Lavin McDaniel used to walk over to his grandfather’s house every morning before school. Breakfast would be ready, his phone would quickly disappear, and the two of them would just sit and talk.

“He never missed a day,” McDaniel said. “Every single day I would walk over to his house and he would just be there.”

His grandfather has since passed away, but McDaniel hasn’t let the tradition go. Every Friday morning before school, he now eats breakfast with his grandmother.

• “You don’t have them forever, and once they’re gone you’ll really miss them,” McDaniel said. “I’m just glad we were able to share those moments, and now I’m able to continue with my grandma.”

That sense of connection (and rooted tradition) runs through everything about McDaniel, a junior quarterback at Fort Walton Beach High School who quite literally grew up on campus and inside the program he now helps lead.

His mother, Holly McDaniel, is the school’s athletic director and became the first female high school athletic director in Okaloosa County history when she was named to the position in 2020. She was a star basketball player at Fort Walton Beach High before returning as a coach and building the Lady Vikings into one of the area’s most successful programs.

His father, Brian McDaniel, is a social studies teacher at the school and serves on both the football and baseball coaching staffs. Lavin has been around the school and its teams for as long as he can remember.

Growing up with both parents embedded in the athletic department has given McDaniel a perspective most players don’t have. He said his parents have helped steer him in leadership and work ethic, drawing on years of watching kids grow and develop.

• “They have been the best mentors to me and taught me how to lead the most,” he said.

Still, there’s a necessary separation as he sees them both all day. McDaniel said the time he spends with his dad outside of football, particularly fishing on the weekends, is important because it gives them space away from the game.

“That’s my decompressing time, and I’m able to spend time with my dad and we just get away from sports,” McDaniel said.

But even with those moments away, football and Fort Walton Beach High School have always been at the center of who he is.

“I’ve always been around the high school, and I’ve always seen the tradition that is carried through good and bad times,” McDaniel said. “I’ve been wanting to be where I’m at right now since I was a little kid. I have wanted to be the quarterback and the shortstop for Fort Walton Beach High School since I was little.”

On Friday night, he got to start the season exactly as that. 

He connected with receiver Cannon Wilbur for two touchdowns as the Vikings routed Pensacola 41-6 at Steve Riggs Stadium, triggering a running clock by the middle of the third quarter. The backfield rushed for over 200 yards, and the win marked Fort Walton Beach’s first season-opening victory since 2020.

The connection between McDaniel and Wilbur goes back years. The two have played baseball together since they were young, and McDaniel said that long-standing trust carries over to Friday nights.

• “When I see him on Friday nights lined up to the right, it’s just so easy to trust him and know that he’s going to be where he’s supposed to be,” McDaniel said. “He’s a leader in the weight room, on the field, in the classroom. He’s great for our team.”

McDaniel said that shared commitment to the program is what makes their connection work on and off the field.

“He’s bought into what we have going on at Fort Walton and bleeds red, white and blue,” he said.

The path to Friday night wasn’t handed to him, however. As a sophomore, McDaniel started the season at wide receiver while eyeing the quarterback job. He took over at quarterback mid-season and led the Vikings to a couple of wins that shifted the program’s trajectory heading into the offseason.

Head Coach Josh Pulliam, now in his second year leading the program, said he saw leadership in McDaniel long before he took the starting job.

“I saw leadership skills in him from when he was in middle school, watching him play and how he handled those types of situations,” Pulliam said. “You can just tell with some kids, they have those types of leadership qualities in the way they present themselves and hold themselves.”

Once McDaniel took over at quarterback last season, Pulliam said the growth accelerated. He came into the offseason bigger, faster and stronger, and his energy in the weight room set the tone for the rest of the team.

• “His energy just spreads to everybody else, man,” Pulliam said. “Being the quarterback, that’s a real big deal, and people pay attention to what that guy does on a 24/7 basis. He’s exactly what he’s supposed to be doing all the time.”

McDaniel said the biggest difference this year is how much more comfortable the entire offense is in the system. With the full playbook installed and most of the offense returning, the growing pains of last year’s installation period are behind them.

“Last year at this time, we were still installing,” McDaniel said. “Everybody was still trying to figure out the offense. This year, we already know what we’re doing.”

He credited offensive coordinator Coach Shawn Snyder for keeping the unit sharp and Pulliam for building a culture rooted in discipline and daily accountability. The team’s motto this season is “chop wood, carry water,” which McDaniel said means falling in love with the small things.

McDaniel said the standard is clear and applies to everyone on the roster.

• “If you are late or even miss a practice, you might not see them on a Friday night,” McDaniel said, explaining the importance of not being a minute late. “Here it doesn’t matter who you are. If you’re not going to go by the Viking way, then you won’t be a part of this football team.”

Pulliam said that accountability has changed the feel of the program, and McDaniel is central to it.

“No matter what situation we’re put in, I feel like those guys feel confident that he’ll get us out of a situation no matter what,” Pulliam said. “That’s how the guys feel about him.”

Off the field, McDaniel is also a standout baseball player. He said the two sports complement each other, particularly in how throwing on the run at shortstop translates to his ability to scramble and make plays outside the pocket as a quarterback.

His favorite subject in school is history, an interest he attributes in part to his father, who has been a history teacher for years.

Looking ahead, McDaniel said the Vikings are taking the season one week at a time but aren’t setting the bar low.

“We want nothing less than a perfect season,” he said. “We don’t expect anything less. 

Beyond this season, McDaniel has goals to play both football and baseball at the collegiate level, a goal he’s carried since he was young.

“That’s something I’ve always dreamed of,” he said.

Pulliam, for his part, said the best is still ahead.

“I’m glad he’s only a junior,” Pulliam said.