WAKEFIELD FOOTBALL
Wakefield junior Nigel King (center, No. 11) received his first official scholarship offer last week, hearing from SEC powerhouse Louisiana State University. King, who's missed the Wolverines' first three games with a hip injury, expects to make his debut Sept. 18 against Durham Riverside.
Wakefield's King receives
first offer — from LSU
While walking to his first period class with friends Thursday morning, Wakefield junior Nigel King received a text message informing him to report to the Wolverines' football coaches office.
Head coach J.D. Dinwiddie and his staff had good news for the 6-foot-3 wide receiver: he had just received his first official scholarship offer. Though this moment wasn't unexpected, considering King's one of the most heralded recruits from North Carolina's 2011 class.
But the first school to extend an offer — Louisiana State University — was a complete surprise.
"I haven't heard anything from LSU," King said. "It was shocking because they haven't sent me any questionaries or anything like that."
While Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina State and a bevy of other universities have shown interest in King, the Tigers were the first to act.
One of the most prominent college football programs in the country, LSU recruits the best players on the national level, making King's invitation undoubtedly impressive.
And Wakefield assistant coach Hunter Jenks believes the Tigers' offer will be the first in a line of potential suitors for King's abilities.
"He has been getting a lot of interest from the major schools already, and I think with this offer, it's going to cause a domino effect," the coach said. "The offer was faxed by Les Miles to Coach Dinwiddie, so it doesn't get much bigger."
For sometime King has received recruitment mail from colleges — UCLA, Oregon and Virginia have sent the most, he said — but official offers couldn't be extended until Sept. 1.
While King expected to hear from someone in the near future, he was still thrilled to have the invitation in hand, and seeing the words "full athletic scholarships" in writing.
"It was pretty excited, and I'm looking forward to seeing what other ones I get," he said.
The junior explained he plans to take his time making a decision, and doesn't have any restrictions on location or conference. Though he admitted he likes the SEC.
"All my friends that have already gone through [the recruiting process], they say it is pretty hard," King reasoned. "So I'm going to take it slow. I really don't know where I want to go yet."
For now, the junior is just looking forward to starting his season, having missed the Wolverines' first three games with a hip injury sustained during the summer.
"I am really excited about getting out there," King said. "I should be back for the Durham Riverside game [at home, Sept. 18] in two weeks. "It's been hard, very hard, not playing. This is my team, I look forward to playing with them."
