Where to go, where to go?

Friday, Feb. 5, 2010

But that was hardly the case, even in the situation of Huntingtown senior running back Greg Goodwin coming off a stellar campaign of leading the state with over 2,600 rushing yards and being selected as the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference's most outstanding player.

Like the rest of Calvert County, Huntingtown was dormant for the highly anticipated annual event, occurring the first Wednesday of each February to climax the frenzied college football recruiting season when high school seniors can officially begin signing with their pursuers.

After a banner season that saw Goodwin overwhelm defenses with his array of moves and cutting ability, fearless rushing and impressive field vision, the NCAA Division I offers seemed to be a foregone conclusion.

Not so fast, however.

"There are no other issues, it's strictly size with him," Huntingtown head coach Jerry Franks said for why the Division I ranks have not offered at the 5-foot-9, 175-pound Goodwin. "His size is the comment [the scouts] have made. He had a great year. He had a good junior year — over a thousand yards as a junior. I think scouts are missing the boat with him. He can play, it's just a matter of his size."

Goodwin does have the attention of some Division II and III programs, and that could lead to a scholarship offer. But Franks chose not to comment further on who those programs are.

Franks, formerly an assistant at the University of Connecticut, hinted that even his connections with his former Big East stomping grounds did not make a difference with getting Goodwin into a Division I school.

"It's the same thing," the Huntingtown coach added when UConn was brought into the discussion. "Coaches from many schools have come down to Huntingtown to visit with me. Some have met with Greg and talked to him a little bit. And they wanted someone a little bit bigger."

Huntingtown will probably have about seven players choose the Division II or III route to continue their college careers.

But Franks did not want to disclose at this time any more details about who the players are — other than Goodwin — and the offers coming their way.

What has become a certainty is the choice the SMAC's second-leading rusher has to make.

Taitano looking at D-II schools

Patuxent senior Frank Taitano, fresh off a breakout campaign of almost 1,500 rushing yards, has similar partial offers from a pair of Division II schools in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Fairmont State and Shepherd universities are recruiting Taitano as running back-receiver hybrid player.

"Both schools are looking at me as more of a Percy Harvin," Taitano said, referring to the former University of Florida standout scatback that just finished his NFL rookie season as a Minnesota Vikings receiver.

Taitano, a virtual unknown talent with Patuxent until his senior season, was unable to make his official decision on National Signing Day because he was just offered by both schools within a 24-hour span Tuesday into Wednesday.

Fairmont State offered first, though Shepherd was interested in Taitano's skills before its conference foe.

Taitano does not expect to make his decision before next week, if not the week after that, and is unsure right now as to where he will end up.

However, he did admit to currently be leaning slightly toward Fairmont State.

"I already did the overnight stay at Fairmont State and met with the coaches," he said. "At Shepherd, it was a quicker process and I couldn't get the feel for how they are. I was only there for four hours on my visit."

Taitano was not disappointed that his offers were made too late for him to declare on National Signing Day.

"It doesn't matter to me as long as I know I have my offers," he said. "It's pretty exciting because I know schools really want me to play football for them. I feel a little weight on my shoulders because I've got to choose between two schools."

Taitano burst on the scene last fall in such unexpected fashion, rushing for an impressive 265 yards and two long touchdowns on 26 carries in his first game as a senior starter at Lackey in a close defeat. He was such a surprise that Lackey head coach Douglas Lamb remarked during the game to his defensive players that they were making him look like an All-SMAC player.

As it turned out, Taitano's Week 1 emergence was no fluke. He was a first-team All-SMAC selection.

"I knew it was going to be a good season, but I didn't think it was going to be a season like I had," Taitano said. "At the end of [the 2008] season, I set myself a goal to be the starting running back my senior year. I was proud I did that. My coach sat down and talked to me [before my senior season] about me replacing a great running back, Ra'Joun Nelson, and how we were going to surprise people."

Taitano did just that, finishing with more yards than Nelson from the year before, dealing with a high ankle sprain in the process during the season.

Charles County featured seven football players ink their names to offers on National Signing Day in Westlake's Josh Alexander (Connecticut), Julian Blair (New Mexico), Courtney Jarvis (Lehigh) and Sean Garland (Bowie State), North Point's Nico Washington (Norfolk State) and McDonough's DeVante Stamps (Concord) and Javarrus King (Concord).

Soccer also takes part in National Signing Day. North Point forward Michelle Grozinsky signed with Division II Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Westlake forward Amelia Tarlton would have signed on Wednesday, but instead of taking an athletic scholarship with Division I Marist College, she chose to accept the school's academic offer.

In football, Lackey running back/linebacker Herman Bowman will obtain preferential status in playing for Towson University after he received a full academic ride through a grant from the state. Bowman did not sign a letter of intent with Towson.

St. Mary's County had no athletes involved with National Signing Day.

All head football coaches and athletic directors from each SMAC school were contacted for this story.

dcogle@somdnews.com