Sports > Schools
Letter perfect: Northeast Dallas County athletes make college decisions official on National Signing Day
By DEVIN HASSON, dhasson@starlocalnews.com
After years of dreaming, months of deliberating and a final few tension-filled days to make sure they made the right decision, area athletes could officially celebrate on Wednesday's National Signing Day.
A few will play in front of packed stadiums with upwards of 100,000 people. Others will perform on a smaller stage.
But for all of the nearly 100 student athletes from Mesquite, Rowlett, Sachse and Sunnyvale who signed letters of intent on Wednesday, it marked the culmination of a long journey marked by years of hard work.
"It is a relief to get it over, but it is exciting getting to see these young men and women go through the recruiting process and now having the opportunity to continue with their sport in college," Sachse head coach Mark "Red" Behrens said. "It is special."
Perhaps no local school has had as much attention during the last year as West Mesquite. The Wranglers had eight football players sign on Wednesday, including five with Division I programs.
Even if early verbal commitments are made, the recruting process is ongoing, as athletes, and sometimes colleges, have a change of heart. That was true at West Mesquite, where wide receiver Eldridge Massington changed his initial commitment from USC to UCLA, defensive lineman Dimarya Mixon switched from Missouri to Nebraska and defensive back Kameron Miles opted for Texas A&M over Tennessee.
When colleges roll out the red carpet on recruiting visits, it is easy for a high school student to get swept off their feet. But when it came down to the final decision, the players said they just had to follow their heart.
"I'm glad it is over," said Miles,whose cousin, Damontre Moore of Rowlett, played three years at Texas A&M and is projected as a top-five pick in this year's NFL draft. "They (A&M) were always in the back of my mind and when they beat Alabama it really caught my attention. I went down there to visit and it just felt like home."
While recruiters have been all over the West Mesquite campus since last spring, the opposite was true at Mesquite High School.
The Skeeters had just one football player sign last year and prior to the start of this season, only defensive back Anthony Canady had a collegiate offer.
That all changed after an 11-1 season that saw Mesquite finish 34th in the Rivals.com national high school poll.
Colleges took notice and on Wednesday, 18 Skeeters signed letters of intent.
"We've come a long way," Mesquite head coach Robbie Robinson said. "We just have such a great bunch of seniors. They are the kind of group you wish you could have every year."
Football garners much of the attention, but Wednesday was also signing day for several other sports.
Like on the gridiron, the area featured standouts in those areas as well with Poteet's Kaylah Hunter (Baylor), Rowlett's Meagan McCullough and Haley Rodriguez (Louisiana-Monroe), Horn's Brooke Hill (TWU) and Haley Hicks (University of Houston-Victoria) and Sachse's Natalie Calhoun (Okla. St.) and Tori Hendrickson (E. New Mexico St.) signing soccer scholarships, West Mesquite's Blake Seaton (Paris JC) and Sachse's Eric Williams (Grayson CC), Jeremy Hadley (NE Texas CC) and Trevor Weitzman (Odessa) inking to play baseball, Mesquite's Victoria Bice (North Texas) in softball and Rowlett's Travia Jones (LSU), Sunnyvale's Andi Morgan (Texas Tech) and West Mesquite's Raashaan Reason (Texas Tech) accepting offers in track and field.
And while the football players, some of whom were early enrollees, have already turned their attention to the collegiate level, there is still some unfinished business for those still involved in spring sports.
"I still have goals to achieve this year," Reason said. "I want to keep working on my times, getting those faster. I want to help get my relays to state and come home with two medals.
"I want to finish strong here."
Follow Devin Hasson on Twitter at @DevinHasson.
A few will play in front of packed stadiums with upwards of 100,000 people. Others will perform on a smaller stage.
But for all of the nearly 100 student athletes from Mesquite, Rowlett, Sachse and Sunnyvale who signed letters of intent on Wednesday, it marked the culmination of a long journey marked by years of hard work.
"It is a relief to get it over, but it is exciting getting to see these young men and women go through the recruiting process and now having the opportunity to continue with their sport in college," Sachse head coach Mark "Red" Behrens said. "It is special."
Perhaps no local school has had as much attention during the last year as West Mesquite. The Wranglers had eight football players sign on Wednesday, including five with Division I programs.
Even if early verbal commitments are made, the recruting process is ongoing, as athletes, and sometimes colleges, have a change of heart. That was true at West Mesquite, where wide receiver Eldridge Massington changed his initial commitment from USC to UCLA, defensive lineman Dimarya Mixon switched from Missouri to Nebraska and defensive back Kameron Miles opted for Texas A&M over Tennessee.
When colleges roll out the red carpet on recruiting visits, it is easy for a high school student to get swept off their feet. But when it came down to the final decision, the players said they just had to follow their heart.
"I'm glad it is over," said Miles,whose cousin, Damontre Moore of Rowlett, played three years at Texas A&M and is projected as a top-five pick in this year's NFL draft. "They (A&M) were always in the back of my mind and when they beat Alabama it really caught my attention. I went down there to visit and it just felt like home."
While recruiters have been all over the West Mesquite campus since last spring, the opposite was true at Mesquite High School.
The Skeeters had just one football player sign last year and prior to the start of this season, only defensive back Anthony Canady had a collegiate offer.
That all changed after an 11-1 season that saw Mesquite finish 34th in the Rivals.com national high school poll.
Colleges took notice and on Wednesday, 18 Skeeters signed letters of intent.
"We've come a long way," Mesquite head coach Robbie Robinson said. "We just have such a great bunch of seniors. They are the kind of group you wish you could have every year."
Football garners much of the attention, but Wednesday was also signing day for several other sports.
Like on the gridiron, the area featured standouts in those areas as well with Poteet's Kaylah Hunter (Baylor), Rowlett's Meagan McCullough and Haley Rodriguez (Louisiana-Monroe), Horn's Brooke Hill (TWU) and Haley Hicks (University of Houston-Victoria) and Sachse's Natalie Calhoun (Okla. St.) and Tori Hendrickson (E. New Mexico St.) signing soccer scholarships, West Mesquite's Blake Seaton (Paris JC) and Sachse's Eric Williams (Grayson CC), Jeremy Hadley (NE Texas CC) and Trevor Weitzman (Odessa) inking to play baseball, Mesquite's Victoria Bice (North Texas) in softball and Rowlett's Travia Jones (LSU), Sunnyvale's Andi Morgan (Texas Tech) and West Mesquite's Raashaan Reason (Texas Tech) accepting offers in track and field.
And while the football players, some of whom were early enrollees, have already turned their attention to the collegiate level, there is still some unfinished business for those still involved in spring sports.
"I still have goals to achieve this year," Reason said. "I want to keep working on my times, getting those faster. I want to help get my relays to state and come home with two medals.
"I want to finish strong here."
Follow Devin Hasson on Twitter at @DevinHasson.
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