Giavanni Ruffin never
played a sport at Hickory High School in Chesapeake, VA, before his
senior year.
But with the help of some
patient guidance from the Hickory High School teachers and coaches, and
Ruffin's own willingness to change, he's now going to a major university
on a football scholarship.
Ruffin, a 6-foot,
215-pound running back at the College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA,
became the newest member of the East Carolina recruiting Class of 2009
on Sunday when he verbally committed to the Pirates. He did so after
spending the weekend on an official visit in Greenville where he hung
out with senior tailback Dominique Lindsay.
Schools such as Middle
Tennessee State, Minnesota, Oregon State and Texas-El Paso were also
aggressively pursuing Ruffin, who led College of the Sequoias in rushing
with 463 yards on 76 carries this season.
With that kind of
attention from major programs, it's hard to imagine Ruffin relatively
inexperienced at the sport.
But Ruffin wasn't doing
much of anything when he met Jeff Beard as a sophomore at Hickory High.
Beard is the football coach at Hickory, and his first encounters with
Ruffin weren't necessarily positive.
“Giavanni transferred to
us from another high school that is pretty rough,'' Beard said. “And
when he first got to us, he didn't respect any kind of authority. His
mother did an outstanding job raising him, but he truly hadn't had
anyone else show a great deal of interest in him. So he never really
trusted anybody.
“But when I first met him
as a 10th grader, we asked him to play football. But he didn't have the
grades to play.''
So Beard went to work
enlisting teachers and coaches to encourage Ruffin in the classroom.
“He eventually started to
catch on to what he had to do,'' Beard said. “He worked hard
academically, learned a lot about discipline and that football might be
a way to success.''
Ruffin finally got his
grades in shape to become eligible as a senior. He was an instant star,
playing running back on offense and linebacker on the defensive side.
“At the end of the year we
beat Oscar Smith,'' Beard said. “I don't know if you know, but they've
lost like one district game in the last six years.
“Well, the game is close
we were lined up in a tight set and pitched the ball to Giavanni.
Giavanni went 70 yards with it. We knew he was special right away. He
was a tremendous football player in just one year.''
Ruffin's talent was
evident, but he still needed to shore up his academics before enrolling
at a major college. So he departed Chesapeake for the West Coast where
he landed first at West Hills Community College in Coalinga, CA. After
one year there, Ruffin transferred this year to the College of the
Sequoias.
Curtis Allen, head coach
at the College of the Sequoias, was happy to see Ruffin arrive.
“In the first quarter of
his first game with us, he had 100 yards in the first quarter,'' Allen
said. “He ended up hurting his leg a little bit and missed some time.
But he still had a great year for us.
“He's a power back who's
got speed. He can go all the way to the house. He's a legit 4.4 (40-yard
dash) guy. He looks great. He's built like a stallion.
“It was good to see him
transfer over here. We needed a tailback because we'd lost our two from
last year to New Mexico State and Illinois.''
East Carolina running
backs coach Junior Smith was an early suitor for Ruffin, according to
Allen. It didn't take long for Smith to convince Ruffin to make an
official visit to Greenville.
When he did, Ruffin was
sold.
“The team made the
difference for me,'' Ruffin said. “I like the way they treated each
other like brothers. Dominique Lindsay said listen, 'You come to East
Carolina and you're part of a family.' That made me feel really
comfortable.
“Plus, Coach Smith was the
recruiter who had the most contact with me. I would talk to him every
other day, either with an e-mail or text message.''
Ruffin has returned home
to Chesapeake for the spring semester. He said he's enrolled at
Tidewater Community College to complete his junior college requirements
and he'll enroll at ECU for summer school.
When he gets there, Ruffin
expect to start competing for playing time immediately.
“I think I can go in there
and make a difference,'' Ruffin said. “(Head) Coach (Skip) Holtz told me
they needed an every-down back and that's why they recruited me.''
And what kind of running
back is Ruffin?
“My style? Adrian
Peterson,'' he said. “Everyone tells me I run high and need to get
lower, and I never get it. I just keep running high and hard. They
always say Adrian Peterson runs too high, and he's successful at it, so
I've never changed my style.''
Ruffin is the second
running back to join the ECU recruiting class.
Damonte Terry from Scotland High
School in Laurinburg made a verbal commitment to the Pirates in July.
The latest pledge brings
ECU's total to 17 with less than a month remaining before national
signing day on Feb. 4.
