Duane Maddox takes three visits

Shelby (N.C.) Crest prospect Duane Maddox is shaping up to be one of the top linebacker prospects in the state of North Carolina. With five offers in hand, the 6-foot-2, 225-pounder visited three of the schools for junior days.

"I first went to North Carolina State," he said. "It was cool. They showed us around the field house and I met with all the coaches including Andy McCollum. Then I met personally with coach O'Brien. That was cool. He sat down with my parents and talked about how they needed a linebacker and whoever they sign will get to play."

Following the trip to Raleigh, Maddox made the short trip up the road to Chapel Hill.

"My visit to North Carolina was nice," he said. "I met some of the former players including Dre' Bly, Jeff Reed and Willie Parker," he said. "I also talked with the coaches and then went to the basketball game. That was crazy, the fans stood up the whole game even during timeouts.

"As for my conversation with coach Davis, he talked to me for about 10 or 15-minutes. He thanked me for coming down there and visiting and can't wait to see more of me at camp this summer."

Over the weekend, Maddox made the trip south to Columbia as well.

"I went to South Carolina on Saturday," he said. "That was cool. I met with Steve Spurrier and he showed us around the facilities and I met a bunch of the different coaches. I was able to go into coach Spurrier's office and he talked to me about how they have all the facilities, trainers and coaches, they just need players to make a run for the conference title."

At this time, the North Carolina linebacker holds five offers.

"I've got scholarships from North Carolina, NC State, Alabama, South Carolina and Clemson," he said. "My most recent one came from Alabama the last few days. They are a good school and one of my first offers in the SEC which is big."

Maddox then announced three schools leading for his services.

"Right now they are NC State, North Carolina and Clemson," he said. "I like the atmosphere at Clemson. It's really peaceful and quiet and is a place made for learning and playing football. State's got state of the art football facilities and use their linebackers well. Finally, I'm a big Tar Heel fan since I was a little kid. That's a plus along with the basketball team and Butch Davis."

Later this month, Maddox plans to attend the Shrine Bowl combine.