CLEVELAND — Ashely Lowery is a quick-thinking athlete on the football field.

As a play develops, Lowery, a two-way standout for White County (7-1, 4-0 Region 8A-AAA) can pick out defenders and think of the best way to elude them. Whether it is as a running back, wide receiver, defensive back or kick/punt returner, Lowery has made his mark on the field all season for the Region 8A-AAA champion Warriors.

“Ashely can do a lot of different things for our team,” White County coach Tommy Flowers said. “We can move him around all over the field and he’ll be able to do what we need him to do.”

As his stats would indicate, Lowery is a valuable commodity no matter where he lines up. Currently, he leads the Warriors in rushing (831 yards), touchdowns (12), tackles (71) and fumble recoveries (5). He also serves as a great decoy, often drawing double coverage to open up a teammate to make a big play.

However, the play that best displayed Lowery’s quick-thinking and tremendous athletic ability was also the play that drew national exposure on ESPN.

Lining up at running back beside Warriors quarterback Cole Segraves against West Hall early this season, Lowery picked up a high snap that flew over Segraves, sprinted down the field and hurdled a Spartans defender.

Lowery said he never planned on hurdling a player in such a fashion, but it certainly goes down as his favorite play, even if it drew a flag — it is illegal in Georgia high school football for a ball carrier to jump over a standing defender.

“I watched that play about four or five times that night,” Lowery said.

It didn’t take long for word of the play to spread, thanks to the work of a member of the local media in Cleveland, who sent out the clip for others to see on YouTube, according to Lowery. Now that clip has drawn close to 15,000 views on YouTube alone, along with its national exposure it drew on various ESPN programs the week after the game.

Even though Lowery, who has verbally committed to Kentucky, has drawn the most attention for his accomplishments on offense, including a 190-yard rushing effort against Lumpkin County earlier this season, his future is as a defensive back in college.

His array of big plays this year as a senior include running for a touchdown out of the ‘wildcat’ formation last Friday against Chestatee, throwing for a touchdown against Oconee County, and blocking a punt and returning it for a touchdown against Stephens County.

“I know Kentucky is getting a good one,” Flowers said.

Lowery’s athletic ability is partly due to his prototypical physique. He stands 6-foot-2, weighs 200 pounds and is blessed with great speed. He also has a knack for knowing where the football is going to be and has sound tackling ability.

“Ashely is real slippery,” Warriors senior Adam Hooper said. “I know going against him in practice, you can wrap up and you think you have him and then he’s able to make a move and break it off.

“He’s also got long arms and big hands that are perfect for putting a stiff arm on a defender when he’s running with the ball.”

Lowery insists he doesn’t have a favorite in terms of which position he plays. He likes scoring the touchdowns as much as intercepting a pass. With as many snaps as Lowery plays, there is a general understanding with the coaching staff if he needs a breather, he can come out of the game to catch a break. Flowers feels comfortable plugging others in to play in those situations.

“Ashely is never selfish about anything, he really wants what is best for the team,” Flowers said. “We have a real good football relationship.”

And even though White County has already secured a spot in the Nov. 5 Region 8-AAA title game against Gainesville (7-1, 4-0 Region 8B-AAA) in Cleveland, all Lowery and the rest of his team are concerned about right now is Friday’s game against Franklin County (3-4-1, 1-3) in Carnesville.

White County needs just two more wins to tie the school record for most wins in a season (nine), which has been accomplished three times previously.

“We’re just worried about playing Franklin County right now,” Lowery said.