Interesting tidbit in a Scott Carter Tampa Tribune article about do-it-all women's basketball star Jessica Lawson, and it had nothing to do with Lawson. (No offense to her, she's awesome.) The very last item in the story says:
[Skip] Holtz's oldest son, Trey, a 10th-grader, enrolled at Plant High this week and plans to join the football team as a quarterback when spring practice starts.
Located in Tampa, Plant's football team has won three state championships in the last four years - two in Class 4A, and another in Class 5A. It's become one of the best public-school programs in Florida, and thanks to some fairly liberal interpretations of Hillsborough County's special-assignment rules, it's a magnet for high-level football talent. During their four-year championship run, Plant has produced nine D-I signees, including Robert Marve, Orson Charles, Aaron Murray, and Eric Dungy. Earlier in the 2000s they sent Mike Williams to USC and Stephen Reaves to Michigan State. And this year everyone will be looking at James Wilder, Jr., who will likely end up as a 4 or 5-star recruit and already has offers from some of the big boys - Florida, Miami, and USC.
USF has only signed one Plant football player in the last 10 years - Donte Spires in 2005. Wilder might be out of the Bulls' reach, but as long as Plant is turning out D-I talent, this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
You know, as long as Skip doesn't recruit his son to play for USF, then pull a Dan and Cody Hawkins and go down with the ship together.
(P.S. I went to Plant and they won a total of 12 games in my four years there. No, I'm not bitter. OK, a little bitter. Actually, I'm very bitter. In fact I'm downright pissed.)