ARLINGTON —  For Billy Main, a 14-year-old boy from Arlington, playing football on a state level isn’t just a dream saved for high school. As an eighth-grade student, Main was invited to attend the national Football University camp, while scouts observed his workouts, how he played and how he carried himself.

“He was picked for the Seattle team to play in the Washington versus Oregon rivalry game,” said Billy’s mother, Cassandra Main. “FBU is a national youth football league, kind of like the NFL for youth. There are 64 teams and they play against each other until the final game in San Antonio, where the winner is the national champion.”

Main plays left tackle and has been playing football since he was a little kid.

“I started playing while I was in first grade,” said Main. “I played in Arlington for five years and then played for the Marysville Knights for a year. After that I started playing for Stanwood.”

Main was excited that at the end of the FBU camp, he was chosen along with one other athlete to represent Western Washington on a state level.

“I was excited and even a little bit nervous,” he said.

The Seattle team competed against Eastern Washington on Sunday, Dec. 9, and won the state championship with a 20-0 final score.

“His team is the best in the state,” said Cassandra Main.

Unfortunately, the team lost their chance to move on in competition when Oregon took a 20-7 victory on Saturday, Dec. 8. Despite the loss to Oregon, Main is still proud of how he has improved throughout the years and has high hopes for his future.

“Eventually I want to play for the NFL, after college,” said Main, who has gotten attention from Lakewood, Eastside Catholic and Archbishop Murphy high schools. “I would like to play for Lakewood, because the coach there makes highlight videos and game videos that he sends to colleges. I think I’d have a better chance of getting into college that way.”

Although he is not yet certain where he will play high school football, Main has a thoughtful reason for wanting to play on a professional level.

“If I played for the NFL, I would use my money to build homes to help people who are homeless and on the street,” he said.

His mother is proud of him too, not just for how he played, but how he has shown good character throughout his training.

“I am very proud of the boys and very honored to be their team mom,” she said. “They are all super talented and if any of them stay on the track they are on, we will see some of them in the NFL. All these young men carried themselves and behaved well. I am proud of how they represented Washington to the highest standards.”