Woods happy to have first offer
For defensive tackle Jay Woods of Jackson (Ga.), Friday was a day he won't soon forget. That was when Missouri became the first school to offer him a scholarship.
"It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders," Woods said. "I'd been waiting for that first offer a long time."
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The Mizzou offer almost certainly will not be the last for the 6-feet-2, 270-pounder. According to Woods, he also is hearing from Auburn, Central Florida, Duke, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State and South Florida. Even Princeton is interested in Woods, who claims a 4.0 GPA.
"If I had to guess, I'd say South Florida [would be next to offer]," Woods said. "I'm visiting there tomorrow. We'll see."
Woods already has hit junior days at Auburn and Georgia. He plans to check out Missouri sometime this spring.
"I talked to their defensive line coach [at Missouri]," Woods said. "I talked to him yesterday and he hits me up on Facebook most of the time. When you look at their facilities and everything, I like what I see. I like how they go about doing stuff."
The Tigers' recent signing of heralded five-star receiver Dorial Green-Beckham also caught Woods' attention.
"If the No. 1 player in the country went there, they must be something special," he said.
In addition to his recruitment, Woods also is focused on getting better. Right now, he's trying to improve how he handles run blocks. He recently took part in the Georgia Junior Bowl, and learned things both on the field and off, he said.
"It was fun," Woods said. "You're going up against the best of the best in your class. It was a great experience. Besides football, we also learned how to be a great person and how to get a great education."
Keith Niebuhr can be reached at Keithrivals@yahoo.com. You can follow him on Twitter @KeithRIVALS.