At 6 feet 4 inches tall and 205 pounds, recent DeMatha Catholic High School graduate and Bowie native Mike Milburn has the frame of a basketball point guard. In fact, he thought basketball would be his main sport when he became a Stag and even planned to further his hoops career at DeMatha and beyond, though he previously played, and loved, football.

That plan was short-lived thanks to a bet Milburn lost to his dad, a "football guy" who has coached in the Lanham and Bowie boys and girls clubs. Losing a game of John Madden's video game to the elder Milburn was all it took for the young man to try out for the Stags'...