Athlete Spotlight

Luther Holmes has a secret.

The Greenbrier senior starter on the Wolfpack basketball team draws from a seemingly endless storehouse of energy every time he steps on the court. His 12.1 rebounds per game leads the entire Augusta area. Last weekend, he averaged 24 points per game in wins against Effingham County and Hart County.

His secret to the endless energy? It's a drink; a home-made concoction that, Holmes said, gives him and his teammates all the energy they need.

"One day we didn't have enough Pepsi to drink, so we mixed the Pepsi we had with an energy drink," Holmes said. "It's called 'Rock With It.'"

Holmes conceded that it might just be in his head, but whatever the source of the energy, the senior has been all over the Greenbrier court.

In addition to his area-leading rebounding numbers, he ranks second in the county with points per game (15.2) and first in the county with steals per game (4.4).

"Sometimes he gets too intense, and we have to calm him down," Greenbrier boys basketball coach Casey Dees said. "He's a great kid to coach."

Holmes and his Wolfpack crew already have stomped over their critics with a 12-9 record entering the week and a spot right in the thick of the Region 2-AAAA championship race.

They weren't supposed to go this far. At the beginning of the year, key starters Rich Poythress and Chris Johnson opted out of basketball, instead concentrating on their blossoming baseball careers. With the additional loss of star Reggie Rice, the Wolfpack entered the season with plenty of question marks.

"A lot of people doubted us. Those guys were great players," Holmes said.

Still, under the guidance of head coach Casey Dees, the Wolfpack began 3-0, including wins over Lakeside and Harlem. In a home region game against AAAA Top 10-ranked Wayne County, the team grabbed its biggest upset of the season with a 39-36 win completely on the shoulders of its defensive effort.

"We picked it up so much against Baldwin," Holmes said. "We held our composure, and our defense kept us in it."

With a 2-2 region record, Greenbrier still has a slim shot at the region regular-season crown. The team still has region games against Jones County, Statesboro and Lakeside before the region tournament and maybe a trip to state playoffs.

As for Holmes, he's gunning for the state tournament and beyond. The forward plans to attend Georgia Southern and seek a spot on the basketball team as a walk-on.

"I'd like to go there for my first two years, then transfer to Georgia Tech to get my engineering degree," he said.