Tag Archives: Duke Football

Duke Football

Dual-threat QB Matt Johnson is looking for a school close to home

Duke is evaluating dual-threat QB Matt Johnson

Head Coach David Cutcliffe is known for his ability to develop quarterbacks, thanks to his work with Thad Lewis and Sean Renfree at Duke, and Peyton and Eli Manning at Tennessee and Ole Miss. In the class of 2012, Duke has already been in contact with many of the top quarterback prospects around the country, including a sleeper in-state dual-threat prospect. Matt Johnson is a 6’3” 210 pound quarterback from Maiden, North Carolina. He’s been in contact with several in-state ACC schools and made a trip to Durham earlier this year for Duke’s Junior Day. Highlights of Matt's junior season can be viewed here.

 

BDN: Can you start off by describing some of your strengths for fans who haven’t had a chance to see you play?

Yeah, my coach coordinates offense, we run a shotgun offense, but I am – we run a 50% passage percent, but I have found strength in being a good runner, and I play behind my pads, I’ve been told, but I really try to just get every yard when I’m running, and I have focused on passing to strengthen myself in passing, but running’s definitely been my biggest strength, and slowing the game down a little bit and playing at my own pace has been my big thing that I’ve been pretty good at this year.  I don’t really kind of pride myself in anything, but just my reads and everything like that going in.  But I’m more of a dual threat quarterback.

BDN: What are some of your goals for your senior year?

This year, I want to help my team.  I want to pass for over 1500 yards.  I was just 1000 this year, with run a lot more than that, but I want to be considered as a college level passer, and not just a dual threat quarterback.  I also want to strive to win a state championship, that’s what I want for my team, but the passing and reading the coverages better, and making – slowing the game down even more, just to have control over the situation is really what I want, and complete passes, basically.

BDN: Is there a college or NFL quarterback you have studied closely or have tried to emulate?

I’ve always admired Peyton Manning, just for his – his poise in the pocket, and then the way he calls the game, and seems to have everything in his hands.  He’s working with everybody, and they’re reacting to it.  It’s what I love about it, and it’s kind of where I want to be.  But I want to play with the maturity level that is far passed my own, just to have control of the situation mainly.  But – I loved Brett Favre until just recently, but –

BDN: As you approach your college decision, what are the most important things you are looking for in a school?

A big thing about it, and I’ve put it on all my seats, is the location of where it is.  I kind of want to stay pretty close to home.  I don’t really want to leave my parents that much, and I think I probably have an opportunity to do that, but also I want to find a place that has a communications major.  I kind of want to be a broadcaster when I grow up, but a lot of it is academics for me.  I want to go somewhere where I can maybe be out in 4 years, but have a good degree, and I want to go somewhere where I can play and that I can grow as a football player, and as a leader.

Maiden QB Matt Johnson is hearing a lot from NC ACC programs

 

 

 

BDN: Who are the schools that you have been hearing from the most and which schools were the first to contact you?

It all kind of started with, I think it was Wake Forest, NC State, ECU, and Duke in there, and that was really cool, getting those letters from Coach Roper at Duke, and going to the game, I was very excited about getting that stuff and receiving letters of just, “Come to our game, come watch.”  It was all surreal to me, but I never really felt like I was lost in the crowd.  I felt like it was a privilege being in the place I was at; I count it as a blessing, being able to go.  But I went to NC State a couple times, ECU a couple of times, and I think it’s been ECU and Duke that has talked to me the most in just recruiting-wise, and keeping up contact with me.  But it’s been a great thing for me, I’m humbled by the entire thing, but I really want to just find a place I’m comfortable at, and I really felt comfortable at all 3 of those places.  But a lot of other colleges were talking to me just through letters, just sending me stuff.  But communication-wise, I talked to the other colleges.

BDN: Do you have plans for any additional visits this spring or summer?

I definitely want to – I went to Duke’s Junior Day the other day.  I had a great time there, I’m actually looking forward to another visit there.  Thinking about going to ECU’s Junior Day, and that’ll be a big thing, and any other Junior Day I’m invited to, I’ll be happy to accept that invitation no matter where it is, but I definitely liked NC State, ECU, and Duke as a place I’ve been to.  I wanted to visit Wake Forest, I don’t know all about that, I don’t know what my opportunities are gonna be, but I’m not sure if there’s anywhere else I want to go.  I want to go anywhere, really.

BDN: Is there anything else you think is important for college football fans to know about you?

I try to be the same person I am on the field as I am off the field.  I’ve never been the most skilled player, I wouldn’t say, but I’d say I’d be able to pull a team through anything, just with – it doesn’t matter if we’re down 40 or up 40, I’m gonna play my heart out.  I don’t know the whole give up or let off thing, I just know how to play football and how to score touchdowns, and how to go 100% every play.  I’m not – I just want to keep everybody’s spirits up on the field; I’m a good motivator, and I’m not gonna pride myself in being a leader, but I think somebody has to do it, and it’s gotta be somebody willing to step up, and I try to do that most of the time, and I think I do a pretty good job of it.

BDN: Thanks a lot, Matt, and best of luck to you.

All right man, thank you. God bless you.  Bye.

 

BDN Premium Articles, Duke Football

Football Friday evokes spring break memories

March Madness is in full swing as Duke takes the court tonight in the ACC quarterfinals against Maryland. Is it just us, or do you also find that the weeks in March go a lot faster than the rest of the year? It probably has something to do with conference tournaments streaming on television and online nearly 24 hours a day. While productivity in offices and schools across the country plummets, we’re as busy as ever at BDN. There’s no better time to join BDN premium than March, as Mark Watson follows the Blue Devils every step of the way in their quest for ACC and NCAA championships. Now that we’ve got you hyped for basketball, here’s this week’s Football Friday. [private]

Welcome back, loyal readers. And I do mean loyal. If you’re reading a Football Friday column in the middle of the ACC tournament, well, it doesn’t get much more loyal than that. Mille grazie. Yes, Cacchio is an Italian name.

The Blue Devils are on spring break!

Duke is on spring break

Ah, spring break. Fond memories, right? Where did the time go? Anyway, the Duke football team is off this week for spring break, and many of the players are taking advantage in warm, sunny locations, from South Beach to the Caribbean all the way to the California coast. Personally, I think they’ve earned it, from the early morning February practices to the late-night November film sessions. Student-athletes miss out on many aspects of the typical college experience due to their extracurricular commitments, but this week, the Duke football team gets to join in the revelry. Safe travels to all and we all look forward to getting back to work on Wednesday morning.

ACC spring football kicking off

Miami and Clemson hit the field for spring practice this week. Both programs

Al Golden is shaking things up at "The U" this spring

have question marks at the quarterback position, where Clemson will be breaking in first-year starter Tajh Boyd, while Miami appears to have a true QB controversy on their hands. New Head Coach Al Golden ruffled some feathers with his spring depth chart, placing many of last year’s starters near the bottom in an effort to challenge his team this spring. Most surprising may have been at the QB position, where he placed rising senior Spencer Whipple ahead of last year’s starters Jacory Harris and Stephen Morris. Next week, spring practice will kick off at Boston College, NC State, Wake Forest, Virginia, and North Carolina.

Speaking of the Tar Heels…

While many in Chapel Hill may still be in denial, we’re all aware that there have been some issues with the Tar Heel football program. Unfortunately NCAA violations are more common than we would like to think in college sports today (see Auburn, Baylor, Ohio State, Tennessee, USC, etc.), but I think there may be an even bigger issue here, and that is the double standard that appears to exist for coaches and players. Ohio State players are suspended for five games, while Jim Tressel is suspended for two. UNC players are held out of several games, some for the entire season, while the coaching staff denies accountability.

DL Delvon Simmons has asked UNC for a release from his NLI

This double standard doesn’t only arise when NCAA violations are uncovered. Coaches are allowed to up and leave programs without penalty, while players must go through a tedious transfer process and are usually required to sit out an entire year. A perfect example is the revolving door that has been the UNC Defensive Line Coach for the past few months. John Blake, implicated in the Gary Wichard scandal, resigned in September. Charlie Coiner was appointed to replace Blake, but was then replaced by Brian Baker in January. Baker worked to make sure UNC was able to sign top defensive line prospects Devonte Brown, Delvon Simmons, Shawn Underwood,  and Sylvester Williams (who enrolled in January)  in their class of 2011. Just after National Signing Day, Baker left the Tar Heels for a position with the Dallas Cowboys. UNC has since brought in Joe Robinson from LSU, giving them a total of four DL coaches since the start of the 2010 season. Now, top recruit Delvon Simmons has asked for his release from his letter of intent, and there appears to be some controversy. While the coaches were able to leave without penalty, Simmons must wait to hear whether UNC will grant him a full release, a conditional release, or hold him to his letter of intent. The situation is puzzling, even for the wild world of football recruiting. For starters, Simmons never took an official visit to Chapel Hill and did not have an in-home visit with the Tar Heel coaches. Stay tuned. The bottom line is that these coaches should be held to the same commitments and standards as their players.

Duke prepares to host Pro Day

Duke will graduate another group of outstanding seniors this year, as the

Lance King Images

program continues to build on the field while maintaining the program’s tradition of academic excellence. NFL scouts will be on hand in Wallace Wade Stadium on March 22 to take in workouts of Blue Devil seniors. Duke graduates 19 letterman this year, including starters Patrick Egboh, Brandon Harper, Brett Huffman, Austin Kelly, Brandon King, Abraham Kromah, Wes Oglesby, Chris Rwabukamba, and Damian Thornton. Best of luck to all the Duke seniors as they pursue careers in football and other fields!

Recruiting slowly starting to pick up

Lutheran (CA) LB Deion Williams will visit for Duke's spring game

Over the past week or so, recruiting has started to heat up around the country, as players and coaches assess each other’s interest. Duke hosted two junior days and entertained well over 100 recruits from the class of 2012; a few other prospects have visited Durham to take in spring practice. A handful of Duke prospects have already pledged their verbal commitments to rival ACC schools, including LB Sha’Keel Rashad to UNC, OL Mike Madaras to Maryland, QB Gray Crow to Miami, and OL Joel Suggs to Wake Forest. Hooker and Madaras both held verbal offers from Duke. The Blue Devil staff will keep an eye on these prospects, as decommitments are all too common in college football recruiting, but will focus their efforts on hundreds of other prospects, trying to find the best players for the Duke program.

The next big recruiting milestone for the Blue Devils will come on March 26, as the program hosts a number of prospects for their spring game, which is set for a 3 PM kickoff. We’ll have a full list of attendees as we get closer, but BDN has already learned that California LB Deion Williams will fly in for the weekend. Williams holds a Duke offer and is very high on the Blue Devils early in his recruitment. It’s important to note that all of these spring visits are unofficial visits, meaning that prospects must pay for their own expenses. It’s a sign of serious interest that players like Bart Houston and Deion Williams are making the trip across the country to learn more about the Duke program. I expect Duke’s recruiting to really take off in June, as Duke will host a series of camps for high school players, including Coach Cutcliffe’s QB College, which will allow the Duke coaches to evaluate prospects firsthand.

Let’s Go Duke

Thanks again for reading. Please feel free to join in on our football message board; we welcome Duke football fans of all opinions, shapes, and sizes. Until next week, you may now return to March Madness. Show your Duke pride and support the Blue Devils as they begin their championship quest tonight in Greensboro. We are Duke!

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Duke Football

In-state OL Mark Harrell has an offer from Duke

Charlotte OL Mark Harrell has an offer from Duke

In their four years in Durham, Head Coach David Cutcliffe and Offensive Line Coach Matt Luke have built the Duke offensive line into a position of strength. The past two recruiting classes have brought in a very good group of offensive linemen, and the Blue Devils hope to continue that trend with the class of 2012. Mark Harrell is a 6’5” 260 pound offensive lineman from Charlotte, North Carolina. The standout junior offensive lineman has an offer from Duke among his impressive list of offers, and hopes to have a final decision before his senior season. Mark’s highlights can be viewed here.

 

BDN: Can you start off by describing your strengths for fans who haven’t had a chance to see you play?

Well, blocking is my strong suit.  We run an offense where primarily blocking, run blocking, but yeah, have good leverage, good explosion off the ball, good feet, and yeah, primarily run blocking.

BDN: What are some of the things you have been working on this offseason?

Pass blocking, I’ve been getting in the weight room, but during basketball season it’s hard to really keep up with that, but I’ve been definitely working on pass blocking, that’s something I need to work on because we run the ball a lot, but my offensive line coach used to play for the Panthers, so he knows what he’s talking about, and he’s teaching me a lot about pass blocking.

BDN: What are some of your goals for your senior year?

You know, keep the tradition going of another good, winning season, take it home this year.  We felt we were so close but fell short last year, but this year I want to take it back home.

BDN: As you look at your college decision, what are the most important factors you are looking for in a school?

Primarily academics.  Also, if I like the campus, if I like the location where I am, since I’m gonna be living there for the next 4 or 5 years, depending on whether I get redshirted or not, but that, and also depth chart, I want to see if I’m gonna have a chance to play.  But yeah, primarily academics.

BDN: Is there a specific academic field you are interested in?

Probably business or management.

BDN: Which schools have you heard from the most? Who were the first to contact you?

The first schools to contact and offer were – Duke was the first to offer, then came Georgia Tech to offer, then UVA offered, Kentucky, and then NC State last night, but other than those 5 that offered, I’ve been hearing a lot from Clemson.  I’ve also been hearing a lot from Wake Forest.  I’ve been hearing some from Michigan and West Virginia, and I’m also starting to hear some stuff from Tennessee and Notre Dame as well.

BDN: Have you had a chance to visit any schools so far?

I’ve visited Duke, I’ve visited NC State.  I’ve also visited Georgia Tech.

BDN: Have any schools stood out to you at this point in the process?

I mean, I like all of them, all said.  I’m not gonna try to pick any favorites, you know, I like all schools, yeah, just basically like all of them.

BDN: Do you have any other visits planned for this spring or summer?

I’m going down to UVA for a junior day.  I’m also going back to Duke, and I think Clemson as well.  Hopefully that’ll go well, but other than that, I’ve been trying a lot more visits.  I think I’m trying to go down, fly down to Notre Dame, see what that’s all about.  But other than that, I’ve been planning – other than the ones that I’ve mentioned, but I’m sure I will in the summer.

BDN: Do you have an idea for when you would like to make your college decision?

I’d like to pick a top 5 by the start of summer, hopefully, and then maybe make a decision before – early into my senior – high school season, but that’s in a perfect world, so we’ll see what happens, but that’d be ideal, where I’m going before the season starts, before my senior year starts.

BDN: Thanks a lot, Mark, and best of luck to you.

All right, you too.  Thanks.

 

Duke Football

Duke leads for Durham athlete Phillip Williamson

Duke has extended an offer to Phillip Williamson of Jordan HS

The Blue Devils’ secondary has been area of recent concern for many Duke fans, and the coaching staff has worked hard to upgrade the depth over the past two recruiting classes. In the class of 2012, Duke has already been in contact with Durham athlete Phillip Williamson, a 6’2” 210 pound prospect from Jordan High School. The physical safety prospect earned 2010 All-Conference honors, leading Jordan to the state playoffs and a 7-5 overall record. Although it's early in the process, the Blue Devils have stood out to Phillip and are the earlier leader.

 

BDN: Can you start off by describing your strengths for fans who haven’t had a chance to see you play?

I’m a hard worker; I’m the first one on the field, last one out.  Same with the weight room, just a hard worker and a football player.

BDN: What are some of the things you’re working on this offseason?

I’m working on my speed, flexibility, and quickness.  And I’m trying to get stronger.

BDN: What are your goals for your senior season?

I want a state championship.  That’s all it is, that’s all it means to me, it’s just team.  I wouldn’t mind winning, but I really care about the team more than just myself.

BDN: As you approach your college decision, what are the most important things you are looking for in a school?

Academics and the coaching.

BDN: Is there a specific academic field you are interested in?

Sociology.

BDN: Who are the schools you have heard from the most so far?

Duke, [North] Carolina, Maryland, Wake Forest, Liberty, I got stuff from Clemson, I got stuff from Auburn, Illinois.  I got like 2 things from Oregon.  I heard from Miami, so schools like that.

BDN: Have you had a chance to visit any schools?

Unofficially, I went to Duke.  But I went to like a lot of schools, to their games.

BDN: Have any schools stood out to you at this point in the process?

Duke is the early leader for local prospect Phil Williamson

 

 

I think Duke, out of all of them, for the academics, and then it’s a building process, and I’d like to be part of a building process.

BDN: Do you have any plans for additional visits this spring or summer?

Not really.  Like, me and my parents are looking at schools to visit right now, but right now not really. I’m going to visit Duke and [North] Carolina probably a lot this spring, though.

BDN: Is there anything else you think college football fans should know about you?

I love fans hyping the game up, that really gets me, it’s all the emotion of a football game, fans really help with that.  Just keep cheering for the team and that’d be good for me.

BDN: Thanks a lot, Phillip, and best of luck.

All right.

 

BDN Premium Articles, Duke Football

Football Friday Debut

David Reeves committed to Duke on National Signing Day

While most Blue Devil fans have been lost in the euphoria of Wednesday's dramatic victory over the Tar Heels, we here at BDN have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to continue to bring the best Duke Football coverage around. Yes, Duke Football coverage. In the middle of basketball season. In fact, Patrick Cacchio will be penning a weekly column for Blue Devil Nation Premium members on all things Duke Football (suggestion: Join Now). Here’s his first installment.[private]

When I was in high school, we had “Fun Fridays.” I don’t remember anything particularly fun about them, and in hindsight, it was probably just a gimmick to try and make kids feel better about sitting in a dreary classroom on a Friday afternoon. Well, with that in mind, here at BDN, we’re going to bring you Football Friday. Fridays have absolutely nothing to do with football, of course, but that’s when I’ll probably get around to posting this new column so we’ll go with it for now. We’ll do our best to keep you entertained with the latest in the world of Duke football on Friday afternoons. Since it’s also a premium article, I’ll try to make sure you get your money’s worth of #SCOOP, too.

BDN Salutes

Congratulations to former Duke Head Coach Ted Roof on leading the Auburn Tigers' defense to a National Championship. Roof's defense, which was criticized throughout the season, managed to stall Oregon's juggernaut offense while Cam Newton took care of the rest. While Ted's career at Duke didn't work out as anyone hoped, it's great to see him having success on the sidelines.

Congratulations also to former Duke wide receiver and coach Scottie Montgomery, who helped the Steelers reach the Super Bowl in his first season coaching on an NFL sideline. Though the Steelers' receivers were led by veterans Hines Ward and Mike Wallace, don't overlook the contribution of Montgomery, who tutored rookies Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders. Scottie will always be welcome back in Durham and continues to make the program proud.

Blue Devils get some good news on Signing Day

Duke fans got their first real taste of some Signing Day drama this year, as the Blue Devils completed their class with two late commitments. California WR Blair Holliday re-affirmed his commitment to Duke during a streaming press conference last Tuesday, but not before first flashing his hometown UCLA t-shirt. The real recruiting coup came early on Signing Day itself, as Alabama TE David Reeves signed with Duke in a ceremony at his high school. Reeves was pursued down to the wire by Memphis, South Florida, Mississippi State, and even in-state powerhouse and reigning National Champion Auburn, but chose Duke in the end. The Blue Devils weren’t so fortunate when it came to the decision of Tennessee TE/OL Cam Clear, as they joined Alabama and Memphis as runners-up to Tennessee. It’s a tribute to the work of the Duke coaching staff that the Blue Devils remained in this high profile recruitment all the way to the wire, but ultimately even recruiting extraordinaire Nick Saban was unable to pull Clear from his home state. Of course, since you’re a BDN Member, you already knew where all 3 players were going since we predicted it on the premium message board. I’ll definitely be using that magic 8-ball again.

Duke finishes with 20 commitments in the class of 2011

L to R: Marcus Aprahamian, Cody Robinson, Coach Matt Luke, Matt Skura, Carson Ginn

Two facts come to mind when looking at the Duke class of 2011. First, 16 of the 20 players had verbally committed to Duke before August 1st, with 19 of the 20 players verbally committing to Duke before October 1st (Reeves being the lone exception). The second fun fact about this class is that Duke hosted 21 prospects on official visits and 20 of them ultimately signed with Duke (Clear being the lone exception). Sure, there were defections and misses, but all in all, Duke held together a pretty good group of players, despite coming off a 3-win season; that’s not easy to do.

Now that the letters are signed, sealed, and delivered (I know, they were actually faxed), everyone wants to know who will be the impact players from this class. The truth is that I don’t know, the coaches don’t know, and every player would tell you that he’s going to be the guy. Of course, most will end up redshirting, and isn’t that a rare luxury for Duke Football? Duke has actually built some depth, especially along the offensive and defensive lines (albeit mostly young, unproven, and inexperienced depth). There will of course be a few players who will earn playing time and make an immediate impact, much like Kelby Brown, Brandon Connette, and Josh Snead did a year ago. I’ve been fortunate to get to know most of these prospects pretty well over the past year, so here’s my take on the Duke class of 2011:

  1. Three athletes stand out in this class: Jamison Crowder, David Reeves, and Blair Holliday. These guys all possess a natural playmaking ability that had been lacking in Wallace Wade Stadium prior to Cutcliffe's arrival. With hard work and good health, I expect great careers from all three.
  2. I really like the group of offensive linemen. They’ve already developed a strong bond amongst themselves, and I think every one of them will develop into a very good college lineman. They’re great kids, hard workers, and have a passion for football that has also been missing at Duke.
  3. There’s a confidence among the new DBs that should infuse life into the much-maligned Duke secondary. Jared Boyd played for a powerhouse program in Georgia and could be ready to compete for playing time. Chris Tavarez, Duke’s own Disney teen idol, is a sleeper who can make plays. And if you like underdogs, Tim Burton may be undersized, but he’s probably the fastest guy on the team. And if you don’t think any of these guys are good, just ask them.
  4. We all learned our lesson last year and know better than to sleep on Kyler Brown, but I wouldn’t sleep on the other linebackers in this class, either. Jon Woodruff has a great frame and is already on campus, while Britton Grier and David Helton both have a reputation as a hard-hitter. The fact that the Duke staff didn’t go out after any high-profile guys along the defensive line leads me to believe they’re pretty satisfied with the group of redshirts from a year ago. Sam Marshall, Lucas Fisher, and Mario Sanders will develop into solid players up front, but are probably long-shots to see a lot of snaps as freshmen.
  5. Will Monday is a nice addition as well, and he will help take Duke’s special teams play to another level. He'll challenge Alex King for the starting spot at punter.

It’s not a class that will blow anybody away according to the various ranking services, and we all know that Coach Cutcliffe doesn’t put a lot of stock in analyst grades and stars. For the most part, this is a class with D-1 talent and a strong work ethic, who Duke hopes will develop into solid ACC football players over four or five years. For those who put more stock into rankings than Coach Cutcliffe, it is worth pointing out that ESPN has Duke’s class collectively ranked higher than Florida, Oklahoma and Miami. I think I’ll wait until we see the players on the field before I agree with that assessment.

We'll talk 2012 Duke football recruiting next week

2012 updates next week

So I probably didn’t tell you anything you didn’t already know this week, but I have to leave something to make you come back next week. We’ll look at Duke’s early offers in the class of 2012 and take a look at the biggest areas of need for that class. We’ve also got to find time to talk about Duke’s 2011 schedule, why the ACC’s football struggles have carried over to basketball, ways to improve the compliance department at UNC, and what bowl we want to go to this year. So much to say before September and your attention span only lasts a few hundred words at a time (your poor spouse). Anyway, if you have compliments, please send them to me, and complaints can be sent directly to Mark.

Until next week, GTHC. We Are Duke. [/private]

Duke Football

2012 All-State Kicker Paul Griggs visits Duke for Junior Day

Paul Griggs is one of the top kickers in the class of 2012

Paul Griggs is a 6’1” 192 pound kicker from Charlotte, North Carolina. After a standout junior campaign in which he helped Charlotte Latin reach the State Championship Game, he received numerous post-season accolades, including NCISAA All-State First Team, CISAA All-Conference Team, and AP All-State ballot for North Carolina. Paul attributes much of his success to his dedicated kicking coach Dan Orner.  On the camp circuit, Paul has impressed coaches and scouts with his place-kicking ability and several top college football programs have showed early interest in the junior. Most recently, he was at Duke for a Junior Day and has several other visits planned for the spring and summer. Highlights from Paul’s high school career can be viewed here.

BDN: Can you start off by describing some of your strengths and weaknesses for someone who hasn’t had a chance to see you play?

I’m a place-kicker primarily. I kickoff and I also punt. My strengths lie in placekicking and kicking off.

BDN: Can you talk a little about some of the kicking camps you’ve been invited to and attended?

I’ve been going to Chris Sailer’s National Kicking Event since my freshman year. I went twice my freshman year, once my sophomore year, and I just went again this year, it was about two or three weeks ago. Two weeks before that I went to National Camp Series Supercamp, which was in association with the Army National Combine, just for kickers. I’ve gone to a couple of Kohl’s kicking camps - I went to a regional showcase with them. I’ve been to multiple college camps. I’ve been to a bunch of Chris Sailer regional camps in Charlotte and in Georgia.

BDN: What are some of the things you’ve been working on this offseason and what are your goals for your senior season?

For my senior season, definitely I want to help my team as much as I possibly can get to a state championship and win it this year. We made it to the state championship last year and lost to our rivals [Charlotte] Country Day. It was a pretty devastating loss. It was not good. As far as personal goals for myself, I want to be able to repeat my All-Conference and All-State selections and hopefully I’ll have a shot at the Army All-American selection for the East. That would be phenomenal.

BDN: As you’re approaching your college decision in general, what are the key factors you’re looking for in a school?

Number one I’m looking for a school that’s high academically. That’s very important to me and my family. And then basically a good football program. People say, “don’t chase a coach,” but at least for me if I see that the program has had good coaches in the past and the current coach is a good coach and I like their philosophy, that even if that coach decides to leave, I know that the athletic department, barring anything dramatic, would try to seek out a coach with a similar philosophy. But probably the most important thing would be academics.

BDN: You mentioned academics as the most important factor; is there any academic field in particular that you are most interested in, or just overall good academics?

Yeah, that’s really why I’m looking for good academics because I have no idea what I want to study. I want to have opportunities in any area that I might choose later on.

BDN: Who are some of the schools that have been in contact with you? Who were some of the first to contact you and who have you been hearing from the most?

Some of the first contacts we got from coaches were at camps I went to in June. Penn State, Harvard, Yale, UNC, Pitt – I didn’t talk to the coach at Pitt, but at all the other camps, I had pretty substantial face-to-face time with the special teams coach. Recently, as of September 1st, I’ve been receiving mail from Duke, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin…and I think that’s about it.

BDN: What schools have you had a chance to visit recently and which schools do you plan to visit again?

I was just at Duke’s Junior Day, it was either last weekend or two weeks ago. That was the second time I’ve been up there. I went in the fall for one of their games. Obviously all the schools I mentioned that I’ve been to their camps. And Virginia, I’ve been to their camp too. Virginia, I’ve actually been to a few times, not just for their kicking camp, but also my coach, one of his coaching friends has a camp there that’s a real instructional camp – it’s real intensive and it’s been held at Virginia for the past three years. I’ve also gone up there frequently for other things, my mom being an alumna of that school. I went to soccer camps when I was little there, I went to golf camps when I was little. So that’s the one I’ve been to the most. Duke – I’ve been up there twice. Harvard, I went up in the fall to a game – I went to the Harvard/Yale game. I plan on going there again in late June. I also plan on going to Yale again, I want to say in April. It’s either their Junior Day or their Spring Game. In terms of camps I plan on attending, the list is long and we’re trying to shorten it. I don’t even know if I could ramble off all the schools.

BDN: Is there anything else you think is important for college football fans to know about you either as a person or as a player?

Tremendous dedication. I feel like I never can just sit back and rest on the achievements that I’ve done. I just keep pushing myself to get better, to get stronger, to improve my form. I’m never satisfied with past accomplishments. I feel like there’s always something more I can do to get better and to help my team more.

BDN: That’s certainly a great attitude to have. Thanks a lot, Paul and best of luck to you.

Alright, you too.