Falls Church QB Scores on the Field, in the Classroom

Adam Daly is your typical teenager by all accounts.

He plays football and is pretty popular amongst his peers and admittedly, stays up late. It’s what he does during those late nights where he may differ from some teens.

“I’m usually up pretty late doing homework,” Daly said Wednesday before practice. “I don’t usually spend too much time playing around after school.”

With a 4.2 GPA and a host of Advanced Placement classes to match, Daly is the starting quarterback of the Falls Church High Jaguars. Head Coach Said Aziz said Daly is a very coachable athlete. Though the Jaguars are 2-6 on the season, Aziz said Daly has given great leadership to a team stocked with juniors and underclassmen.

Standing 5 feet 8 inches tall and only weighing 135 pounds, Daly has put up some numbers bigger than his small frame would dictate. Daly has passed for 1,535 yards connecting on 130 or 201 passes. The junior signal caller has thrown 11 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in seven games. The one game he missed with a knee injury, a 34-12 loss to Mount Vernon High.

“I love the team,” Daly said. “We’re a tight group of guys.”

In March, offensive coordinator Ryan Healy installed a complex Spread Offense, tapping Daly as the starter. Healy said Daly did great in summer passing leagues and earned his first start on varsity this year.

“He knows where to be at all times,” Healy said. “He’s a very accurate passer.”

On top of taking four AP classes this semester – language, human geography, calculus and U.S. history – Daly still finds time to watch game film to prepare for opponents week in and out.

The leadership Daly displays has caught the attention of his teammates and coaches and Aziz believes his quarterback’s best football is yet to come.

“He’s kind of like a coach on the field,” Aziz said. “He’s so smart and he understands football.”

For now, Daly’s favorite subject is English but his interest is in medicine, just like his dad. With two games left to play this season, Daly is focused on the day-to-day grind but he has already taken inventory on next season’s team.

“There are definitely some good things going forward,” Daly said. “We really think we can dominate.”