East Texas teammates headed to UNT
Tyler (Texas) Chapel Hill comes into the season with high expectations in 2011. The Bulldogs are ranked as the No. 1 team in class 3A in the preseason polls due to a strong senior class.
One member of that senior class is running back Rex Rollins. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound prospect may split carries in the backfield with Andrew Tucker but he has still gained the attention of college coaches. In fact, he recently decided to make an early pledge.
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"I made a verbal commitment to North Texas about a month ago," Rollins said. "I had been talking to them for a while but then I actually went to one of their camps and I had a real good talk with the coaches. I'm also going up there at the end of July for their Friday Night Lights."
Heading into the camp weekend, Rollins knew there was a possibility he could end up pulling the trigger.
"I had a little bit of a feeling (that a commitment was coming) when I was going out there," he said. "I just kind of decided to do it then, though. It's close to home and it's a real good school and everything. They've got a whole new coaching staff."
Though his primary position is on offense Rollins says there is a possibility he could end up on the other side of the ball in college.
"I took the offer as a running back," he said, "but they kind of put it at me to play corner too. I'll probably stick with running back though."
Rollins is not the only Chapel Hill standout to have pledged to North Texas. He has a defensive tackle teammate that decided to do the same thing.
"Sir Calvin Wallace committed there too," Rollins said. "He actually committed a couple of weeks after I did. I told him it would be a good opportunity but he made up his own mind to go there too."
Rollins rushed for 844 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging almost 10 yards per carry as a junior. Wallace recorded 73 tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks and a fumble recovery.