Gladney Taking his Game to the Next Level

After a stellar Division III football career at Ithaca College, former Owego Free Academy athlete Will Gladney is now training for a shot at a professional career. After piling up 85 catches for 1,100 yards and 16 touchdowns this last season, Gladney is training with his father, Marc Brainard, while at the same time taking his finals to finish up his degree. 

“I can tell you that we are working on the next level, there has been a little bit of interest and he was invited to a prep camp for two months with an excellent reputation, and he was also invited to an all-star game in Fort Worth Texas that will get him some exposure,” said Brainard, adding, “For the game in Texas he is the only Division III kid that was invited.” 

As a reward for his stellar play, Brainard said that Gladney was just named the Division III all-region first team. A wide receiver with an NFL style body, Gladney currently weighs in at 220, but Brainard said that Gladney is working to get his weight down to 215-217 pounds to ensure that he can get in and out of his breaks smoother. While helping his son train for a career as a professional football player, Brainard said that he couldn’t help but reflect on how much Ithaca College did for his son. 

“I think Ithaca was great for him off the field,” said Brainard, adding, “The growth from when he moved out to now is night and day. He’s a good dude, he’s humble, kind and caring and compassionate. These are all things he always was, but the independent factor, moving out and becoming a man, I am proud of the person he is becoming and I think a handful of people at Ithaca College helped him grow.” 

Brainard also said he is going to miss driving only 30 minutes to watch his son play at Ithaca. 

“I am going to miss waking up Saturday morning, driving thirty minutes, and tailgating and watching him play,” Brainard said. 

He added that for away games he could still watch through online streaming services. The one thing Brainard said always stood out to him when watching his son play was not what his son did, but how everyone else reacted to him. 

“It was interesting watching how people reacted to him, not just the other team, he’s been triple-teamed since high school, but the fans and in the stadiums, watching little kids running up asking for autographs, they loved him and it was incredible what he did here. Not too many kids get a chance to start on a college football team and have the success that he had, it’s remarkable, it’s incredible what he has done,” Brainard said.