WRAL Sports Fan

College Football

Recruiting: State lands pair of DTs, ECU gets RB

By Sammy Batten

Jan 14, 2009

The positive impact of sports is all too often overshadowed by wins and losses, or the bad things that happen to athletes off the field.

But every once in a while you find a person who’s life has been dramatically altered because they decided to pick up a ball.

East Carolina became the beneficiary of such a case this week when running back Giavanni Ruffin made an oral commitment to the Pirates.

Ruffin was sort of a lost cause when he arrived at Hickory High School in Chesapeake, Va., as a 10th grader, according to the school’s head football coach Jeff Beard. He wasn’t motivated academically and had little or no respect for authority

“His parents were divorced and he came here from a pretty rough school,’’ Beard said. “His mother did an outstanding job raising him, but he truly didn’t have anyone else showing a great deal of interest in him.’’

Ruffin would not be academically eligible to play football for two more years. But through Beard’s encouragement he gradually got himself on track to join the Hickory varsity as a senior.

“We did our best to plug him into teachers who would work with him, and he gradually started to catch on,’’ Beard said. “He learned a lot about discipline and that football was a way for him to further his education.’’

Ruffin went on to a strong senior year at Hickory, but still had some academic work to do before moving to the major-college level. He attended West Hills Community College in California for a year before transferring to the College of the Sequoias in Visalia, Calif., this season.

The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder ran for more than 100 yards in the first quarter of the Giants opening game before a foot injury sidelined him. Ruffin would wind up playing eight games in which he rushed for 463 yards and five touchdowns.

Schools like Minnesota, Middle Tennessee State, Oregon State and UTEP were also pursuing Ruffin. But the Pirates won the battle for a player who compares his running style to NFL star Adrian Peterson.

“My style? Adrian Peterson,’’ Ruffin said. “Everyone tells me I run high. They always say Adrian Peterson runs too high and seems to be successful, so I’ve never changed my style. I don’t compare myself to him, but I do run with a similar style.’’

The addition of Ruffin fills a major need at ECU for a bigger back to complement returnees like Norman Whitley and J.R. Rogers.

Ruffin is the 17th player to commit to the Pirates and he’s the second running back. Damonte Terry from Scotland High made a pledge to ECU in early July.

Pair of DLs pick Pack

N.C. State continued its hot streak on the recruiting trail this week by landing defensive lineman Raynard Randolph from Brandywine, Md., and Deion Roberson of Tucker, Ga.

Randolph, a 6-3, 300-pound defensive tackle, started four seasons at Gwynn Park High School. He made 68 tackles and had four quarterback sacks as a senior.

The Wolfpack beat out 13 other programs for Randolph, including Michigan State, Penn State and Tennessee.

“I like the way they kept talking to me,’’ Randolph said. “They stayed consistent with me. They called almost every week. Then, when I visited campus, it made my decision easy.’’

Randolph made an official visit to Raleigh last weekend.

The 6-4, 258-pound Roberson missed most of his senior season at Tucker due to a dislocated left ankle suffered in the season opener. He was still offered scholarships by East Carolina, Louisville, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan State and West Virginia.

The Wolfpack’s class has expanded to 26 players.

Deacs bag back, kicker

Wake Forest’s recruiting has gone South.

And Southwest.

The Deacons ventured into the football-crazed states of Alabama and Texas over the past week to nail down oral commitments from kicker Jimmy Newman and running back Josh Harris.

Newman, a placekicker and punter from Oxford, Ala., chose Wake over scholarship offers from Alabama-Birmingham and Rice. Rivals.com rates Newman the nation’s No. 11 kicking prospects.

Known for his leg strength, Newman pounded 37 of his kickoffs this season into the end zone for touchbacks. He converted seven of 10 field-goal attempts with a long of 47 yards and averaged 38 yards on 22 punts.

Harris is a 5-10, 192-pounder from Duncanville, Texas. He first committed to Wake in November, but backed out of that pledge in December.

But after an in-home visit with Wake Forest coaches last week, Harris decided to rejoin the Deacon class. He chose the Deacons over Lousiana Tech.

A knee injury kept Harris out of Duncanville’s lineup until October. He wound up rushing for 312 yards and three touchdowns in limited action.

The two commitments bring Wake Forest’s total to 21.

Sammy Batten can be reached at battens@fayobserver.com or 486-3534.