2009 corner drawing early interest

He may not be big, but he packs a punch. That's the word on Brandywine (Md.) Gwynn Park defensive back William Speight, one of the region's top corners in the Class of 2009. While he might not be imposing at 5-foot-9 and 157 pounds, Speight has attracted the attention of several college programs.

"My coach holds all my mail so I don't really know who all is interested," Speight said. "But I do know there are people that have been asking about me. Our coach just doesn't want us getting big heads so it keeps us down to earth."

Speight might not know all of the schools that are interested in him but he knows of a few. This summer he has camped at Virginia Tech and Penn State, and noticed that the coaches were keeping a close eye on him.

"I actually just got back from a camp at Virginia Tech with a few of my teammates," he said. "I didn't perform as well there as I would have liked to, except in the one on ones. I did real well in those. I think they liked what I did.

"I went to before that and I did well there. We were talking and being loud out there. They were impressed with our game too. It was just a good time and the coaches seemed to like what they saw. We just did our thing. Hopefully if I can do that all year I'll get some offers."

Speight's early favorites are Virginia Tech, Clemson and Penn State, and he had a lot to say about each school.

"Location isn't going to be a huge factor for me, but if everything else is equal it's something I'll look at. That would help Virginia Tech. Schools like Penn State and Clemson wouldn't be too far from home either.

"When I was at Penn State I didn't get too much of a chance to see the environment of the school because we were cooped up in the rooms a lot," Speight said. "But I got the feeling it was a nice place. I'll probably try to get up there sometime this fall.

"I didn't really follow college football until I started playing in high school, but when I did I really liked Clemson's defense. I love watching them play. I watch them whenever I get a chance. That's another school I'm real big on."

Speight plans on scheduling trips to Virginia, Virginia Tech, Maryland and Penn State for the fall.

While some may point to his size as a disadvantage, Speight is an impressive prospect with speed and room to grow. How would he describe his game?

"First of all I'm a smart player," he said. "I can read what's going on real well. I'm really good on the three-step drops, because that's something our coach stresses a lot. I can break on the ball well and I have speed and hands. I want to go into college as an athlete, so I plan on showing people what I can do at receiver this year."

Speight is hoping to have a career as a broadcaster or analyst once his playing days are over.