One by one, members of the Bartlett High football team filed out of an after-school study hall in coach Daniel Esparza's classroom and made their way to the school's turf field. Left behind was their star player, who was stretched across a brown folding table with a fresh bag of ice over his black ankle brace boot.
Golden Bears tailback Ethan Falaniko,a 17-year-old senior, is one of the nation's top high school football players. According to MaxPreps.com, which provides unofficial high school sports statistics, he ranks second in the nation in rushing yards with 2,001 in eight games this season.
He has rushed for 32 touchdowns and Tuesday he was named the Cook Inlet Conference's offensive player of the year.
But in a loss to West last week, Falaniko suffered a high ankle sprain that kept him out of practice most of this week. Doctors have cleared him to play Friday night when the Golden Bears face the Chugiak Mustangs in the state quarterfinals, but he'll have to tape his ankle, lace up a brace and wear high-top cleats.
"I don't really see myself as injured, just a minor setback for a major comeback," Falaniko said.
Falaniko seems to lack teenage angst, which makes him rather charming and easy to talk to. He's also a humble star. Falaniko doesn't talk about his recent accolades unless someone else brings it up and his coaches don't dwell on his accomplishments, either.
"I see him as a role model for the guys and I don't see a lot of jealousy towards him," Bartlett coach John Jessen said. "It helps we don't talk about it and when he has accolades he spins it so everyone is apart of it."
On Tuesday, Falaniko made his way down to the field in a pair of blue shorts and a grey fleece jacket. He used football training gear to make a comfy spot on a green bench alongside the field and elevated his ankle. He played with a football as a constant stream of people walked by to talk with him.
"It really stinks," Falaniko said of his injury. "It reminds me of sophomore year when I partially tore my MCL on my left side and was out for half of the season. I just miss it, but I have faith I'll be out there soon, as good as new."
Falaniko's faith is a large part of his daily life. Before games, he said, he often leads his team in prayer. He is involved in his church, where he's currently rehearsing skits for White Sunday, a holiday that celebrates childhood twice a year, most commonly in Samoan and Tongan communities.
"I'm just a church boy," Falaniko said, flashing a smile that he shows off to everyone.
"We start and end with God."
Falaniko owns an accumulative GPA of 3.94 and this semester he's pulling a 4.17 while taking pre-calculus, advanced-placement art history, mythology, humanities and Alaska studies. Next semester he's planning on taking advanced-placement U.S. government as well.
"I'll do whatever I need to for a better future," Falaniko said. "My schedule isn't that bad, it's pretty good."
He tries to spend his free moments with his family.
"We're very active. We play a lot of sports to keep us off the couch and away from the TV and chips," he said.
Some of his family time happens on the football field. Last year he played with his older brother Eti and this year he plays with his sophomore brother Solo. He also has three other brothers.
"There's enough of us to make our own team," Falaniko said with a laugh.
Teammate and fellow running back Jordan Pace, a first-team all-conference pick, has played with Falaniko since they were freshmen. The duo works together in the classroom, studying pre-calculus together, and on the football field.
"We always try and keep each other motivated," Pace said. "If there's a bad play, we talk each other past it and build each other up. He's always been the same, though. Now, he's bigger, stronger and he's opened up."
Falaniko plans to attend school on the West Coast next year. He hasn't decided where, but said he has talked to a couple of coaches and has narrowed his educational goals to mathematics, mechanics or business.
"I always want to do my best on the field and off of the field," Falaniko said. "That's what's important for my future."