Palmetto QB Favors Three

One of the most versatile offensive weapons in South Carolina says he is close to receiving offers to a few schools at the top of his list. Russell Hemby has trimmed his list down a bit and seems confident with where he stands in the recruiting picture.

"I feel like I'm very, very close to receiving scholarship offers to East Carolina, Vanderbilt and maybe Maryland," said the 6-foot-1, 195-pound dual-threat quarterback from Orangeburg (S.C.) Orangeburg-Wilkinson. "That's my top three as well, so I think I'll have plenty of options when the time comes to make my decision."

He likes something different about each school.

"East Carolina has a great tradition of quarterbacks that can run and pass and coach Logan has a good system in place. Vanderbilt has a good new coach and has them competing better than in recent years. Maryland might have the best offensive coach in the country and it would be really special to play quarterback there, with the shape their program is in."

Hemby is also considering his in-state favorites, Clemson and South Carolina, although he's not being recruited as hard by the duo. Hemby runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds and has a good arm to match his solid accuracy. He says that, like most high school quarterbacks, he can work on his decision making and improve in that area, but he's happy with the progress he's made.

"I think I'm at the point where I can see that I have open field to run in and get some yardage, but stay in the pocket and look for an open man first. I used to have maybe taken off and just ran all over the place, but I'm more disciplined now."

Hemby has completed 73 passes in 123 attempts for about 1,300 yards and 18 touchdowns. He also maintains a solid 3.5 GPA at Orangeburg-Wilkinson and is a true student of the game.

"I might not be able to decide if signing day was today," said Hemby. "But there's a lot of time between now and February and once I take some visits I'll have a good feel for everything."