For the first 10 years of
his life, Justin Venable's primary athletic pursuits were on the
diamond.
"He was playing baseball
by the time he was five years old,'' said Venable's father, Wayne. "He
played all those years summer and in the fall. In fact, for two years in
a row he had played in the Mustang World Series in Texas.
"But I think he was
starting to get burned out on baseball.''
One of Wayne Venable's
friends suggested Justin try playing football as a change of pace.
"We were actually signing
up for another season of fall baseball,'' Wayne Venable said. "But we
took him to try out (for football), and he's loved the game since.''
"I went to one practice to
watch one of the practices before I signed up to play,'' Justin Venable
said. "I just liked the intensity of hitting people. It kind of came
natural.''
The younger Venable has
progressed from that humble beginning into a football player gifted
enough to earn All Mid-Piedmont 3-A Conference last season as a junior
safety. The 6-foot-2 1/2, 190-pounder set a school record with nine
interceptions and collected 84 tackles in helping Southeast Guilford to
the third round of the state 3-AA playoffs and 10-4 overall record.
The performance also
helped draw the attention of the East Carolina coaching staff, which
after a year of courting gained a verbal commitment from the rising
senior on July 10. Venable received the scholarship offer soon after
attending ECU's summer football camp in mid-June.
"The main thing I liked
about East Carolina was the coaching staff,'' Venable said. "They showed
a lot of interest in me from the beginning. When I went to the spring
game (in April) the coaches came up and started telling me they knew a
lot about me. They made me feel at home.''
Ohio University had also
offered Venable a scholarship, and schools such as N.C. State, Wake
Forest and Virginia were showing serious interest.
In Venable, the Pirates
are getting an athlete with the size of a linebacker and the speed of a
cornerback. He was timed at 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash during a
Shrine Bowl combine at Greene Central High in Snow Hill back in April.
Southeast Guilford coach
Fritz Hessenthaler said speed isn't Venable's only asset.
"He's a football player,''
Hessenthaler said. "He's physical and smart on the field. He understands
what his responsibilities are. He's been in here lifting with me since
he was in the eighth grade. I think that weight training has been the
thing that has separated him the last couple of years.
"He's a kid every school
in America is going to wish they had.''
Venable began his career
on the Southeast Guilford varsity as a sophomore playing linebacker. He
moved to safety later in the year.
Hessenthaler also utilizes
Venable's speed by playing him at wide receiver on offense and employing
him on kick returns.
"He's the type of kid who
could be used in multiple spots in high school or college,''
Hessenthaler said.
Venable could also be used
in multiple sports at either level. He played shortstop and left field
for a Southeast Guilford baseball squad that reached the state 3-A
championship series last year, batting around .350 for the year.
Could Venable also make a
contribution to the ECU baseball program?
"I might play there, but
for now I'm concentrating on football,'' Venable said.
Venable is the fifth known
verbal commitment for the Pirates, and all five pledges are from
in-state prospects.
[View
thumbnail sketches of other players verbally committed to join ECU's
recruiting class of 2008.]
