Georgia WR keeps improving
Douglasville (Ga.) wide receiver
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Armand Cauthen could have let a disappointing combine
performance derail a promising senior season. Instead, he's turned it into a
motivating factor.
Cauthen, who caught 43 passes for 530 yards and nine
touchdowns as a junior at Douglas County, had a few question marks raised
about his college potential when he ran a 4.8 forty at Nike's Georgia
combine. But in the months since that event he's hired a personal trainer,
and it's paying quick dividends.
"He's been working a lot with a speed coach," said
Arthur Cauthen, the player's father. "He was really disappointed with his
time at the Georgia camp, but we found out there were several factors
contributing to that. The main thing was his technique. It was just
terrible, but we never knew it. So his speed coach has been working hard
with him, and he's been running consistently in the 4.5s now. He hit one as
low as 4.48. He's real happy about that."
Cauthen (6-1, 195) has the frame and physical tools
to be one of the South's top wideouts. And he may still be growing. His
father, who stands 6-5, says there are many men in the family between 6-5
and 6-8. Combining that upside with the improved speed, he's getting more
attention from recruiters.
"We've had calls and interest from Florida, Notre
Dame, Maryland, Kansas, Duke, Wake Forest, Tulane, North Carolina, Clemson,
Auburn, Georgia Tech and Ohio," said Arthur Cauthen. "We've got four or five
new scholarship offers (in addition to standing offers from Duke and Wake
Forest), but we've decided not to disclose those yet. I've kind of kept him
sheltered from this type of thing so he can take his time, concentrate on
his season and his academics, and make a good decision when the time comes.
"He's kind of open right now. He hasn't narrowed
things down just yet, but I know he likes Maryland, Florida and Notre Dame.
He likes coach (Tyrone) Willingham a lot, what he's doing at Notre Dame now
and his reputation of throwing the ball a lot while he was at Stanford.
"The one thing I'd say is he's itching to go
somewhere that airs it out. He's been playing for a team that runs the ball
75 percent of the time, so I know he'd like to be more involved in the
offense."
The Cauthens haven't taken any visits to date, but
they anticipate starting within the next two weeks. Florida, Duke, Maryland
and Notre Dame are likely stops. "He'll go to a couple where he can see two
teams at the same time," Arthur Cauthen said. "Like Florida-Auburn and
Duke-Maryland."
In the meantime, he's been concentrating on
academics, trying to improve his SAT scores. Cauthen maintains a 3.0 GPA and
is shooting for a 1,200-1,300 on his SAT, according to his father.
Through five games this season, Cauthen has helped
lead Douglas County to a 5-0 mark. He's caught 20 passes for 310 yards and
five touchdowns. On the defensive side of the ball he's recorded 11 tackles
and one interception at free safety, and he's also averaging 41.5 yards per
punt.
He's looking to repeat as a Georgia all-state
selection and the Douglas County Player of the Year.