Call it official, this
time without reservation. Darius Spencer is now a member of East
Carolina’s recruiting Class of 2008.
The star running back from
A.C. Reynolds High School in Asheville, NC, told national recruiting
websites last week he was going to make a verbal commitment to the
Pirates. Those outlets naturally posted stories regarding Spencer’s
decision.
The only problem was that
Spencer hadn't notified the ECU coaching staff he was accepting their
scholarship offer, according to Reynolds coach Shane Laws. Although just
a formality, Spencer didn’t make that phone call until Tuesday.
“He called them officially
today,’’ Laws said Tuesday afternoon. “I had to proctor an exam, but he
used the phone in my office. So it’s official now.’’
The announcement signified
another major in-state recruiting coup for the Pirates, who had received
previous commitments from athlete
Joseph
Womack of Northside High in Jacksonville and running
back-wide receiver
Marquan Brown of Fayetteville
Gray’s Creek. Both are regarded as two of the top rising senior
prospects in the state for the 2007 season.
But Spencer, a 5-foot-10,
178-pounder, had been receiving even more recruiting interest than Brown
or Womack. He chose ECU over scholarship offers from Marshall, North
Carolina and N.C. State.
The Pirates have added
another true burner to their backfield picture in Spencer, who was timed
at 4.32 and 4.33 seconds during a Shrine Bowl All-Star Game combine at
Reynolds back in April. He used those swift feet to rush for nearly
1,200 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior last season, despite splitting
time at tailback with teammate C.J. Davis.
“Because of his speed most
people were recruiting him to play running back,’’ Reynolds coach Shane
Laws. “He hits that top gear so quick. If he gets a little crack, he’s
gone and it’s hard to run him down.
“I’ve never had a player
with the speed he has. It’s almost freakish in some ways.’’
Laws cited a play made in
last year’s game against rival Asheville High as a great example of
Spencer’s skill as a running back.
“We had just turned the
ball over and Asheville had scored to go ahead 7-0,’’ Laws said. “We
were stuck deep in our own territory and were having a hard time moving
the ball.
“We had a third-and-long
play and called a draw. He took the ball at about our 30 and went 70
yards to tie the game. The thing is Asheville had a lot of guys with a
lot of speed. But Darius made them look like they were playing at
different speed than him. He just kind of ran away from them on that
draw play.’’
Spencer was first spotted
by the Reynolds coaching staff as a middle school player. Even as an
eighth grader, Spencer was so dedicated to football that he asked to
work out in the summer with the high school team.
“You could tell right then
he didn’t look like an eighth grader in our weight room,’’ Laws said.
“He loves the game. It’s such a huge part of his life. He’s relentless
in the weight room. He’s a 180-pound guy who squats about 500 pounds.
He’s incredibly strong.’’
After a freshman season on
the junior varsity, Spencer started at cornerback on defense as a
sophomore and was the backup at tailback. He became the No. 1 tailback
last season and started at cornerback.
Scholarship offers began
arriving this spring for Spencer, but the Pirates may have already had a
head start on the field. ECU signed Reynolds tight end and Spencer’s
close friend, Will Towery, in February and he’ll be a freshman next
fall.
“Darius and Will are
pretty good buddies,’’ Laws said. “They spent a lot of time together
this season, and I think that helped East Carolina.
“He had a lot of other
schools ready to offer. He was receiving about 10 to 15 letters a day
from schools all over the country. Top 20 schools from last year are
sending him mail. But some wanted to wait and see what happened (during
Spencer’s senior year).’’