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Monday, February 18, 2008
North Clayton’s Dieke commits to Georgia Tech
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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He has yet to attend a football game at Georgia Tech.
But a visit to Tech earlier this month was enough to convince North Clayton junior Emanuel Dieke to commit to the Jackets late last week.
“I really liked the coaches I met on junior day,” Dieke said. “They sat down and talked to me and told me how much they wanted me there.
“And I just like the campus.”
The 6-foot-7, 205-pound Dieke will be one of the tallest defensive ends in Tech school history. The center for the North Clayton basketball team, Dieke has no aspirations to tryout for coach Paul Hewitt’s squad.
“It will be strictly football,” Dieke said.
He had been considering East Carolina, North Carolina, Mississippi State and Rutgers.
Dieke broke the news to Tech coach Paul Johnson on Friday.
“He was happy,” Dieke said. “He told me he’s glad to have me onboard.”
Permalink | Comments (106) | Categories: Tech
Watts pulls trigger on commitment to Mississippi State
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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For Salem junior offensive lineman Sam Watts, his first scholarship offer was the one he coveted the most.
So there was little doubt where the 6-foot-4, 290-pound Watts would play college football after Mississippi State offered him earlier this month.
“I was born in Starkeville and my whole family went to college there,” Watts said. “My brother goes there now. It just feels like home.”
Watts, who has attended camps on a regular basis at Mississippi State since his freshman year at Salem, has become a big admirer of Bulldog coach Sylvester Croom.
“Coach Croom is just awesome,” Watts said. “He’s such a humble person. He cares about character. There’s just a great group of people there.”
The Bulldogs will likely line Watts up at offensive tackle.
“They said I’m really versatile and could play anywhere along the line,” said Watts, who plays center for the Seminoles. “They’ll try me at tackle.”
In addition to his strong family ties to MSU, Watts committed early to minimize distractions this fall.
“I just wanted to get it out of way and focus on my senior season,” he said. “I didn’t want the recruiting process going on while I was playing. I prayed about it, and it felt like the right thing to do.”
Permalink | Comments (8) | Categories: Other schools
