“[Playing football] has always come naturally. I’ve never thought about doing anything else.”
BY WILSON WITHERSPOON
wilsonwitherspoon@csdecatur.net
Florida all have one common goal: recruit Decatur senior Chris Hambie. Since Hambie was three years old, football has been an important part of his life. “[Play- ing football] has always come naturally,” he said. “I’ve never thought about doing anything else.”
F Tis single-minded focus is one of the
reasons Hambie believes he has been suc- cessful. In addition to being a major part of his life, his commitment to achieve has been very time-consuming. “In the off-season, on Fridays after school, when other kids are on the couch, I’m trying to get better,” Hambie said. “I’m always in the gym working with Coach Hayes or on the field.” Hambie’s strong work ethic has helped him fulfill the daunting physical require- ments for a Division I linebacker. “He’s got the right amount of size that they’re looking for,” Decatur head football coach, Price Jones said. “In college football nowadays, you’ve got to be a certain height and weight; you’ve got to have a certain amount of speed … He’s got some of those things that they’re look- ing for.” Currently, Hambie stands at 5’11”, with a solid 222 pound frame. He also runs the 400-yard dash in a mere 4.89 seconds and has a vertical jump of nearly 30 inches. For Hambie, the actual recruiting process began at the end of his sophomore year,
lorida State, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech, Vir- ginia, Kentucky, Louisville and South
when a representative from the University of Virginia contacted him about playing in college. It was a dream come true. “I was elated,” he said.
Tough Hambie is excited about playing at the next level, he has learned to take his options in stride. Over the past 18 months, nearly every school in the SEC (South- eastern Conference) and ACC (Atlantic Coastal Conference) has expressed interest in Hambie. “It’s a lot [of choices],” he said. He has, however, set one firm criteria. “I want to stay in the south.” Though the recruiting process is not
officially done for Hambie until he signs a national letter of intent in February of 2012, he feels well prepared for the process and does not anticipate any unexpected surprises in the next five months. One rea- son Hambie has experienced such a level of comfort and preparedness is because of his father, a former soccer coach. “My dad is my motivation,” Hambie said. “He pushes me every day.” Such dedication to the sport seems to be
necessary. According to NCAA statistics, only six percent of high school football players go on to play in college, and a mere 1.7 percent of college football players get drafted to play in the NFL. While Hambie aims to be the one high
school football player out of every 1,000 to go pro, he is aware that the odds are stacked against him. Regardless of the end result, he feels that being recruited will be a helpful process for the rest of his life. “It’s
all about dealing with choices,” Hambie said. “You have to be responsible and make good decisions.” Te decision to improve himself physically has proven worthwhile, as Hambie has a higher vertical jump than Kwontie Moore, the top rated high school linebacker in the nation, according to rivals. com. Hambie is also only .09 seconds slower than Moore in the 40-yard dash. In spite of the obvious temptation to
focus solely on football, Hambie has heeded his own advice and taken his academics seriously. Where many high school football players slack off academically and waste their potential, Hambie has sufficient grades to play in college, much to the delight of his family and coaches. “He’s got the grades … he’s got a bright future,” Jones said. Tough the process of being recruited
is ultimately personal, colleges taking an interest in Hambie may have a much larger impact than he intended. Jones believes that Hambie will be a trailblazer for future Decatur football players. “One of my goals as head coach is to try to get as many kids in college as possible,” Jones said. “If we can start getting a few [players] going on and playing college, hopefully we’ll get more and more.” For Hambie, the future is promising.
With his talent and determination, his goal of greatness may well be within reach. “He’s a kid that’s got a lot of potential,” Jones said.
“He could be pretty good.” n Photo courtesy of Eilis Gehle
OCTOBER 2011 • CARPE DIEM
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