Instead of doing his own homework during a study period, he will head over to the special needs department at Foxboro High School and volunteer his time to work with students there.

During lunch break, instead of hanging with other members of the football team, he's more inclined to chow down a ham and cheese sandwich and talk with the disadvantaged students of Foxboro High in the cafeteria.

No. 72 may be a Big Man on Campus, on the football field, on the wrestling mat and around Foxboro High, but the special needs students at Foxboro High look to Chris Redd as being a gentle giant.

The Warrior senior is indeed an imposing physical specimen, standing 6-foot-3 and tipping the weight scales at 300 pounds. But, Redd is just another of the "Best Buddies" program, integrating special needs students into the daily high school scene.

As often as Redd overpowers blockers or would-be tacklers at the Ahern School Field or pulverizes an opponent on the wrestling mat, he is overwhelmed and humbled by the experience of sharing his experiences with the disadvantaged and handicapped students. "I help them with their homework, eat lunch with them and I get them to come to my games," Redd was mentioning of his "Best Buddies" fan club, some of which will hopefully be in the stands tonight at Stonehill College where Foxboro High will meet unbeaten, Eastern Athletic Conference champion Bishop Stang in an MIAA Division 2 playoff game.

Redd positions himself at right tackle on the offensive line and plays both inside and outside on the defensive line. He is a disruptive force on the football field as he is a calming and soothing force with his "Best Buddies."

"I have to admit that it is humbling," said Redd of his daily exchanges with the students. "You don't want them to be secluded, you want them to be part of the student body. You want them to hang out with the rest of the students.

"I know that they're always watching me on the football field, so I do my best to make them look up to me."

Which many opponents of the Foxboro High football team have to Redd over the past three seasons. And Redd, likely, will be regarded as one of the Warrior best-evers.

"He ranks up there with all of the good ones that we've had," said Foxboro coach Jack Martinelli. "On offense, most teams are right-handed and he functions well on his feet for a kid his size. Defensively, we bounce him around. He's, probably, the most naturally strong kid that we have on the team.

"What you have to like about Chris Redd is that he plays with a passion and above all that, he's a gentleman."

Redd is one of the Commonwealth's best wrestlers too, competing in the heavyweight division, those 275 pounds and bigger. Last winter, Redd was the runner-up at the Hockomock League Championship Tournament and MIAA Division 3 South Sectional Tournament, finishing fifth at the Division 3 State Meet.

During the spring, Redd throws the javelin (a personal best 150-feet) and discus (a personal best 130 feet) for the Warriors' track team.

Given his size, strength, skill and personal background, colleges like Boston College, UConn and UMass-Amherst have taken an interest. And to think that Redd never played a down of organized football until he arrived at Foxboro High School. Redd was always too big physically to play at any level of Pop Warner football. In truth, when he was a Warrior freshman, he stood six-foot tall and weighed 240.

"I think that because I always wrestled and I played baseball too, that helped with my footwork and my development as a football player," said Redd after practice. "I've always been light on my feet. Wrestling during the winter really helps me stay in shape. I'm in the weight room every day and that helps with my agility too."

Redd was the lone holdover, the only returning starter on the offensive line for the Warriors this season. Foxboro won two of its first five games of the season and closed out the regular season campaign with five straight successes, not only allowing just 52 points through the final 20 quarters, but also outscoring foes by an average of 24 points.

"We lost a lot of starters, so it was kind of a great burden to meet the tradition of Foxboro High football," said Redd of meeting expectations. "That stuff kinds of stays with you because people, former players, are always coming back to watch Foxboro football."

Redd recalls as a freshman, Martinelli taking him aside and chatting it up, encouraging him to be more than a contributor to the Foxboro program, to be a leader. "He thought that I could be a great competitor and since then football has always given me a lot of motivation. I want to be a well-rounded student too."

Redd might be gentle and kind off the field, but on it, he is bold and brash, much of the aggression from wrestling being at the root of his football assignments. "Like on defense, I get to him somebody on every play," chuckled Redd. "On offense, you can be aggressive, but you have to keep your head on."

When Foxboro needs a few yards for a running play, Warriors' offensive co-ordinator Mike Bordieri, generally has the Warriors run right - behind No. 72 (the same number that his dad James Redd wore while a member of a state championship high school team in Oregon). Last year, the blocking schemes were different, Redd was reading the linebackers. "This year, it's just straightforward.

"You have to go out there and play with intensity and maybe a little arrogance too. If you're not confident, the other guy will beat you. Coach (Joe Heinricher, the line coach) always tells me to read the play and blow the other guy off.

"I can tell a lot of times, that toward the end of games, I'm still playing with intensity and the other guys (opponents), they usually quit. When I'm playing sports, I have this intensity - that I want to win and nobody gets in my way."

There are no "best of buddies" on the football field, even for a gentleman.