Education highlights Lovejoy Junior Day
LOVEJOY, Ga.- Nearly 250 Division I prospects attended the 2006 Rivals.com Junior Day on Saturday at Lovejoy High in suburban Atlanta. Prospects from Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina, along with parents and coaches were treated to an introduction to the recruiting process.
Gainesville (Ga.) offensive tackle Nick Claytor, one of the top offensive tackles in the Peach State for the class of 2007 was included in the group.
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Claytor felt he benefited from the event.
"I learned a lot," he said. "I learned about official visits and how you are supposed to take your parents with you. It was also very informative about letters You get letters from different schools and you think scholarship time. But it doesn't mean scholarship."
Blythewood (S.C.) linebacker Charles White has been taking unofficial visits this spring. The Junior Day event helped the 6-foot, 210-pounder to learn even more about the process.
"I got a lot of insight into the recruiting process," he said. "It covered a lot of stuff."
White is a fast linebacker prospect who recently picked up his first scholarship offer, from Kentucky.
A pair of Milledgeville (Ga.) Baldwin prospects, running back Darius Marshall and wide receiver Wayne Bonner both were at the event. Marshall is getting early looks from several programs in the SEC and ACC, as has Bonner.
"I learned that the academic part of being an athlete is very important," Marshall said. "Everybody should realize that there is more to football than just being on the field."
Lovejoy (Ga.) defensive line prospect Patrick Jones said that he benefited from the program. Jones doesn't have any scholarship offers yet, but feels like Georgia Tech is close to pulling the trigger.
"I actually learned a lot," Jones said. "I learned about the recruiting process and what it can do for you."
Atlanta Westlake quarterback Cameron Newton and several of his high school teammates attended the event after visiting Auburn unofficially earlier in the day.
The next Rivals.com Junior Day event will be held next Saturday on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss.
Future events will be held in Anaheim, Calif., at Servite High School on March 25, Richmond, Va., at Highland Springs High School and Orlando, Fla., at Bishop Moore High School on April 1 and Rutgers University in East Brunswick, N.J., on April 2.