About a month ago, Alcovy High School sophomore quarterback Ar’mon Hickson took home top quarterback honors at the VTO Elite 100 camp in Atlanta.

It’s an invitation-only camp where the top regional performers from the VTO combines have the opportunity to showcase their skills and get lessons from top-notch coaches in the region.

Hickson transferred to Alcovy from Newton, and his new coach Kirk Hoffman speaks on his experience with him so far and the possibility of him starting next season.

The Covington News: I know he went to camp in Atlanta about a month ago. Have you talked to him since then?

Head coach Kirk Hoffman: Yeah, I talked to him a little bit. He was pretty excited. He thought he had a great night up there and he thought he did real well.

CN: What would you like him to take from his experience at the camp in Atlanta?

Hoffman: I think any coach at this level wants somebody that comes out of the camp feeling like they got better than they were when they went to it. I think he feels confident that coming out of that, that he had a great night, and that he’s a little bit better coming home than he was on his way in.

CN: What are some things that you think he needs to improve upon?

Hoffman: Seeing him at spring, he had a great spring for us. I think one of the things that he’s going to have to work on and he knows this, is that he’s going to have to work on his technique. He’s really a kid that really wants to make sure his technique is good, so that he’s not just a kid throwing a football and he’s throwing with the proper technique. During spring I saw him get better at that.

CN: What are some of the things he does well?

Hoffman: Well, I thought in spring he did a great job of just having a great touch on the ball. Knowing when to put it in there with a little bit of zip and when to kind of hang it up there and let receivers run under it. I was real impressed with his ability to get to a second and third read.

CN: He plays multiple sports, doesn’t he?

Hoffman: He transferred in from Newton and at Newton he played golf and football. So yeah, he’s a two-sport athlete.

CN: Do you think he’s one of those kids that you have to get on about taking a break, because he has an extreme work ethic?

Hoffman: He is a hard worker. He’s a fine, outstanding young man. Very polite, very humble. (These) I think are qualities that not just a good quarterback needs, but a good athlete needs. He displays all of that. He’s eager to learn, he listens, he leads when leadership needs to be done. The way he handled himself has been a great surprise for me, not knowing him that well and I can’t say enough good things about him.

CN: Going into the season, I know it’s early but is he starting quarterback material? Do you think he’s going to be your starter?

Hoffman: He’s definitely going to be in the running. I tell all the kids at spring football that nobody’s got a guaranteed position next year (in the fall). Keep working hard in the summer. Keep working hard every day to be the best athlete you can be, and he did that for me this spring.