Clint Alexander introduced his major signee by noting that during the 2009 season when defensive back CJ Prosise broke on a ball for an interception before the St. Christopher’s receiver finished his route and the quarterback had delivered the pass, he saw flashes of Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed. Alexander told a coaching friend of his just that, and the response was not to throw that name around lightly. After watching Prosise on tape, that friend retracted his statement. It was with that interception against the Saints in a 35-16 win that Prosise felt as though he was collegiate material.
“My sophomore year I wasn’t really focused on football,” Prosise said. “I was a basketball guy and football was just here to help me out. Then in that St. Chris game my instincts took over. I broke on that ball and thought ‘wow, football might be my thing now.’”
On National Singing Day, the Tigers standout made that football aspiration a reality as he formally signed to play for one of the most storied programs in college football, Notre Dame.
“First of all, it was academics and my family loved it (there),” Prosise said. “And it’s just the tradition. To be able to come out of that football stadium and walk a quarter mile between 100,000 fans screaming your names, that tradition … everything about it is great.”
With offers from a dozen programs including both Virginia and Virginia Tech, Prosise made a splash this May when he verbally committed to play for the Fighting Irish. In the fall, the senior had his best year at Woodberry as he earned first team All-VISAA Division 1 honors as both a defensive back and punt returner and was the Prep League player of the year and Scrimmage Play defensive player of the year.
To see video of Prosise’s signing from Woodberry’ web page, click here.
Five for FUMA
As is the case on an annual basis, Fork Union’s fax machine was plenty busy Wednesday morning as three Blue Devils inked deals to play football and a pair of runners signed up for track and field.
John Tu’uta has been an anchor for the Fork Union offensive line his entire high school career and will get a chance to play in the same conference as some of his old teammates after signing with North Carolina State where he will play center and/or guard.
“It was so great to be able to go where I wanted to go,” Tu’uta said. “When they actually offered to me, I didn’t know what to do. I just stared at them. I was so happy.”
Two years ago former linemates Mark Shuman and Russell Bodine signed to play for Virginia Tech and North Carolina respectively. Tu’uta was a first team All-VISAA Division 1 and All-Prep League player in both 2011 and 2010 having played every spot on the offensive line.
“From my experience, when you’re here at Fork Union, as much as you put into it, that’s what you’ll get out of it,” Tu’uta said. “Playing tackle here was tough, and I’m excited because center or guard that’s where I want to be. That’s where I’m going to be, so everything is good.”
On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle Conlan Cassidy worked out his deal to play for Indiana State, projecting to play at the same position. In 2011, he had 89 tackles and four sacks en route to All-state and All-PL honors.
“At first all I cared about was offers,” Cassidy said of his senior year. “I stopped thinking about that though, started just thinking about playing football and then the offers came. Once I went to Indiana State, my decision was made.”
The playmaker of Fork Union’s offense this year, wide receiver D.J. Randle El, found his next home officially by inking up with Bryant University, an FCS school out of Rhode Island. The Blue Devil’s top threat had 789 receiving yards, finished with 10 touchdowns and averaged 15.5 yards per catch.
“This was actually kind of fun,” Randle El said of the recruiting process. “I had a lot of schools early in the process, some drop out, but Bryant came late. I went up there last week and it was just the right fit. It’s one of the top academic schools in the country in business where I want to major. Football wise, I loved the guys. This (team) is on the straight and narrow, making the playoffs this year and in the Division 2 to Division 1 transition.”
Randle-El, just like Tu’uta and Cassidy, was first team All-State and All-PL.
And while football often dominates the NSD headlines, FUMA coach Winston Brown’s proud and storied track and field program continued its tradition as a pipeline for college athletes.
Middle distance specialist Avery Martin will head to Virginia Military Institute this fall. Martin took third at the VISAA championships this May in the 1600 meter run.
“I was looking at a lot of places but that changed three months ago when I saw VMI,” Martin said. “I looked at their times, I felt I could help out there. When I made my visit, that felt like the place for me.”
Coming to FUMA from Poland, Michael Idziak is about to head across the country to continue his running career, signing up to run for Texas A&M-Kingsville. Idziak was a state champion in the spring it the 800 at the VISAA meet, and also took third in the 400.
“I never expected to make it,” Idziak said. “I was nervous. All I wanted to do was accomplish the goals I made for me. It’s so nice to have this. After this, now I can really focus on academics, make my A’s and finish strong. This is going to be exciting entering college this fall.”
Also, Fork Union broadcast their signings live on the internet. You can see the video by clicking here.
Mustang wideout staying close
Apparently, Sam Patterson just needed to find the right spot.
After three solid but not spectacular years on the gridiron at Covenant, baseball where he excelled as an outfielder and earned first team all-state honors last year, seemed to be Patterson’s best shot at a future in collegiate athletics.
Then Patterson exploded this fall as Monticello’s vertical threat at wide receiver and changed everything. After a whirlwind recruiting process that even involved a potential preferred walk-on spot at Virginia Tech, Patterson is bound for Virginia Military Institute to play FCS football for the Keydets.
“It was mainly the coaches,” Patterson said. “I was a little hesitant going on my visit up there but after that I knew it was something I could fit into.”
Patterson hauled in nine touchdowns and 872 yards, averaging a seemingly unthinkable 30.1 yards per catch. His explosive leaping ability, size and natural timing were all enough to sway the Keydets’ coaching staff to make an offer and made shelving baseball an easier decision.
“Football just really felt right,” Patterson said. “I had a great season this year and I wanted to see myself reach my full potential (in football).”
Patterson also gets to keep that baseball career as an option. He’s got an understanding with VMI that he can potentially give baseball a shot his second year at the school. Of course, if football is going as planned, that won’t be a concern.
Trio of Orange County athletes shore up plans
For Raheim Cooper, it was a no-brainer.
“I’ve wanted to play college baseball since I was a little kid and when Virginia Tech offered me I just had to jump on it,” Cooper said. “I mean, it’s ACC baseball, it doesn’t get any better than that.”
Cooper, a standout speedster for Orange County’s baseball team is now slated to suit up for Virginia Tech’s baseball squad this fall.
He inked his pledge to the Hokies along with classmates Landon Rasnick and Hunter Ferguson Wednesday afternoon. Rasnick is bound for Eastern Kentucky’s football program while Ferguson will kick and punt for Ferrum’s football team this fall.
Cooper, who’s also meeting with a MLB scout affiliated with the Anaheim Angels this week to explore all his options, is a fleet-footed shortstop who’d likely move to the outfield at the next level. He earned first team All-Jefferson District honors as a utility player as a junior last spring and had a monster couple of seasons early in high school when the Hornets were loaded with pitching talents like D.J. Brown and Derek Justice.
Rasnick joins a heralded Eastern Kentucky FCS program that plays in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Colonels regularly take on big-time BCS programs, like Kansas State this year, Purdue in 2012 and Florida in 2014.
“I didn’t know much about Eastern Kentucky until I went down there and I just loved it,” Rasnick said. “Loved the coaches, loved the people and I felt connected with them.”
Rasnick who’s played along the offensive line and at tight end during his time at Orange, will join another local on the Colonels roster. One mid-year Eastern Kentucky signee is Jason Creeden, a 2011 Woodberry Forest graduate who spent this fall as part of Fork Union’s postgraduate program.
Ferguson, who is also a solid keeper during soccer season for Orange, has been a mainstay at kicker for the Hornets for several years. He earned first team All-Commonwealth honors as a punter this fall, and his performance helped ignite interest from Ferrum.
“The coaches are amazing people, the atmosphere is just really quiet and it’s a winning team,” Ferguson said. “What more could I ask for.”
Three other Central Virginia products are already on the Ferrum roster. Shawn Winfrey from Monticello, Travis Johnson from Louisa and Chris Colvin from Louisa.
Duprey headed for Elon
Zach Duprey was a critical part of William Monroe’s turnaround. He emerged as a legitimate offensive threat for the Dragons as a junior at tight end, both a threat in the middle of the field and especially in the redzone.
Now he’ll join another program on the rise as a preferred walk-on at Elon University, a Southern Conference FCS squad in North Carolina. The Southern includes FCS luminaries like Georgia Southern, Wofford and Appalachian State, so Duprey will be going head-to-head against some of the nation’s best FCS players if he works his way onto the field. He’s certainly got the talent to get it done as he drew interest from a number of schools like Richmond before honing in on Elon, led by second year head coach Jason Swepson.
“I wanted somewhere to go where there was something to do when we have time off,” Duprey said. “A good campus environment and Elon’s campus was everything I wanted.”
Duprey’s numbers dipped slightly this year as defense’s locked in on the Dragons’ top receiving threat, but he came up with brilliant play on defense to help lift William Monroe to the school’s Group A, Eastern Section playoff appearance.
Ayres bound for VMI
Tarian Ayres has a lot of basketball to handle right now, but the Buckingham star’s first love, football will now definitely be a part of his future.
Ayres signed on to join VMI’s program, one of two quarterbacks in the Keydets’ class of 2012. He’s already drawing high praise from VMI’s head coach Sparky Woods.
“He creates a matchup problem for defenses by stretching the field with his strong arm and making defenders miss with his speed and agility,” Woods said. “On top of all of this, he is a dedicated young man who works just as hard in the classroom as he does on the gridiron. People will be attracted to him by his leadership skills and his overwhelming athletic ability.”
Ayres threw for 1,396 yards and rushed for another 704 yards. He threw for 13 touchdowns and rushed for 16 more while leading Buckingham to a 9-3 record. He was a 3-year, full-time starter for the Knights after splitting time during his freshman campaign.
Goochland’s special teamers sign major deals
It’s going to be a very, very long time before any team, much less a Group A squad has both its kicker and punter sign NLI’s to play for major BCS conference teams. Bulldogs kicker Colby Cooke and punter Thomas Meadows each signed up to play for their schools, albeit in different places.
Participating in the International Bowl in Austin, Texas, Cooke locked up his contract with Vanderbilt alongside teammates in the event also signing with South Eastern Conference schools. Cooke was named a Parade All-American in January and set the VHSL playoff record for his 51-yard field goal in the state championship game against Gretna.
Meanwhile back in Goochland, Meadows, an All-Group A Division 2 first teamer, locked up his deal with Purdue. Meadows was the first team punter on the 2011 All-James River District, Region B and All-Scrimmage Play teams. The future Boilermaker averaged 41.1 yards per punt this year.
Other Signings
Charlottesville’s Mason Sherry is headed for newly-establshed program Alderson-Broaddus in Philipi, West Virginia. Sherry, the first team All-Jefferson District quarterback, threw for 1800 yards and 18 touchdowns in his lone year under center for the Black Knights. Sherry transferred from Massaponax after his father, Eric Sherry, was hired as the head coach at CHS.
