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WATCH: How five sisters helped Alabama's Will Anderson become 'The Terminator'

photos -jpgby:Ashton Pollard•12/04/21•

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Alabama linebacker Will Anderson is ruthless on the football field but you may be surprised where that ruthlessness was originally cultivated. Everyone is shaped by their childhood, but Anderson has a particularly interesting family dynamic.

Will Anderson Sr. and his wife, Tereon, had five daughters: Chyna, Endia, Shanice, Shawnta and Teria. Then along came the baby, Will Jr. The linebacker may not be where he is today, a fierce competitor nicknamed “The Terminator” who has a bright future playing football on Sundays, without his sisters.

The Anderson family joined ESPN’s Marty Smith to give a glimpse into their chaotic upbringing.

The Anderson children grew up approximately 30 miles south of Atlanta in Hampton, Ga. 

“We used to have a three-bedroom house,” Will Anderson said with a smile. “It didn’t matter where or when, it was girls everywhere.”

Like any big family, the sisters have different traits. But the one sure commonality? They have high expectations for their little brother. 

“If you look at Twitter or something it’s like ‘Oh, Will had a great game,” Tereon Anderson said. “But then the girls talk about it. ‘Baby you came out flat. You look like you didn’t know what you was doing.’”

“‘You look slow out there,’” Anderson’s dad added, mimicking his daughters. “They make my job very easy.”

When the linebacker left his childhood home for Tuscaloosa, he encountered someone with a similar family situation.

“It wasn’t just his sisters, it was his whole family,” said Nick Saban, Alabama head coach. “Whether it’s grandmas, grandpas, sisters. Everybody had that same sort of competitive spirit about them. And I appreciate that because that’s kind of how I grew up.”

Anderson looking to make late Heisman push

While the Heisman Trophy is almost always won by an offensive player — Michigan’s Charles Woodson remains the only exception — Anderson is making significant noise in the 2021 race. With 86 tackles and 14.5 sacks, Anderson is a nightmare for opposing offenses.  

Anderson will look to make additional noise in Atlanta on Saturday afternoon as Alabama looks to make the College Football Playoff and hand Georgia their first loss of the season. Ironically, Anderson grew up pulling for the team he will face this weekend.

“Yeah, I did grow up a Georgia fan,” Anderson said. “I got recruited by them a little bit. I didn’t get too much attention from them, but it all worked out well. I’m here at Alabama, and I love it here. It’s been great so far.”

Alabama-Georgia kicks off at 4:00 p.m. ET on CBS. Georgia is a 6.5-point favorite, making this contest the first time since 2015 Alabama has been an underdog. That 2015 game featured the Bulldogs as well, and Alabama won 38-10.