It isn't enough that Cameron Chow is No. 1 in his class, that he's never gotten anything but an A in his life, that he's co-captain of the football team and starts on the basketball team, that he's an Eagle Scout, that he dreams of an Ivy League education, sings in the choir, serves as student body vice president, participates in National Honor Society activities, plays piano in his seminary class, strives to be a role model and a leader, adores his family and is the nicest, most well-rounded kid you'll ever meet, unless you've met his siblings, too. . . .
. . . And after all that there is still this business with the dog. Atthe end of the interview, after the newspaper man has finished with his questions and is packing his notebook, he asks, as an afterthought, if there is anything he missed. "Um, well, I work with my dog. He's a therapeutic dog, and we visit people in care centers." Out the notebook comes. There is more.
Just one question: Is this kid for real?
Chow is a poster boy for the student-athlete-son-brother-teammate-citizen. The worst thing he does is forget to put the milk back in the fridge.
He starts at free safety on the Timpview football team, which will play in the second round of the state playoffs on Saturday, but being strictly an athlete, even a successful one, was never enough for him. Never mind that his father, Norm, is the quarterback coach/offensive coordinator at BYU.
Norm actually discouraged his three sons from playing football. Carter, the oldest, played tennis instead. Chandler, the youngest, plays basketball and golf. "If it were up to my dad we would have all played baseball," says Cameron, who was the only one to pursue football against his parents' initial objections. His parents worried that football would affect his grades. He promised to do well in both.
He kept his promise. He is No. 1 in a senior class of 490 students at Timpview, with a 4.0 grade point average. He also leads the football team in interceptions and was named to the academic all-state team.
"I don't like the stigma of just being a jock," he says. "I want to do well in school and in other things. High school sports will last only so long. The other things will help you more with the rest of your life."
Chow grew up in a close family that emphasized academics, music, religion and sports. The Chow children study the piano from the age of eight until 16, give their best effort in school, treat everybody like a favorite house guest and go to church on Sunday.
Carter and Maile, the oldest two children, received only one grade lower than an A in high school - an A-minus. Carter, who played tennis at BYU, teaches English in Japan, where he served an LDS Church mission. Eventually, he plans to attend law school. Maile, who recently graduated from BYU, is attending graduate school at the school of journalism at Syracuse University.
No wonder Chandler, the seventh-grader, came home the other day and told his mom, Diane, "I think I'm getting straight A's. But will you be mad if I don't?"
"Not if you're trying your best," she said.
"We've had a lot of people ask why we've had such good luck with our children," says Diane. "I don't know what to tell them. There's been a lot of love, communication and trust."
Like his siblings, Cameron is self-motivated. Even as a young boy, he stuck to a routine: First homework, then piano practice, then playtime. "I've always pushed myself," he says. "I see no reason we should push yourselves on the field, but not in class. I'm as proud of my accomplishments in class as I am in sports."
He is courting Cornell, Dartmouth, Columbia and Harvard, hoping to land a scholarship; otherwise, he can't afford to attend such pricey schools. He plans to study either clinical psychology or law.
"I've always dreamed of going to an Ivy League school," he says. "That would be the best new challenge for me. I'd like to continue playing football. It could help me get into school."
Chow was Timpview's starting quarterback at the beginning of the year, but the truth is he never liked playing the position. He always got the job by default. After getting off to a slow start this season, he shared the job with his backup. Rather than endure the turmoil of dual quarterbacks, he told the coach to move him to another position. He has starred on defense this season and ranks second on the team in defensive points.
"He's a leader," says assistant coach Louis Wong. "If we need someone to talk to a kid who's not performing well, Chow's the kid we send. The kids listen to him. He keeps them together."
Not that it has been easy to be Norm Chow's kid. Whenever BYU's offense is playing poorly, Norm is Provo's favorite whipping boy, and his children catch some of the abuse from fans, rival players and once even a referee.
"My dad told me a long time ago just to get used to it, that that's the way it was going to be," says Cameron.
If people only knew Cameron, they couldn't be so cruel. He is not a kid who is easy to dislike. After all, we're talking about an athlete who reports to Gold's Gym for a workout AFTER football practice, then goes home and hits the books and plays the piano. We're talking about an 18-year-old who visits the elderly with Yuki, his 100-pound white Samoyed that doubles as a pet and a trained therapeutic dog. Together they visit hospitals and retirement homes each week.
"It's fun to brighten someone's day who doesn't have much to look forward to," he says. "We just try to make people happy. I use the dog as a conversation piece as a way to get to know the people. (The dog) breaks down barriers."
This is a kid you could learn to like.