Hueytown (Ala.) football and baseball star has made it clear that he wants to play both sports in college.
Jameis Winston has a growing fan club. This special club is comprised mainly of his teammates – and opponents.
Jameis Winston plays at a high level onthe football and baseball fields. Anycollege that chooses him better let himplay both sports.
File photo by Joe Boyd
The 6-foot-4, 195-pound junior at
Hueytown (Ala.) is easy to spot. He's the kid snagging grounders as the Gophers shortstop or chasing down fly balls in center field with the ease of Alabama's legendary Hall of Famer Willie Mays. Mays, a high school football quarterback himself, grew up in nearby Westfield in the late 1940s but turned pro with the Birmingham Black Barons baseball club when he was a junior and was forced to give up football since he was no longer considered an amateur.
Winston loves baseball, says Hueytown football coach Matt Scott.
"The college who gets him needs to know that," Scott warns.
Of course, professional and college baseball scouts need to understand one other small bit of information about this natural-born leader.
"He loves football too," Scott says. "He plans to play both in college."
In a state such as Alabama, talking about baseball and football in the same breath is almost blasphemous. College quarterbacks – and Winston is expected to be a good one at that – are typically expected to give up baseball for more important things like, say, spring training football, once they get to college.
A Day Games in Alabama in 2011 drew more than 90,000 fans to Bryant-Denny Stadium earlier this month for the 2009 national champion Crimson Tide and more than 50,000 at Jordan-Hare Stadium for Auburn, the 2010 national champions.
Where does a kid like Winston, rated the state's top football prospect by Tom Lemming and MaxPreps for the Class of 2012, fit in? As a quarterback he has all the tools. Strengths include his cool under pressure, his poise and ability to lead and, of course, his incredible arm and running ability.
As a baseball player, he has a golden arm, can hit from either side of the plate and has the knack of almost always delivering in the clutch. Consider last week's Class 5A first-round state playoff series at Hueytown's Short Field against Sylcauga. The Gophers (32-7) lost the first game of the best-of-three series 4-1. In game two, Winston hit a home run and pitched a two-hitter as Hueytown won 4-1 to force game three. The Gophers advanced to the second round in game three with a rousing 11-1 win.
Winston wants to be a closer in college and also wants to be an everyday player in the lineup. Already this season he has hit a home run from each side of the plate in a game. Earlier in the week, he pitched three innings in relief, struck out five and got the save in a 3-0 win over playoff contender Walker.
Continue reading{PAGEBREAK}He and his family have gone to great lengths to keep the recruiting fever in perspective, said Scott. His list started with 20 schools. He pared that list to Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami, Nebraska, Ohio State and Stanford. He then pared that list more recently to four: Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and LSU. Auburn, however, may be on the brink of elimination after picking up a commitment from No. 30-ranked quarterback prospect Zeke Pike of Edgewood, Ky., a few weeks back.
His legs are a key to his football success. A nimble passer with a major-league arm, he is elusive in the pocket where can dodge fire-breathing defensive ends with ease, quick enough to outrun speedy defensive backs, and strong enough to run over a linebacker if he needs too. His quarterbacking style has drawn comparisons to 2010 Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton from recruiting analyst Lemming, who rates him
No. 21 overall in the Top 100 recruits of 2012 and the nation's No. 2 quarterback prospect behind Gunner Kiel of Columbus-East High School in Columbus (Ind.).
"He reminds me of Cam Newton," Lemming has said. "He can really throw the out pass with authority, which is what coaches see."
Last season he led Hueytown (11-2) to the third round of the Class 5A state playoffs with wins over Paul Bryant (Tuscaloosa) and defending state champion Demopolis. Eventual state champion Spanish Fort eliminated Winston and the Golden Gophers in the quarterfinals.
Winston earned Super All-State honors at quarterback with 870 yards and 11 touchdowns rushing on 128 carries and another 2,342 yards passing on a 65-percent completion rate. He was 178-for-272 with 17 touchdowns and just four interceptions.
In the 2010 baseball season, he had 91 strikeouts and an 8-3 record in 79 innings. He also had two saves while hitting .424 with seven homers and 36 RBIs.
Winston has given some insight to his college decision.
"First, it's the relationships with the coaches," said Winston. "Second, they must agree to allow me to play baseball."
And if pro baseball scouts are right, he will also have to make another decision: whether to take the money and run straight to the pros as a pitcher or wait for at least three years until he's had time to convince NFL scouts of his vast quarterbacking talents. Another banner baseball season next spring could catapult Winston into the first round of the 2012 June baseball draft.
"How many times do you get a guy who's a phenom in both sports?" his high school football coach said. "What I tell all of them is, you'd better understand that baseball is just as important to him as football."
Winston will head into his senior season as the state's highest-rated quarterback since Philip Rivers (1999). He promises to end the recruiting suspense early. He said he will likely decide on his college choice by mid summer.
