Jay Whitmire Entertains College Offers
October 14, 2009 by Cortez Taylor
If you are 6 foot 6 and 290 pounds and a junior in high school, what are your chances to play Division 1 football? Any high school football player or college would agree that these chances are very high.
How does it feel to have a pre-season All-Met player on the T.C. team? “I think it’s great. Its great to know that we have an important player on our team”, said senior wide receiver Kyle Whitehead.
For those who have missed him, Jay Whitmire is a 6-6 290 pound junior. Not only is he a giant, but he is also being recruited by many Division 1 schools. For instance, he has already been offered athletic scholarship from North Carolina, UVA, Pitt, and Penn State. This is just the beginning of Jay’s career. He is only a junior, so many more offers will start flowing in any day. He also still have two seasons in high school left. When asked multiple times by players on his team how much pressure the offers put on him he confidently replies, “None at all”.
Whitmire has been starting on the defensive line for the Titans since his freshman year. Not only has he been starting but he has been putting up big numbers to help his football team. He had the ability to start his 8th grade year, but in the Virginia High School League rules it is illegal to start any varsity sport in that grade. So as an 8th grader he dominated the junior varsity, putting a “lock” on his position the following year.
His scholarship journey started the summer of his sophomore year. The college coaches have been looking at him for a long time because of his size and his athletic ability, but when he went to UVA he began to make his mark.
Not only was he young, but he was big enough and fast to match up with lineman down there. The coaches at UVA put Whitmire through many challenges. They put him up against many of the kids they had offered or were about to offer scholarships. Whitmire loves these kind of challenges so he took advantage. He was recognized as the best defensive lineman at the camp. This was including all high school grade levels. The camp began UVA’s interest in this student- athlete. One great day for Whitmire came when the Titans went to UVA over the summer for a passing league tournament. In this tournament, no lineman play. The Titans used Whitmire as a tight end. He was able to catch passes, and was able to shake some defenders. The Titans finished that tournament 5-3. Immediately, the head coach offered Whitmire a scholarship.
The same exact procedures happened when the Titans traveled to the University of Pittsburgh this past June. After the Titans had won the 7- on- 7 tournaments. The head coach offered Jay a scholarship while celebrating with the teammates.
The day after the University of Pittsburgh camp, Whitmire and his father traveled to the University of Penn State. He impressed all the coaches up there. Jay and John Bray are resting in their dorm when the Penn State head coach knocked on their door. When they answered, scrambling to get dressed, the head coach offered Jay a scholarship to spend his four years of college at Penn State.
The University of North Carolina added their football program to the list of his offers after he attended their camp. Whitmire’s recruiting status is looking up, and his Titans career will only help improve it.