By SANDRA THAMES / Community Columnist

Raised in Lake Butler, Fla. in a family of seven boys and one girl by a praying, tough single mom who gave unconditional love, Andrew Zow considers himself a very lucky man. Zow led Union County High School to three state championships in football. Zow recalled his childhood as “great” but said football was always his life.

His first college commitment was to Auburn, but after learning of the chance to play quarterback at the University of Alabama he and his mom talked and prayed about it. They decided to sleep on it and the next morning both had written Alabama on a piece of paper. From 1997 through 2001, Andrew Zow became Alabama’s all-time passing leader, the Comeback Player of the Year, held the record for most touchdown passes and served as a Captain of the team. He earned his degree in sports fitness management.

In 2000 Zow married high school sweetheart Amebriss Small. They are parents of Andrew Jr. (A. J.), Avry and Ashton. As an independent representative, focusing on utility companies like Alabama Power and automotive companies like Honda and Mercedes, Zow has owned his own company (Andrew Zow and Associates) for seven years now.