College scholarships

[GLee]

Excuse me Cat. Maybe your remark about blacks wasn't ignorance. It is the thinking of a weak mind though. One who uses color as an excuse is on a dead end road.

[THSVikings2004]

Thanks Gerry.....these IGNORANT IMBECILES have got my blood boiling now. 

 

First, my "sour grapes" have nothing to do with my son.  I know he is not a D-I talent.  But, I do know he is a D I-AA talent.  But, that is not where my heartache comes from.

 

I sat and watched Roger Herndon play lights out football for 4 years.....he became a starter sometime during his freshman year on both sides of the ball.  He went to the summer camps.  He was clocked in the low 4.6's and high 4.5's in the 40 on a consistant basis.  He is a 4.0 student and much higher on a weighted scale.  And, he is not one of these kids who is all finese and no punch.  He would come up out of his safety position and knock peoples' lights out.  As a running back, he literally drug 3 and 4 defenders with him after the initial hit.....sometimes 5 yards or more.

 

And, he was the ultimate team player.  When asked to play QB, he played QB.  When asked to move to RB, he moved to RB without question.  If asked to do anything, Roger did it and at 110%.  He killed himself during the off-season working out at the stadium when the weather was at it's worst in the winter.  He got up early in the morning before school and worked out at the YMCA.

 

So for any of these idiots to say "if he can play football, they will find him", it proves their ignorance.  Yeah, we were told all that when our kids were juniors.  But guess what.....it didn't happen that way.  Greenbrier made it to the 3A Semi-finals when they were juniors and to "the 'Boro" when they were seniors.  NOT A SNIFF!  And, too boot, Roger played 12 out of 14 games his junior year with a Grade 3 seperated shoulder.  He played hurt all the time.  And it NEVER resulted in less performance.

 

Roger was  Mr. Football runner-up as a junior and won the award as a senior.  And to have ONLY Vanderbilt and Austin Peay seriously recruit him is a HUGE slap in the face from the entire college football institution.  Tennessee Tech was the only OVC school to talk to him and then never followed up.  UT talked to him, but it was never at a serious stage.  But, UT was probably a reach.

 

So, how no OVC school could recruit him AT ALL is just a JOKE and proves the point. 

 

Here are two perfect examples for you to prove my earlier points:

 

1.  Marshall Co. has been a consistant winner and produced talent for years (see the third point in my original post).  They had a kid who was very talented that graduated last year, Mario Davis.  Mario is black.  Great athlete who ran lights out.  According to the folks at Marshall Co., Mario got letters all the time from every SEC school, USC, Nebraska, etc. 

 

But, also according to folks at Marshall Co., Mario stunk it up in the classroom, but was recruited heavily anyway.  So, here we have a black kid who is no more athletic, only slightly faster, and according to awards given, not as good a player as Roger, and NO WHERE NEAR the student Roger is.  Yet, he gets recruited heavily and Roger doesn't.  Somebody PLEASE explain that one to me!!!

 

2.  Vanderbilt signs a black kid out of TX to play safety.  His 40 time is slightly slower.  He is the same size as Roger.  His stats are far worse.  (I have no clue about his performance in the classroom).  And, he gets the scholarship offer and Roger is left out in the cold.  Somebody please explain that one!!!

 

Listen, everything you guys are saying on here is exactly what myself and all the other parents were told while our kids were juniors/seniors.  But, guess what.....IT DIDN'T HAPPEN!!!  Greenbrier was loaded with talent and we all just knew we'd have recruiters coming to check out our boys to evaluate them.  They didn't even come around to look.  How do you even know if they can play or not if you don't come check them out.  It was obvious they didn't want to waste their time watching a bunch of white boys.

 

So, before you go criticizing me........know your FACTS and walk a mile in my shoes!

825662462[/snapback]

 

That's crazy. Those are some pretty good stats. Has your kid considered looking into colleges such as Tusculum and Carson Newman? I'm sure he could get in there. I know someone, I won't say on here, got into Tusculum and he only played in 6 out of the 12 games they had this year. He was out due to injuries. He was also out half of his junior year due to injury.

 

I for one wouldn't want to invest in a kid that has a long history of being easily injured.

[FatCat]

Excuse me Cat. Maybe your remark about blacks wasn't ignorance. It is the thinking of a weak mind though. One who uses color as an excuse is on a dead end road.

825662635[/snapback]

 

Oh.....so since it is not ignorance, now it is a "weak mind"? You have to come up with something don't you? It is not an excuse. It is a fact. I am a realist. The reality is that black athletes of equal ability/athleticism get greater attention than that of their white counterparts. Doesn't mean you don't try or give up. Doesn't mean the world is over. But, when something doesn't go right....you analyze why.

 

And, when analyzing THE FACTS, it is clear that being black and coming from a high school that consistantly produces college talent gives you a HUGE leg up in the recruiting battles. That is why Austin Rogers got his scholarship. He came from a high school that habitually produces college talent (not to mention he had 4.4 speed). Same thing for white boys coming out of Brentwood Academy. Funny thing is....with 4.4 speed....why wasn't he recruited more heavily? How many schools actually recruited him outside the immediate area?

 

That's crazy. Those are some pretty good stats. Has your kid considered looking into colleges such as Tusculum and Carson Newman?

825662677[/snapback]

THS....this is not my son we are discussing. I can live with what happened with him because he was not the "clear" talent that Herndon was. And, he limited himself because of what he wants to study.....many schools don't offer his intended major.

[Indian]

Austin Peay is moving back to OVC, scholarship football, it would be a good place for him especially if he wants to try running back. What level did you think he could be, Conference USA, Sun Belt, OVC, or somewhere else?

[FatCat]

Austin Peay is moving back to OVC, scholarship football, it would be a good place for him especially if he wants to try running back. What level did you think he could be, Conference USA, Sun Belt, OVC, or somewhere else?

825662845[/snapback]

Well, first, I am not an expert as to where he SHOULD have gone. But, in my opinion he could have gone to a lower-tier D-I school (say MTSU, Vanderbilt, Tulane, Ala-Birm, Memphis, etc.) as a D-Back. But, without a doubt, he is a top notch D I-AA prospect.

 

But, the whole point I had was he was barely recruited. So, I don't think he got a fair look or evaluation to know where he did fit. It just doesn't pass the common sense test. Why would someone who runs a 4.6 (minimum), 36" vertical leap, Mr. Football winner, over 4000 yds in 2 yrs, outstanding defensive stats, 4-yr starter, great student, etc. not get looked at by more schools? SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!!!

[GLee]

Well, first, I am not an expert as to where he SHOULD have gone.  But, in my opinion he could have gone to a lower-tier D-I school (say MTSU, Vanderbilt, Tulane, Ala-Birm, Memphis, etc.) as a D-Back.  But, without a doubt, he is a top notch D I-AA prospect.

 

But, the whole point I had was he was barely recruited.  So, I don't think he got a fair look or evaluation to know where he did fit.  It just doesn't pass the common sense test.  Why would someone who runs a 4.6 (minimum), 36" vertical leap, Mr. Football winner, over 4000 yds in 2 yrs, outstanding defensive stats, 4-yr starter, great student, etc. not get looked at by more schools?  SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!!!

825663041[/snapback]

 

The kid you mentioned may well be able to perform at a higher level. I feel the same way about a local kid here who is outstanding, but a linebacker. He signed with a much smaller school than a bunch of us thought he deserved. That's part of it and he's ready to make the most of what he has recieved. Yea, he's white, but the color issue never came into play nor was it brought up. You either make it or you don't. Don't blame the situation on color. Bad, Bad, Bad......

[EastTNGuru]

About Vanderbilt taking the kid from Texas over the kid from Tennessee, there is a simple answer to that. The level of competition he plays on a weekly basis. he plays in a state that yearly puts out hundreds of D-1 players. it would take 5 years for TN to send that many kids D-1. Also, recruiting boils down to 3 things: size, speed, and level of competition you play. Big time schools are going to go after the 4A / 5A athletes b/c of the competition level, plain and simple.

[Rebel Nation]

Excuse me Cat. Maybe your remark about blacks wasn't ignorance. It is the thinking of a weak mind though. One who uses color as an excuse is on a dead end road.

825662635[/snapback]

 

 

And the above is exactly why affirmative action is falling out of favor....just a thought.

 

The sports world can be tragic sometimes...for all races, creeds or nationalities. Perfect example: Dexter Manly. Great black athlete. Great football player at every level and from all accounts a good family man. Unfortunately, bad people put his skills before his best interests and assured he'd pass his classes at every level....EVEN THOUGH THE MAN COULD NOT READ.

 

It can be tragic for EVERYONE. There are far worse things in this world than not playing college ball. Just a though....

 

I wish all your sons success!! thumb

[LEONARDSLOSERS]

This could be argued from both sides really well. Alot of what FatCat feels does seem true. I'm sorry your experience has fell short. Roger was a great football player, and will make someone a great Safety. I just got to see him play 1 time and he did not impress me much against a fast team. I know that he did much better in previous games, but the Collegiate level is much faster. If he can not produce against fast teams then how can a team expect him to play well in their league. At this day an time there are thousands of kids who run a 4.6. It's those kids that run 4.4 and below that get the attention. Antonio Minor from Fulton several years ago was a pretty similar type of athlete. He could play RB, WR, QB, or what ever the coached has him to. He had 4.5-4.4 speed. He ended up going to ETSU. He was on UT radar all year long, but just wasn't what they were looking for. I am really sorry for what you and your son went through. I know that Roger could play for many teams. I too had an experience similar to this. Good luck to you and your son, as well as Roger.

Edited May 2, 2005 by LEONARDSLOSERS

[Indian]

Well, first, I am not an expert as to where he SHOULD have gone.  But, in my opinion he could have gone to a lower-tier D-I school (say MTSU, Vanderbilt, Tulane, Ala-Birm, Memphis, etc.) as a D-Back.  But, without a doubt, he is a top notch D I-AA prospect.

 

But, the whole point I had was he was barely recruited.  So, I don't think he got a fair look or evaluation to know where he did fit.  It just doesn't pass the common sense test.  Why would someone who runs a 4.6 (minimum), 36" vertical leap, Mr. Football winner, over 4000 yds in 2 yrs, outstanding defensive stats, 4-yr starter, great student, etc. not get looked at by more schools?  SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!!!

825663041[/snapback]

 

 

I bet every 1-A and 1-AA coach in the state knew who he was and "looked at him", the question is how much do they think he would add to their programs?

[hillwoodfan]

I am a parent who has a son that is a rising senior, from a school that does NOT have a great football reputation, note my screen name. I cant even tell you when the last time this school even had a kid recruited to play football. Anyway, my son who is white, is being recruited by many D1 schools. He has already been offered a full ride to one of the top NAIA schools in the nation. I'm sure alot of what FatCat says may be true...I can't disprove any of it. But I do know if a kid works hard, has some athletic ability is a little lucky can garner some attention even without going to a football powerhouse. My advise to the parent with a freshman.....don't talk to him about college football yet. My son almost quit football because of the pressure we put on him. Let your son enjoy the game for what it is...a game. Others have told you to have him focus on grades....nothing could be more true. It is a shame what I see going on with some kids with all the athletic ability in the world but have not been given the proper attention in the class room and now cant get into school. Take the ACT and SAT early and OFTEN! Schools will take the best or even the best combination of scores on these tests. When he starts playing varsity level make highlight tapes to send out after your junior year and send them out to EVERYBODY at EVERY level. Dont discount any school just because YOU think he is D1 material.....kids do fall through the cracks or get overlooked. A free education at an NAIA or D2 school is just as good as one at a D1 school. Good luck and enjoy the ride.

[LEONARDSLOSERS]

What is your sons size, stregnth, and speed?