Next stop, Washington

According to Waseca High School football coach Brad Wendland, Damarius Russell has everything it takes to be a Division I athlete.

 

He's proven that.

 

Russell, a 2025 graduate of WHS, will begin his Division I quest this fall for the football team at Washington State University.

 

Go ahead, pick your superlative: humble, hard-working, tenacious. All, according to his coaches, describe Russell, who got started in athletics at a very young age.

 

"It's all I've known and focused on ever since I was little," said Russell. "Every day, we would play football and basketball. My dad would have my brother Deron and I shoot in the mornings before school, or we had to make a certain number of jump shots before we could eat dinner. It's always been a dream of mine to play professionally at the highest level. He would also have us work out a lot. When we were younger, we had a little homemade gym on our porch. We would have to do push-ups, calf raises, and stretch every morning and night, and drink a glass of milk. We would watch SportsCenter every morning and every NFL and NBA game. I looked up to my older brother, Saiveon; we would play football with him every day, whether it was outside tackle football at the age of 5 or inside in the basement on the floor. He would train me and Deron whenever he could. I feel that's where we grew our competitiveness; we would have fights every day over games, and we wanted to beat each other so badly. He played Division I and had a successful career."

 

Russell has two older brothers, Isaiah Williamson, 28, and Saiveon Williamson, 24, who played at South Dakota State. He has two younger sisters, Kaliya Russell, 16, and Kiarra Russell, 10, who's active in volleyball and basketball.

 

Damarius wants to be remembered as he will be: one of the best student athletes who attended Waseca High School. He also wants to be remembered as a good person who always pushes to be the best at whatever he does, and wants it more than anyone.

 

"I also want to be known as someone who always helped others and wanted them to succeed just as badly as myself," he said. "I want kids to know they can accomplish anything they put their minds to, but also be good people."

 

Damarius originally planned to attend SDSU for its football program, but changed to Washington State when the SDSU coaching staff was hired there.

 

"I felt they care for me," he said. "And will help me get to the NFL."

 

Deron also received a scholarship offer from Washington State, but has yet to commit.

 

Damarius has always acknowledged the presence of God in his life.

 

"Without Him, nothing I do would be possible," he said. "He has led me down this path, and I will continue to credit Him."

Damarius credits Awana on Wednesdays for helping start his growth with God.

 

He also credits his coaches, Wendland in football, Seth Anderson in basketball and David Abel in track and field.

 

"They support me in everything I do," he said. "They have helped shape me into the man I am today. They care for me, and I do love them all."

 

Where does Damarius get his athletic ability?

 

"I think I got a lot from my dad and his family,"he said. "He was a really good basketball player.  His family roots in sports are deep. He has always been an athlete and has a lot of passion for sports. I also feel that just my competitive nature has driven me to be mentally tough, because I hate losing and will do anything to win."

 

His athletic aspirations go far, all the way to the NFL.

 

"It's always been my dream to hear my name called [on draft day]," he said. "I want to be one of the best defensive backs in the NFL."

 

In 10 years, he hopes to find himself in the NFL, happy, and with a family.

 

For Damarius, high school has gone very fast.

 

"My career flew by," he said. "I remember my freshman year getting my first varsity reps in basketball, football and track. One thing I always tell people is that you never have time. Always live every day to the fullest and try to get better every day, regardless of what you do."

 

"Damarius embodies everything that is necessary to be a Division I athlete," said Wendland. "He has tremendous talent combined with passion for the sport of football and an incredible commitment to succeed. He goes about his business in a first-class way. He does great in the classroom, is respectful to his teachers, gets along well with all of his classmates, goes out for multiple sports and has a positive impact on others that he crosses paths with. He is a tremendous person who happens to be a very talented athlete."

 

Said Anderson, "Damarius is the best leader in the classroom and on the court that I have ever had in combination. When he was in my fourth-grade class, he always worked hard and did the right thing. When he was on my basketball or eighth-grade football team, he always worked hard and did the right thing. He had the ability to get everybody else going in the right direction and doing things the right way because he did. It will be very rare to see someone else who is great in all areas making Waseca schools and community a better place. I think he has a really good chance to have success at Washington State. He will put in the work and do everything the coaching staff asks of him. I can see him being named a captain of their football team before he graduates. We will miss him dearly around here, but he showed all others who are still here how to do things the right way in representing Waseca."

 

"Damarius is a phenomenal athlete," said Abel. "One of the once-in-a-generation types. He's hard-working, humble and tenacious. He holds four school records, and could have had two more."

 

Yet for all he accomplished as a Bluejay - a state championship in track and field, second place in the state basketball tournament, a state tourney in football, two state tournaments in basketball - it’s hard not to look toward the future rather than the past. 

 

The best may be yet to come.