PREPCASTS.COM
Feb 4th
Basketball steps aside for the first week of February in the high school sports headlines. The focus of this week was the realignment of football districts for 06 and 07 and signing of letter of intent with colleges. Let’s hope that these players have found the “right” college to earn a degree. Over the weekend, I heard an alarming set of stats (these are unproven on paper but provided by Tim Brown who is still very active in NFL Alumni). Currently, 85% of NFL players DO NOT have a degree. Also currently, 85% of former NFL players declare bankruptcy within 2 years of their departure from the NFL! Brown emphasized many valid points about players without degrees have some doors closed to them due to this shortcoming. He felt strongly that high school youngsters had to look beyond college and look at a life long after sports. Let’s hope that many did just that!
About
the twists and turns, ironical items, of signing high school youngsters….
….K State Wildcats grabbed 2 QB's (Carson Coffman- Ray Pec & Josh
Freeman –Grandview (both are athletic enough to be moved to other
positions) and super D-lineman, Zach Kendall (Harrisonville) from the west
side of the STATE
…Rockhurst had 5 players sign with D-I programs! Jerome Jackson (K
State), Sal Capra & Phillip Strozier (KU), Derek Hall (Stanford), Jacob
Fogle (Air Force Academy)
…Mizzou turned to the JUCO route to solve the need for d-backs.
…It still seems incredulous to me that Notre Dame signs not one, but
two, players from the same high school in one year! Paddy Mullen and Munir
Prince (DeSmet-class 6 champions) inked letters with the Fighting Irish.
…Kirkwood will see 4 of its graduates on the collegiate level next
year. Willie Dyson (Minnesota), Mike McNeill (Nebraska), Jeremy Maclin (Mizzou)
and Jocelyn Jones (Murray State)
..on the soccer front, CBC had an incredible day! 11 different soccer players
from the state championship teams of 04 and 05 were at the signing table!
Randy Roy, Kevin Bielicki, Tim Lindsay (SIU-Edwardsville), Thiago SaFreire
(Stanford), John Smelcer (Washington U), Kyle Hayes (SLU), Zach Tierney
(New Mexico—final 4 team in NCAA), Jim McDonnell & Corey Kossman
(Quincy), Ron Franklin (MO State), Jim Vollmer (Indiana State).
…Ursuline Academy had a soccer foursome on signing day. Lauren Bozesky
and Julia Brandenburg will be teammates at St Louis U. Kim Peabody will
travel to Dallas to compete for SMU and Megan Schwermer was signed by Quincy.
…the highly ranked and very talented Marquette softball team sent
Annalise Evans and Erin Napier (Lindenwood), Rachel Nachtweih (Culver Stockton)
to the ink letters
… you did need a scorecard—there were five different Williams
who were signed. Cara (Cor Jesu-soccer-MO State); Jamar (Hazelwood West-football-MO
Western); Keith (McCluer North-Football-Nebraska); Mark(Ritter-football-
MO-Rolla); Nicholas (Zumwalt North-football-Rolla). There were also five
different Jones who committed- Casey (Oakville-baseball-Forest Park CC);
E.J (Edwardsville-football-Minnesota); Jocelyn (Kirkwood-football-Murray
State); Mychel (Zumwalt South-soccer-SIU Edwardsville); Tonya (Ladue-track-Johnson
County CC).
Congrats
to all these players and the hundreds that signed with colleges of their
choice!
We’ll look at district football realignment at another time.