Sidney Gibbs sets career rushing record for Shaw University
Former Owen and Christ School star is still shining bright
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
October 25, 2023
Black Mountain native and former Owen and Christ School standout running back Sidney Gibbs became the all-time leading rusher in Shaw University history, Oct. 21. The senior has amassed 3,186 rushing yards in his four-year career with the Bears. Photo courtesy of Shaw University Athletics/Donald Watson
Any time someone covers a program for as long as I’ve been writing about Owen athletics they develop a personal pantheon of athletes.
Over the course of a decade, I have been fortunate to witness tremendous competitors, but the first time I watched a sophomore named Sidney Gibbs run the ball for the Warhorses, I had a feeling he was going to be one of my most memorable Swannanoa Valley athletes.
Fans of the Shaw University Bears probably have a similar feeling, as Gibbs became the program’s all-time leading rusher, Oct. 21, on his way to 183 yards and two touchdowns against Livingstone College. With two regular season games remaining in his senior season, Gibbs, who was named the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Back of the Week following his record-breaking performance, will have at least a couple of opportunities to add to his current career total of 3,186 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns.
“It was surreal,” Gibbs said after breaking the school record. “To be honest, it wasn’t really something I was thinking about, because my goal is always to win. But, once it happened, it was a blessing beyond words.”
Gibbs wasn’t a big guy in 2015, when I watched him make his debut as Owen’s starting running back on the road against Enka. He was, however, one of the most natural runners I’ve ever seen, carving up the Jets defense for over 200 yards and a handful of touchdowns.
The rest of that season almost plays out like a highlight reel in my mind, as the young running back burst on the Western N.C. high school football scene with 1,750 yards and 19 touchdowns. By the end of the year I was one of Gibbs’ biggest fans, largely because his fearless, often electrifying running style reminded me of the players I grew up watching.
Over time, I learned the young back was the product of local football royalty. His grandfather, Stanley Gibbs, was a standout running back in Haywood County in the early 1960s. He went on to play for N.C. Central University and enjoyed a career as a player and coach for the Asheville Bears semi-professional football team.
Shawn Gibbs, son of Stanley and uncle of Sidney, left his mark on the Swannanoa Valley in the early 1990s, establishing himself as one of the greatest Warhorse running backs of all-time. He ended his time at Owen as the school’s career rushing leader, setting a program standard that stood for nearly two decades.
Now a head coach at Fort Valley State University, Shawn led the Wildcats to an 8-2 record in his first year in the position, as the team currently sits in second place in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
By the time Sidney played his first high school snap, he wore his football heritage like a badge of honor. He still does, because the game has been his lifelong passion.
“It’s really been like a dream,” he said of his collegiate playing career, which will continue at 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 28, when number 25 takes the field for Senior Day. “Football really teaches you about success in life, and the lessons I’ve learned over the past few years turned me from a boy into a man.”
With two games remaining in his senior season with the Bears, Black Mountain native Sidney Gibbs holds the Shaw University all-time rushing record with 3,186 yards. Photo courtesy of Shaw University Athletics/Donald Watson
Sidney has already earned his college degree, fulfilling a promise he made to his mother at a young age.
“That was something I told my mom I would do when I was like 8 years old,” he said. “Football has helped get me through school, and paid for me to get through school. The sport has brought me so far, and none of it would be possible without God.”
Getting to know Sidney over the years, my fandom evolved into respect, and ultimately admiration. He never wavered from his craft, even as his high school football career handed him a series of setbacks and challenges.
What I didn’t know when I was watching him play for Owen was it would be his last season as a Warhorse. A preseason knee injury sidelined him in 2016, and he made the difficult decision to transfer to Christ School and reclassify as junior, giving Sidney back the season he lost.
He responded by rushing for more than 2,000 yards with the Greenies in 2017, when a viral video of Sidney breaking multiple tackles on his way to the end zone was shared by ESPN. He was poised for a huge senior campaign, before another leg injury abruptly ended his season for the second time in four years.
A lot of people would feel defeated in that situation, but Sidney is as determined in life as he is on the football field. He knew exactly where he would write the next chapter of his career.
“Coach (Adrian) Jones kept his offer after I broke my leg, even after every other school pulled their offers,” Sidney said. “It’s a huge blessing to have people who care about you and want to help you along the way. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate him, these coaches and this entire program.”
Sidney found a team of supporters in Raleigh, as he led Shaw with 1,024 yards in his freshman campaign. He has now played in 37 of 38 games through his four-year career with the Bears.
“Having (strength and conditioning coach Wayne Hall) push me in the weight room has really been one of the keys to keeping me healthy and on the field,” he said. “I’ve also been really blessed to play behind some great offensive linemen, so anything I’ve been able to accomplish is the result of coaches, teammates and preparation. All of that plays a huge part.”
It also helps that one of Sidney’s most steadfast supporters, his younger brother Saevion, who played for the Warhorses as a freshman and returned as a senior, has been suiting up for the Bears since 2020.
“His freshman season in high school was the year I got hurt, and that would’ve been the first year we played together since youth football,” he said. “Then we had one season together at Christ School, and I got hurt the next season. So, I only played three seasons with my brother before we got to Shaw.”
Saevion, who has recorded 37 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss and 4 sacks as a redshirt junior with the Bears, remains one of his brother’s closest confidants.
“When we were little he was always like, ‘we’re twins,’ and I would say we’re not twins because I’m older,” Sidney said. “Now, I call him my twin. He’s my best friend, and it’s been a blessing to have him with me every step of the way.”
As I caught up with the all-time leading rusher in Shaw University history, I remembered a feeling I had the first time I saw him play in 2015. I recall thinking I couldn’t wait to see what Sidney Gibbs does next, and eight years later, like so many unsuccessful tacklers, I still find myself anxiously anticipating his next move.
“I just want to prepare myself for the draft, lock in, and know whatever happens I gave it my best,” he said of his future plans. “It’s still all about playing football, just like when I was a kid. I put myself back in that mindset when I’m out there, and enjoy it all as much as I can. When I tell you I’m living my dream, that’s really what these last four years have felt like— living a dream.”