Stephenson coach Ron Gartrell says he’d rather every player sign a college scholarship than win every football game. He did pretty well at both goals this academic year.
Gartrell’s team went 12-1, losing a 22-21 heartbreaker in the Class AAAAA quarterfinals to Colquitt County. That’s not an unusual finish for a school averaging 10 victories this decade.
But on Wednesday, 29 of 31 seniors signed college scholarships. That’s twice as many signees ever for Stephenson, a DeKalb County school already known as a factory of college football talent.
How did it happen? Ask Corey Johnson, an assistant coach who took on the job of recruiting director this year and got remarkable results.
‘‘There are 725 colleges that play football,’’ Johnson said Wednesday after a signing ceremony at the school. "That’s a lot of football for a lot of skill sets. There’s a place for everybody. If their grades aren’t where they need to be, we’ve got junior-college options. If they were less athletic but smart kids, we took them to areas of that need. It’s strategic. We didn’t want anyone to get left out.’’
Johnson might represent the future of recruiting at the high school level. At most high schools, the job of recruiting falls on the head coach.
This past season, Gartrell – who built the Stephenson powerhouse from scratch starting in 1997 – turned the job of recruiting over to Johnson, who made it his passion.
Johnson, who also coaches linebackers and special teams, contacted every football-playing school in the country. He made highlight film of every senior and made it available on the school’s booster club Web site. He tracked players’ academic record and worked to get them all eligible.
Soon, Johnson was sending up to 1,000 text messages a day to college coaches. He has cell phone numbers for coaches at more than 300 colleges and universities. He schedules meetings between coaches and recruits, taking the burden off Gartrell.
"Most of these high school coaches just don’t have this much time to put into recruiting,’’ Johnson said. "When college coaches come by, they’ve got a job to do during the day. They’re teaching.’’
It helps that Johnson is marketing a school rich in talent. Stephenson had 32 graduates on college rosters last season. Only Camden County, with 33, had more.
The 2009 Stephenson team has eight Division I-A signees, headed by defensive tackle Michael Thornton (Georgia), running back Raymond Sanders (Kentucky) and linebacker Tyrone Cornelius (Miami). Three others signed with SEC schools. That’s not unprecedented for Stephenson.
In 2005, Stephenson had linebackers Perry Riley and Kelvin Sheppard, now starting at LSU, and Jermaine Cunningham, an all-SEC defensive end at Florida. Marcus Ball, who signed with Florida State, was the Class AAAAA defensive player of the year.
In 2002, Stephenson featured Reggie Ball (Georgia Tech), Kregg Lumpkin (Georgia), T.J. Gartrell (Georgia) and Roderick Rogers (Wisconsin) as seniors and Michael Grant (Arkansas) and Josh Johnson (Georgia) as juniors.
Despite those big-name players, Stephenson is still looking for its first state championship. Wednesday made head coach Gartrell feel a little better about falling short again in 2009.
"I’d love to win a state championship more than a lot of things, but I’m having fun doing what we’re doing and enjoying the progress we’re making in these kids’ lives,’’ Gartrell was saying in November, when the number of players with offers was only 16. "What difference does it make if you win a state championship and your kids can’t go to college or go on to be productive citizens?’’
Stephenson's signees Wednesday:
RB (2) – Raymond Sanders (Kentucky), Denzel Hartley (J.C. Smith)
WR (2) – Jeremiah Mahoney (Concordia), Gary McIndoe (LaGrange)
TE (2) – Ronnie Shields (Kentucky), Steven Thomas (Tusculum)
OL (4) – Kevin Billups (J.C. Smith), Armond Mitchell (Belhaven), Blake Rennals (Belhaven), Quintin Spencer (J.C. Smith)
DT (4) – Michael Thornton (Stephenson), Doral White (Valdosta State), Brandon Smith (Miles College), James Farmer (Tusculum)
DE (4) – Joshua Polk (Presbyterian), Malcolm Strong (Marshall), Miles Ashmon (Fort Valley State), Edward Passmore (Concordia)
LB (4) – Tyrone Cornelius (Miami), Jabari Johnson (Kentucky), Franchot West (Southern), Jordan Rhinehart (Tusculum)
CB (4) – Martin Adebowale (Presbyterian), Idris French (Concordia), Christopher Sharpe (Middle Tennessee State), Thomas Hubbard (St. Francis)
S (2) – Kenny Ladler (Vanderbilt), Jacob Johnson (Tusculum)
K (1) – Ephesian Tisdale (Concordia)