Special to Sports News Highlights

(SNH) — A former high school football star from Jesup, Ga., Trevin Wallace was immersed in the notoriety of earning a four-star rating and gaining the attention of Power Four coaches from FBS contending programs.

Identified by several recruiting services as one of the top five inside linebackers in the 2021 class, Wallace blended athleticism, physicality and a family blend of work ethic to stand out on offense and defense.

Wallace embraced the national spotlight. The Friday-night attention faded, however, when the alarm sounded at 5 a.m. for Saturday morning shifts at a local fast-food establishment.

The school’s cheer squad remained absent when he walked through the parking lot before the sun started to rise. The marching band didn’t strike up a fight song after taking a drive-thru order. There were few high-fives following burger flips.

It was just work and early life lessons.

After being selected in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers on April 26, Wallace reflected on those early wake-up calls.

“Just getting up and going,” Wallace said during a video conference call. “My family didn’t grow up on the wealthy side, so I’m just trying to help that out.”

Mother delivers work ethic lessons

Pushed by his mother, Adrian, a McDonald’s general manager, to experience the value of earning a living, Wallace worked on various tasks, including grilling, frying, taking drive-thru orders and handling the cash register.

“I started working when I was 16,” Wallace said. “She's like, 'All right, come to work at five in the morning.' I'm like, 'mom, I just got done with a game.' And she's always telling me like, 'hey, the world isn't going to slow down on you. So, you better get some money in your pocket while you can.'

“So I was like, ‘OK.’ ”

Wallace, a father of two girls under the age of 2, learned his lessons well. On May 9, the eve of opening rookie minicamp, the 21-year-old signed a four-year, $5.9 million contract, including a $1.15 million signing bonus.

Work ethic remains an attractive trait to Panthers’ first-year general manager Dan Morgan. It was a primary reason Morgan cited for drafting Wallace with the 72nd overall selection and positioning him as the heir apparent to Shaq Thompson, who has one year left on his contract.

Wallace opened his post-McDonald's NFL career during the Panthers’ recent three-day rookie minicamp. Offseason training activities (OTAs) kicked off this week at Bank of America Stadium.

With Thompson and free-agent signee Josey Jewell expected to start as the middle linebackers in the 3-4 alignment, Morgan expects Wallace to earn early rotational snaps, likely coming on the weak side.

During three SEC seasons at Kentucky, Wallace compiled 166 tackles (18 for loss), playing with a style he learned from his father and youth coach he described as “I’m going to hurt you every play.”

At the NFL Scouting Combine in February, the 6-foot-1, 237-pounder ran a 4.51-second 40-yard dash and jumped 37 1/2 inches.

“Athletic freak,” said Morgan, who executed three draft-day trades before picking Wallace. “A guy that can run sideline to sideline, strike ball carriers. I think his ceiling’s really high. I think he’s a guy that’s gonna develop, keep developing and turn into a good linebacker for us.” 

Wallace: ‘I did everything’

To Wallace, it’s easy to trace his road from Jesup to Charlotte, N.C. While he didn’t always appreciate the work lessons at the time, his road to the NFL was mapped by his mother and the early-morning shifts at McDonald’s.

“I did everything from cashier, to window, to the table, to the grill,” Wallace said. “I used to be tired of it, but, hey, when you were 16 years old and got your own money, you can buy what you want. Hey, that's a win-win to me.”

After graduating from high school, Wallace left the “Golden Arches” to help his grandfather with construction work. He also dabbled in “carpeting stuff” as he gained better traction on the Kentucky depth chart as an underclassman.

Following the Panthers’ initial rookie minicamp workout May 10, first-year coach Dave Canales raved over his first impressions of Wallace’s work ethic.

When asked about a job that he had as a California teenager, Canales recounted his time as a busser at Bakers Square and pointed to the big difference with Wallace: “I didn’t get up at five (in the morning) to do that. I was definitely brushing sand off from the beach and hoping into my role.”

Rookie wide receiver Xavier Legette, a first-round draft pick April 25, didn’t follow the same fast-food path as Wallace. In the aftermath of COVID-19, the Mullins, S.C., native found employment at KFC. For about “two weeks.”

Fourth-round pick Ja’Tavion Sanders also got a kick out of his teenage employment history in Denton, Texas. His start was a bit limited: “I only worked at Texas Roadhouse for a couple of days. I hurt my back.”

When it came to learning the values of developing a work ethic, Wallace’s mother made sure his lessons came early.

Five in the morning early.

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