Georgia RB picks up new offers

The stock of Tyrone (Ga.) Sandy Creek running back Philip Hyde has been on a steady climb since the start of his senior season.

Hyde (5-10, 193, 4.46) has put together a great year statistically, rushing for 1,608 yards and 21 touchdowns in helping lead Sandy Creek to a 10-0 record entering the Class 4A playoffs next week. Along the way, he’s picked up scholarship offers from Louisville, Clemson, Kentucky, Memphis and Middle Tennessee.

“Things have been going real good… actually great,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve had a great year, and a whole bunch of teams have started to offer me. I’ve got some good schools to choose from now.”

In addition to the five offers, he’s also getting heavy interest from Georgia Tech.

“I’m getting a lot of attention from them,” he said. “Coach Nix stays in touch with me. He came to one of my games and said he was real impressed. He told me that they’re interested, for me to just be patient and see what happens. If they end up offering, I’d definitely be interested.”

The Tech campus is only 20 minutes from Hyde’s home, and he said that would factor into his decision. He’s made two unofficial visits to see the Yellow Jackets play Auburn and Clemson.

For now, his top three are Georgia Tech, Louisville and Clemson, followed closely by Memphis is the No. 4 spot.

“I’m going to Louisville this weekend to see them play Memphis,” he said. “That’ll knock out two birds with one stone. I’m looking forward to seeing how they look against each other.

“Louisville is on my list because they have some big boys in their backfield who can get the tough yards inside, but they’re say they need a guy like me who can take it the distance. I like their offensive style. They’re also going to the Big East, which is good. I think they could be contenders there.

“I like Memphis because that’s my hometown and my mom still lives there. I moved down here for my 10th grade year, but I still go back and visit during holidays and breaks. I like coach West and his staff. They seem to be a team on the rise.”

Asked what he liked about Clemson, Hyde laughed and said: “Well, they impressed me this weekend (a 26-10 win over Florida State). That was unbelievable. They just killed a great team. I like their offensive style and the way they use the running back in the spread offense. They use their running backs to run and pass to.”

Hyde doesn’t have any official visits scheduled at this point. He plans to wait until his season ends to set those.

Academically, he is projected as a full-qualifier with a 2.6 GPA and a 980 on the SAT.