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McKinney North RB deals with pressure

Building a new tradition at a new school is tough enough, but it’s especially tough when you’re the school’s first Division I prospect and one of the leading rushers in the state of Texas. That’s the battle that McKinney (Texas) North all-purpose back Shannon Woods is dealing with day in and day out.
“The coaches really put a lot of pressure on us to go out there and try to build some traditions and become the first class to do something special,” Woods, who is 5-foot-11 and 195 pounds, said. “We didn’t have a senior class to look up to or anything like that, so it’s all on our shoulders to lead the way and build something special.”
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And Woods is doing his part and special is a word that several college coaches have used when describing him.
Woods has rushed for 929 yards on 111 attempts and scored 12 touchdowns as a senior. That total is only eclipsed in Class 4A by the nation’s No. 1 player, Adrian Peterson. But what makes Woods really special is his ability to hurt you with his hands out of the backfield.
“It’s crazy because before I didn’t think I had any kind of hands at all,” Woods said. “Coming out of middle school, I couldn’t catch anything. But they put me at receiver some when I was a freshman and ever since then I’ve been able to catch it. Not too many backs can do that.”
Because of the pressure of being the school’s first ever Division I recruit, Woods and his family are taking the recruiting process slowly. Woods admits that he’s not even honestly thinking about college at this point and has allowed his father to talk to most of the college programs.
“I do know that most of the Big 12 schools are calling,” Woods said.
“Then guys like Wake Forest, Arkansas and Iowa are also calling, too. The only school I know for sure that has offered is Kansas. I think there are some others, but you’d have to ask my coaches.”
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