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September 6, 2010
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Locals make their choices
Published February 5, 2010
Feb. 3 was National Signing Day for high school football players around the country. After weeks, months and sometimes years of being courted by dozens of colleges, these 18-year-olds had to make one of the biggest decisions of their lives. Congratulations to the seven athletes in West Walton and East Gwinnett who put their names on the dotted line.
Loganville’s Storm Johnson has already taken his high school diploma and enrolled at the University of Miami. The Red Devils’ Morgan Bailey signed with Georgia Tech. Five Grayson Rams will ply their trades at the next level. Terry Williams (East Carolina University), Kori Gaines (Brigham Young University), Ean Pemberton (Austin Peay State University), Shawn Green (Georgia Tech) and Joseph Cunningham (Air Force Academy) have each turned their hard work into a college education.
Other athletes from other sports in our area have also made their choices and you will be notified of their decisions in upcoming issues.
The University of Georgia signed 21 student-athletes to grant-in-aids Wednesday. The total was slightly less then head coach Mark Richt expected but the coach seemed pleased at the caliber. He is aware the changes made on his staff had a effect.
“Recruiting is a lot about relationships. Anytime there is some kind of change on your staff for whatever reason, the relationships that have been built throughout this recruiting process were broken,” Richt said. “I think the timing of the hire taking as long as it did, it did put a strain on these young men that we had committed. We know that some guys changed their mind. I think it drives the point home even more so that it is very much about relationships. It does make a big difference to these young men who they’ve been talking with and getting to know.”
Richt also acknowledged the fact bringing in new coaches creates an uncertainty among prospects.
“Anything and everything that another school can use to create some doubt in a young man’s mind, that’s what they’ll do,” he said. “So, we were certainly dealing with that. Also, starting out in a 4-3 in the recruiting of this class and changing to a 3-4 [system]. … When you hear 3-4 compared to 4-3, it causes some curiosity and maybe even some concern with everybody trying to create doubt.”
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