to go 4-0 on Thanksgiving against Acton-Boxboro at 10 a.m.