By Sammy Batten
©2011 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
As a child, Zeek Bigger
had the kind of energy that often got him into trouble.
“I used to stay in trouble
in school when I was little. I was always acting up because I had so
much energy,'' Bigger said.
Bigger's stepfather,
Dennis Barrino, believed football would be the perfect outlet for the
rambunctious 7-year-old. But first they had to convince Bigger's mother,
Cathy, to let him play.
Cathy had been a
basketball player at Gastonia's Ashbrook High School, so she would have
been supportive of most any athletic endeavor her son attempted, except
football.
“At first, she said no,''
Bigger said. “But my late stepfather talked her into it. When I came
home after that first practice, took a shower and fell right asleep, I
think they both were happy. I've been playing the game of football ever
since.''
Bigger has played football
with such skill over the last two seasons at his mother's prep alma
mater that major college programs like Arkansas, Duke, Maryland, South
Carolina and Virginia offered scholarships. But it's in the confines of
Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium where the 6-foot-3, 215-pound linebacker has
decided to spend the next four or five years. He'll attach his name to a
letter-of-intent next Wednesday that'll bind him to play for the East
Carolina Pirates as college football's national signing period begins.
ECU plans to use Bigger at
outside linebacker, according to first-year Ashbrook coach Greg Hill.
“He's such a good athlete
and he's got size, but he's only going to get bigger,'' Hill said. “I
can see him being able to carry 240 or 250 pounds, and still run well.
“We played him at MIKE
(middle linebacker) this season. He just went from sideline to sideline
making plays. He has a great ability to run people down.''
Bigger has been a mainstay
on the Ashbrook defense since transferring there from Forestview High
School during the second semester of his sophomore year. He had been
part of the Forestview varsity for two years, although a knee injury
sidelined him for much of his freshman season.
A desire to play major
college football prompted Bigger to move from Forestview to Ashbrook,
where he felt the exposure to recruiters was higher.
“We moved back to the
Ashbrook district where almost everybody in my family went to school,''
Bigger said. “That's when the recruiting process started for me.''
East Carolina was the
first school to step up with an offer after a junior season in which
Bigger made 101 tackles, five tackles for loss, five sacks, forced two
fumbles and an interception. He followed that up with a senior year in
which he produced 93 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack and
intercepted a pass on offense, while also rushing for 498 yards and five
touchdowns as a backup running back.
But it looked like the
Pirates had lost out on Bigger back in June when he made a verbal
commitment to Duke.
Hill said as the weeks
passed after that commitment, Bigger began having second thoughts.
Bigger decided to take an official recruiting visit to Greenville, where
he was impressed by the closeness of the ECU football family.
“There were so many things
I saw that I really loved about their team,'' Bigger said. “They are
like a family unit. And Coach Ruffin McNeill is the type of guy you can
talk about anything. He told me he was daddy No. 2, and I liked that.''
Hill believes the
environment at ECU is a perfect fit for Bigger to develop into the best
player he can be, and Hill should know. He helped coach former Pirate
linebacker Nick Johnson at East Mecklenburg High School. Johnson wound
up being a two-year starter at inside linebacker for ECU and earned
second-team All-Conference USA honors as a senior in 2009.
“Nick could really play,''
Hill said. “Zeke plays with similar savvy and he is very cerebral. Zeke
probably has more athleticism. I know the coaches at East Carolina will
get the best out of him.''
Bigger was part of a
stellar linebacker corps at Ashbrook this season that also included
North Carolina commitment Norkeithus Otis. The two are close friends and
will share their signing day experience at Ashbrook.
“That's my brother,''
Bigger said. “I love him to death. We've been played together almost
every year since the eighth grade, except the two years I was at
Forestview. He was happy about my decision and was very supportive of me
doing what was best for me.''