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 My Football News |
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ALL-SPSL SOUTH (selected by league coaches)
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER:
Brandon Moore, Bethel
FIRST-TEAM
Brandon Gibson, Rogers Sr.
Morris ...
CJ Green, Scholar-Athlete National Football Foundation
CJ was honored as one of eight Scholar-Athlete finalist by the National Football Foundation and Hall Of Fame King County Chapter.
The King County Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame is one of more than 113 chapters throughout the country that honors student-athletes. The foundation promotes amateur football at all levels recognizing teams, coaches, officials, administrators and young men who excel both as a player and as a student.
The King County Chapter represents 64 high school football programs throughout King and Kitsap Counties. At the end of the season, each coach nominates two of his players, a back and lineman, for recognition by the NFF. Each year the selection commitee made up of former coaches, players, and administrators has a difficult task in narrowing down the list to the final eight, four backs and four lineman.
WWU, limited in its recruiting, signs 10
 |  | | CJ (middle) on signing day | |
FOOTBALL: Smith targets players who can help almost immediately.
Mike Allende, The Bellingham Herald
With only seven seniors from last season's team graduating, and nearly 90 players participating in winter conditioning, Western Washington football coach Rob Smith was limited in his most recent round of recruiting.
But rather than look at the lack of available scholarship money as a hindrance, Smith saw it as a chance to zero in on recruits and target players he knew would help. He thinks he's accomplished that.
2005 recruits
C.J. Green, CB, Federal Way
William Jackson, LB, O'Dea (Seattle)
Noah Jiles, WR, Eisen-hower (Yakima)
Chris Miller, G, Mariner (Everett)
Jason Paull, OT, Mountain View (Vancouver)
Cody Visser, RB, Lynden
Kyle Winkley, DL, Black Hills (Tumwater)
Dan Winter, LB, North Thurston (Lacey)
Matt Overton, long snapper, Diablo Valley (Calif.) JC
Johnny Lopez, CB, Glendale, (Ariz.) CC
Western signed eight high school seniors and two junior college transfers on Wednesday, the first day recruits were permitted to sign national letters of intent. Among the recruits were six Seattle Times white chip players, signifying they are among the top 100 high school seniors in the state.
"It's certainly not a large class," Smith said. "In the past, we've been in position where we could take some chances on some kids we saw as projects. This year we stuck to kids we felt confident would be able to come in and play for us. And we feel real good about all eight of the high school kids."
Leading the class is cornerback C.J. Green of Federal Way. The 5-foot-8, 180-pounder was a first-team all-state pick after making 80 tackles, forcing four fumbles and breaking up nine passes. Green, Federal Way's student body president, said he picked Western over Portland State, Eastern Washington and Central Washington.
"I've been to their camps with my high school so I got to know the coaches well," said Green, who will major in business marketing. "I like the environment of the campus, and the academics fit with what I want to study."
Western returns three experienced players at cornerback - Sly Whitfield Jr., Brett Hall and Ocie Moore - along with talented redshirt freshmen Anthony Rosso and Maurice Jones. But Green said he is coming to WWU to compete for playing time right away.
"I wanted to go somewhere I could play early," he said. "I know they have a couple of experienced guys coming back, but I'm going to do my best to show I can play now."
"(Green's) high school coach was part of my first recruiting class here," Smith said. "So we had that connection. He's just a very good athlete and a great young man. He's been a leader at his school and that really came out when we were recruiting him."
Western added a pair of big linebackers in 6-0, 230-pound Dan Winter of North Thurston and 6-1, 235-pound William Jackson of O'Dea. The Vikings have valued undersized, fast linebackers and Smith wanted to add some big bodies to the middle spot. Winter is a two-time Pac-9 League Defensive Player of the Year, making 102 tackles as a senior. Jackson was an all-Metro League choice, making 93 tackles for the Irish.
"We're really pleased with both of them," Smith said. "We needed to get some big guys who could play in the middle, and they both fit that profile."
Winter said he was considering walking on at Washington State but was sold on Western after an official visit made last weekend.
"It's a great school," Winter said. "I got along great with the coaches. I met Craig (Keenan, WWU's leading tackler), and he was a good guy. I just got a really good feeling about it."
The Vikings signed two offensive linemen in 6-3, 260-pound Chris Miller of Mariner and 6-4, 270-pound Jason Paull of Mountain View. The Vikings will return all but one offensive lineman from last season, but Smith said depth is always a concern up front.
"You can never have enough offensive linemen," Smith said. "We've had our eye on Miller for a long time. They are both agile, mobile, and they have good size."
Miller knew plenty about Western. His brother Maurice is a former Viking and Chris often came to games.
"I always thought it was a nice area, and I always thought the coaches did a good job," said Miller, who picked Western over Central. "It was important that it was closer to home and the academics were better than at Central. And the offensive linemen seemed like a pretty close group."
The lone Whatcom County signee was Lynden running back Cody Visser, who ran for 1,349 yards and 21 touchdowns, leading the Lions to the Class 3A semifinals.
"We love his speed," Smith said. "(Lynden coach) Curt Kramme said he may be the fastest guy he's had there. And that's something that you can't coach."
The other signees were wide receiver Noah Jiles of Eisenhower and defensive lineman Kyle Winkley of Black Hills. Jiles was a first-team Big Nine League all-star after making 34 catches for 485 yards and five touchdowns despite missing five games with a broken ankle. Winkley was an all-Pac-9 choice.
Green, Jackson, Jiles, Miller, Visser and Winter were the white chip picks.
The junior college players are Matt Overton, a long snapper from Diablo Valley (Calif.) JC and corner back/running back Johnny Lopez of Glendale (Ariz.) CC. Overton, Diablo's special teams MVP, will compete with A.J. Porter for the long snapper job. Lopez was a first-team Arizona Junior College all-star, gaining 1,171 yards and nine touchdowns. But he will come to Western as a defensive back.
"It's A.J.'s job until someone beats him out, but Matt has done quite well as a special teams guy," Smith said. "And Lopez is an outstanding player. He was a very good running back, but we have a need for depth at cornerback so that's where we'll look at him for now."
The Vikings still must add a kicker and punter to replace Michael Koenen and hope to add a veteran quarterback to compete with James Monrean. They did come into some extra scholarship money, but it came at the expense of the defensive line. Joey Joshua's full ride became available following his arrest on suspicion of selling marijuana last month, and Nick Buck and Conor Ball have chosen not to return. All three started games last year.
"We're still looking," Smith said. "We will add to this class. This is the first day that kids can sign, but there's still time to bring guys in, and we will be bringing in more players."
No jinx: Green earns coveted Sports Illustrated honor
By CASEY OLSON
The Mirror
December 11, 2004
Federal Way High School senior C.J. Green is living every athlete’s dream.
The star on the Eagles football team is gracing the pages of this week’s Sports Illustrated.
Green appears in the Dec. 6 “Sportsman of the Year” issue of Sports Illustrated as one of five “Wrangler Five Star Student Athletes of the Year” recipients. The running back, who is also the student body president, stood out from the crowd because of athletic and academic achievements. Additionally, the Wrangler brand will honor Green with a $1,000 donation to the Federal Way High School athletic department.
“This means more than any other award I’ve ever won,” said Green, who was the Mirror’s All-City Football Team player of the year. “It’s a great honor. It’s hard to believe I was one of five out of so many.”
A panel of judges and selected personnel from Sports Illustrated judged the nationwide entries to determine the top five. The other four winners included two girls and two boys. Green finished with 17 touchdowns this season and was over 1,000 yards for the second straight season.
“When we read (his) profile, we were extremely impressed with his performance in the classroom and on the football field,” said Craig Errington, director of advertising for Wrangler. “To excel in both of these areas as a student is a huge challenge but also a huge accomplishment. We were looking for inspiring stories and we found plenty of them during this contest. It was a hard decision to make in many cases.”
Green heard the news that he won the award from his mother, Veronica Green. She sent him a text message.
Green is still up in the air where he will attend college next year. Currently several schools are actively recruiting him to play defensive back, including Washington State University, he said.
Hundreds of entries were submitted by family members, school staff, teammates, coaches and fans for the Wrangler award. The honor, which is in its inaugural year, was designed to reward amateur athletes like Green for their hard work, dedication and distinctive performance, according to a press release.
2005 Football Recruits
Vikings Sign Eight Prepsters, 2 JC Players To Letters (2/2/05)
Six Seattle Times White Chip selections ...
FW's Green, Razor Will Play Football at Western
by Casey Olson
The Mirror, February 5, 2005
Federal Way High School seniors CJ Green and Rodell Razor will get to play football together for four more years. The Eagle pair will suit up for the Western Washington University Vikings in the fall.
Green, an all-state defensive back and all-league running back, signed a National Letter of Intent Wendnesday morning, the first day recruits were permitted to ink their names with WWU. Razor, also a defensive back was invited by the Western coach staff to walk-on.
The 5-foot8, 180 pound Green was the gem of Western head coach Rob Smith's 10-player recruting class. He rushed for 1,031 yeards and 17 touchdowns for the Eagles as a senior and tallied 80 tackles and nine pass breakups on defense.
Green, listed as a top-100 high school senior in the state by the Seattle Times, was also the Mirror's All-City Football Team's Player of the Year. During his three-year stint, two as a starter in the Eagles backfield, Green racked up an impressive 2,622 yards and 39 touchdowns. Green, Federal Way's student-body president, said he picked Western over Portland State, Eastern WAshington and Central Washington.
"I've been to their camps with my high school so I got to know the coaches weel," said Green, who will major in business marketing. "I like the environment of the campus, and the academics fit with what I want to study."
Green will, morst likely play defensive back at Western. The Vikings return three experienced players at cornerback in Sly Whitfield Jr., Brett Hall and Ocie Moore, along with redshirt freshmen Anthony Roso and Maurice Jones. But Green said he is going to WWU to compete for playing time right away. "I wanted to go somewhere I could play early," he said. "I know they have a couple of experienced guys coming back, but I'm going to do my best to show I can play now.
Smith had an "in" during the Green's recruitment. Federal Way coach John Megher was part of Smith's first recruiting class at Western in 1989. "So we had that connection," Smith said. "(Green's) just a very good athlete and a great young man. He's been a leader at his school and that really came out when we were recruting him."
The 5-foot-7, 150 pound Razor led the SPSL in interceptions with eight and ran two of them back for touchdowns and will, most likely, redshirt in the fall.
Western Washington finished the 2004 season with a 6-4 record. The Vikings will be playing a game pretty close to Federal Way next season at the third annual Battle in Seattle against rival Central WAshington University Oct 8 at Qwest Field. The Western roster currently includes Decatur grad Chris Corley. The 6-foot-5, 250 pound All-SPSL South offensive tackle played his freshman season last year for the Vikings.
TCCU Platform
C.J. GREEN Senior, defensive back, Federal Way
WHAT HE DID: The Federal Way class president earned SPSL ...
CJ Wins Five Star Student Athlete of the Year
Green Updates Status
December 9, 2004
Mike Warchol
HuskyDigest.com
Federal Way DB/RB C.J. Green ...
Starring On And Off The Football Field
C.J. Green, All-City Player of the Year, also leads by example in student government.
By CASEY OLSON
The ...
Pac-10 interest in Green picking up
Mike Warchol
Special to HuskyDigest.com
Federal Way (Wash.) cornerback/running ...
Green receiving more interest by Mike Warchol HuskyDigest
Federal Way DB C.J. Green has been receiving a flurry of recruiting interest as of late. No fewer than 10 schools ...
C.J. Green: The Heart of an Eagle by Ruth Robbins
9/7/2004
Ruth Robbins, Publisher
C.J. Green, the 5-10, 185 lb. DB/RB out of Federal Way had a mixed ...
SPSL South: C.J. Green a seriously good player
By Sandy Ringer
Seattle Times staff reporter
FEDERAL WAY — C.J. Green grew up fast because he had ...
Has Plenty of Motivation by Chris Fetters of TheInsiders.co
by Chris Fetters of TheInsiders.com, August 30, 2004 at 2:49am ET
C.J. Green is a 5-8, 185 corner prospect ...
Green out to prove himself this season by WA Preps
August 9th, 2004: Green out to prove himself this season
Mike Warchol
HuskyDigest.com ...
Federal Way ATH has ambition to match his heart
Junior to watch: C.J. Green
By Chris Fetters
Northwest Recruiting Analyst
C.J. Green ...
My Profile
WA Prep: 2005 Profile: S/RB C.J. Green - Federal Way
Mike Warchol
WashingtonPreps.com Publisher
Rivals.com
Federal Way's C.J. ...
C.J. Green a Budding Star on the Near Horizon? Talo Steves
C.J. GREEN C.J. Green a Budding Star on the Near Horizon?
By Talo Steves TBS Managing Editor
Date: Jun ...
Green Headed South? Staff Special to HuskyDigest.com
Green headed south?
Staff
Special to HuskyDigest.com
One instate recruit ...
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