Chester (Va.) Thomas Dale High School head coach Kevin Tucker first met Chris Tyree when the now Notre Dame commit was in middle school. Tyree was at Thomas Dale's feeder school, and Tucker watched him take over games.
Not only was Tyree dominant as a 7th and 8th grader on the football field, Tucker was impressed with Tyree as just a 13 year old.
"He was beyond his years of wisdom," Tucker said.
During the summer heading into Tyree's freshman year at Thomas Dale, Tucker continued to be awed by Tyree.
"Immediately, you could just see his athletic ability was phenomenal, but what you started to learn was his character." explained Tucker. "Always 'yes sir, no sir.' Doing whatever you asked him to do."
In his freshman season at Thomas Dale, Tyree played running back and defensive back on the varsity team and became a leader right away. He wasn't so much a vocal leader, but more of a "lead by example" young man. He would always lead in drills, stay focused, and show his maturity.
