They came up together as hyped teammates at Carver High in Columbus, Ga., but as they shared the stage today, Isaiah Crowell and Gabe Wright exemplified opposite ends of the signing day spectrum – the yin and yang, if you will, at the heart of the beast.
On one side of the stage, Crowell, the coveted running back who sealed his commitment to Georgia's instate "Dream Team" with a broad smile and the most unabashedly adorable touch ever attempted by a five-star diva: An English bulldog puppy (named "Uga," naturally) smuggled into the press conference by another Carver teammate. On the other side, Wright, a menacing, 270-pound defensive tackle who donned a custom Auburn cap that asked the rhetorical question, "Nick Who?", a brash, arrogant shot at either a) Alabama coach Nick Saban, his new mortal enemy, or b) Outgoing Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley, the most dominant (and dirtiest) defensive lineman in the country in 2010, whom Wright plans to quickly relegate to the back of Tiger fans' minds.
In one scene, the cuddly and the cocky. One on his way to play for bona fide nice guy Mark Richt, the other to suit up for scowling, square-jawed <>a href="http://d.yimg.com/i/ng/sp/ap_photo/20110111/all/l4946811.jpg">bellower Gene Chizik. Carver's future English majors fainted in the face of the duality of it all. The Doc merely awards Isaiah and Gabe the 2011 edition of his coveted "Recruit(s) of the Year" award, presented annually on the sole basis of panache in a world of cafeterias and creepiness.
They follow in the proud tradition of the 2009 Recruit of the Year, South Florida linebacker Sam Barrington, and the 2010 winner, Auburn fullback Ladarious Phillips, whose unrivaled groove proved to be the missing ingredient in the Tigers' run to the BCS championship in his freshman campaign. May his successors wear the crown as funkily as he did.
- - -
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Nick Wey Blake Wharton Jeremy Whatley Kevin Windham Steve Wise
No comments:
Post a Comment