"He wanted to follow Antwane Smith," White said. "He didn't enjoy Faith Baptist but he did learn something. I wasn't totally convinced he should be at Kennedy but he wanted to go."
Bailey found his niche on the football field. His sophomore year, he intercepted eight passes. He followed it up with seven last year.
"We could tell right away he had offensive-type skill even when he was playing defense," Francola said.
Bailey's role in the offense has increased each season. After catching five passes and running nine times as a sophomore, he caught 17 passes for 439 yards, had 266 yards in 37 carries and served as the emergency quarterback as a junior.
After seven games this season, Bailey has caught 19 passes for 301 yards and gained 388 yards in 45 carries. Although offenses tend to throw away from Bailey, he has still managed four interceptions.
He has also dabbled in basketball. He averaged 8.7 points as a starting guard last season.
But basketball may not be in Bailey's immediate future. He is trying to graduate from Kennedy after the fall semester and take classes at a junior college next spring, the better to prepare himself for college.
"I'm tired of high school," Bailey said. "I'm ready to move on."
Bailey is confident he did well enough to score 820 his second time around. But just to make sure, he will take the SAT again Saturday. This time, he's not frightened.
