Jacksonville in Texas a worthy pitstop
Cradled in East Texas is the football crazy town of Jacksonville, Texas. The Indians have produced Division I prospect three of the last four seasons and back in 2001 it sent highly recruited offensive lineman Jami Hightower to Texas A&M and it looks like the class of 2006 could be a bumper crop, according to coach Randy Copeland.
The biggest name for the Indians this season is fullback Cameron Hackney. The 6-foot-3, 245-pounder is ranked as a three-star prospect and the No. 100 player in the Lone Star State by Rivals.com. According to his coach, it's a deserved honor.
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"He's a football player, and that's probably the best way to describe Cameron," Copeland said.
"He might not be the most gifted athlete on the team, but he's our best football player. You put a watch on him, and he won't be the fastest, or you ask him to go in the weight room and he won't be the best there. But when you put the pads on him, he's the best we have."
Hackney committed early to Houston, and that commitment is a soft one, according to both Hackney and his coach. However, it might all be for nothing if he doesn't get to work in the classroom.
"There are a lot of people waiting to see if he gets the score," Copeland said. "With the score he has now, he couldn't go anywhere. But he's also close enough that it's probably not going to be a problem.
"I think once he gets that offer, he's going to have a lot more people interested in offering him a scholarship. I've talked to a lot of coaches and that's probably the biggest hurdle he's had to face this summer."
Colorado is another team that Hackney said has been in regular contact with him, but with a solid senior season and a passing test score, expect the flood gates to come open because he's a very talented prospect with a great upside.
"He started at d-line for us as a sophomore," Copeland said. "He could be a great fullback in college or maybe an H-back. I think he could be one of the better players in the time that I've been here."
Hackney isn't the lone D-I prospect on the Jacksonville roster.
Offensive lineman Cody Lusk is making the move from tackle to center, and the move should increase his looks from the college coaches.
"He's the hardest worker we have on this team," Copeland said. "He's worked hard this summer to make himself better. He went to speed camp, and is now running a 5.1 in the 40. He's one of those guys that will crush you and is a great run blocker.
"We have moved him to center, and that'll help him get more exposure to the college coaches. We always put our best lineman at center, and he's our best guy."
Oklahoma State is the team that has showed him the most interest at this point, but no offers have been put on the table.
"He's definitely a Division I kid," Copeland said. "He's got some areas that he needs to work on. He needed to work on his pass sets and his speed, but I watched him get better and better every day this summer. We look forward to seeing a more complete Cody out there on the field."
Receiver Aaron Whitaker has the body of a Division I prospect and is one of the team's biggest playmakers. However, qualifying academically might be a challenge, his coach said. Copeland also said to watch out for his quarterback Ramon Williams, who is 6-foot-4 ½ and 205 pounds.
He won't be around for the first few games because he got in a car wreck and suffered a concussion," Copeland said.
"He'll have to miss the first month, but when he gets out there, I can promise you that somebody will fall in love with this kid and recruit him hard. He's strong and he's a 4.65 kid, too."