Perhaps the festivities for National Signing Day were symbolized best by Thomson offensive lineman Brian Brinson.
In the school media center Wednesday morning, Brinson wore a light-blue short-sleeve dress shirt with a tie. It was half-untucked and didn't quite go with his dark-blue slacks and brown Timberland sneakers.
He basically looked like the ultimate high school student, who doesn't worry about fashion - or, for that matter, matching.
The best part of his outfit was the big goofy grin on his face. That was why Brinson - who with teammates Montrell Neal and Jasper Brinkley signed with Georgia Military College - looked like a million bucks.
Linebacker Danny Verdun Wheeler, who signed with Georgia, could relate.
"We're all just honored about what happened," Verdun Wheeler said. "We all feel changed. I feel like a new man. We're all going our separate ways, but we're all going to represent Thomson."
One player conspicuous by his absence at the signing ceremony was all-state quarterback Deon Palmer. Although Palmer had committed to Georgia Southern, Thomson coach Luther Welsh said Middle Tennessee State and East Carolina also had shown interest in him.
"He needs to make up his mind by this weekend," Welsh said. "I told him not to wait too long (to decide), or there won't be any scholarships left."
Running back Demarco McNair already had his signing with Middle Tennessee State. Still, Wednesday was bittersweet for McNair.
"It's kind of sad, because I've been playing with these guys since I was 11," he said. "Now, everybody's going their separate ways. I don't want to leave anybody."
At least he'll know one of his new teammates. Surrounded by at least 50 of his classmates and teachers at Hephzibah's media center, Rebels fullback Ralph Gunter, the only Richmond County player to land a Division I-A scholarship, also signed with the Blue Raiders.
"I'm always looking for a situation where a program is on the rise," Gunter said. "I worked real hard. I guess this is how it pays off."
Gunter wasn't alone.
Throughout the area, players made their dreams come true.
Some, such as Washington-Wilkes defensive end Richard Cook, who picked Georgia over Florida State and Tennessee, were nationally-recognized blue-chip recruits. Others, such as Josey linebacker Calvin Pryor, were just grateful for the chance to go to college for free.
All of them had one emotion in common: pure joy.
"It's a big day," said Pryor, who faxed his letter of intent to Clark-Atlanta. "I thought about it the whole night. I had to make sure I was making the right decision."
Fifty-five miles away, Cook had the same thoughts. Although he already had committed to Georgia, Cook allowed Florida State and Tennessee back into the picture.
In the end, the Bulldogs won out.
"Georgia's (program) is going up," said Cook, who will join Jefferson County offensive lineman Fernando Velasco on the Bulldogs squad. "Teams like Florida State and Tennessee might be going down. I wanted to get on the boat."
Westside's Tony LeZotte just wanted to get back to playing with his brother again.
LeZotte - whose brother, Matt, is a redshirt sophomore quarterback at James Madison - also signed with the Dukes.
"I'm very happy," LeZotte said. "We always talked about growing and playing together. We never thought we'd get to play high school together, and we did. Now, we get to play college together."
He helped celebrate the occasion with radio personality Ashley Brown during his show live at the Partridge Inn.
For the third consecutive year, recruiting fans could sample buffalo wings and mini-meatballs while they watched and listened to Brown interview local signees on his radio show, A.B.'s Sportsline.
For Brown, it was a perfect way to end the recruiting season.
"I'm into recruiting, and we did this two years ago and had a decent crowd," Brown said. "Last year, we were overwhelmed with everybody who came. It seems to be getting bigger every year. The kids are probably glad recruiting is over, but I just love it."
AUGUSTA CHRISTIAN
Trey Pitts/LB/Presbyterian
David Nelson/PK/North Greenville
Scott Brantley/DL/North Greenville
BUTLER
Jonna Butler/LB/Charleston Southern
Cornell Scales/RB/Bethune-Cookman
CROSS CREEK
Brundsha Hudlin/WR/Grambling
EVANS
Steven Rogers/WR/East Carolina
GREENBRIER
Ben Tankersley/PK/Presbyterian
HEPHZIBAH
Ralph Gunter/FB/Middle Tennessee State
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Fernando Velasco/OL/Georgia
LANEY
J.K. Sabb/LB/Georgia Military College
SCREVEN COUNTY
Will Campbell/WB/Georgia Southern
Sean Mosley/LB/Middle Tennessee State
THOMSON
Jasper Brinkley/DL/Georgia Military College
Brian Brinson/OL/Georgia Military College
Dexter Crawford/LB/Clark-Atlanta
Demarco McNair/RB/Middle Tennessee State
Montrell Neal/OL/Georgia Military College
Danny Verdun Wheeler/LB/Georgia
WASHINGTON COUNTY
Travis Lockhart/OL/West Georgia
Clem McDavid/P/Harvard
Preston Smith/QB/Louisville
WASHINGTON-WILKES
Richard Cook/DL/Georgia
WESTSIDE
Tony LeZotte/DB/James Madison
BARNWELL
Marcus Allen/P/North Greenville
BLACKVILLE-HILDA
Brandon Isaac/QB/Georgia Military College
NORTH AUGUSTA
Frayne Abernathy/TE/Northwestern
Lance Watkins/OL/Georgia Southern
Bryant Pontoon/OL/Florida A&M
Elbert Walker/RB/Charleston Southern
Jason Stewart/OL/North Greenville
Richard Bush/DL/Newberry
Nigel Moss/DL/Winston Salem State
SILVER BLUFF
De'Angelo Bryant/DB/Wake Forest
SOUTH AIKEN
Leonard Davis/DL/Wingate
Jerome Dunbar/OL/Winston Salem State
Will Durrett/DL/Coastal Carolina
WAGENER-SALLEY
Rontreal Tyler/WR/The Citadel
WARDLAW
Kevin Molony/DB/Presbyterian
Reach Josh Katzowitz at (706) 823-3216 or josh.katzowitz@augustachronicle.com.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2012 Morris Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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