Wednesday was a big day in the life of 7 Dinwiddie Generals senior football players as they made their official decision on where they will be attending college on the NCAA’s National Signing Day. Following their historic 12-win season, it was no surprise that colleges were very interested in scooping up some of Dinwiddie’s talent. The 7 signees on National Signing Day was a Dinwiddie High School record.
The Generals had 2 players sign with Division 1 programs, 2 players sign with Division 1-AA programs, and 3 players sign with Division 2 programs.
Headlining the group was OLB Bradley Johnson who signed with The University of Maryland. Johnson verbally committed to the Terrapins and coach Ralph Friedgen before this season started, but his signing Wednesday made everything official. Johnson was a force on defense the last 2 seasons for the Generals. This past season he registered 117 tackles and also made 4 INTs from his OLB position. In three seasons as a varsity player, Johnson racked up 292 tackles and 6 INTs, while also recovering 4 fumbles.
The Terrapins will look to use Johnson’s aggressive playmaking on defense to help bolster their defense while battling in the ACC. Off the field, Bradley plans to major in Business Management. “I feel blessed and grateful”, said Johnson when asked about his feelings on Signing Day.
The Generals other Division 1 signee was WR Sam Haskins who signed with Troy University. Troy is located in Troy, Alabama and the Trojans play in the Sun Belt Conference. The 6-5 Haskins finished the season with 37 catches for 513 yards and 6 TDs this season for Dinwiddie. He was also a First Team All-District selection at WR.
Troy runs the same offense that the Generals run under Coach Billy Mills. The Dinwiddie coaches have worked with ther coaches at Troy in past off-seasons, and the Trojans have also seen Haskins firsthand at their camps, so both are very comfortable with each other. According to Haskins, the Trojans plan to use him as an outside receiver in their spread attack early on, and then plan to move him inside as he gets bigger to take advantage of his size and athleticism. Haskins plans to major in Business Management at Troy.
Record-setting Dinwiddie QB Adam Morgan inked with VMI on Signing Day, headlining what was a solid class for the in-state school. Morgan hopes to do for VMI what he did for Dinwiddie, but he will miss his time with his teammates. “I’ve been playing with some of these same guys since Youth League, I’m going to miss it”, said Morgan. While at VMI, Morgan plans to major in Business and Economics - a combined program VMI offers. Morgan holds numerous VHSL passing records including the state record for TD passes in a season(48) and a career(114).
Cornerback Brandon Parson was the other Generals player to sign with a Division 1-AA program, signing with Alabama A&M. The cornerback had a breakout senior year making 58 tackles while also snagging 6 INTs. After spending most of last season as the backup QB and a special teams player, Parson blossomed as a senior and is now reaping the rewards with a football scholarship. Parson credited his success to hard work, “I just tried to challenge myself every day, and it paid off”, said Parson when I asked him about his journey from backup to Signing Day over the last year.
At 6-foot tall with good speed and ball skills, Parson gives Alabama A&M a taller corner who can cover and isn’t afraid to hit somebody. He plans to major in Mechanical Engineering.
Left tackle Nick Watts started on the Dinwiddie offensive line for the last 4 years, now he will be mauling defensive lineman for Chowan University, located in Murfreesboro, North Carolina. The 6-3 260-pound tackle is excited about doing the same things at Chowan that he did for Dinwiddie, “I’m excited, I want to try and start my first year there.” Watts was a First Team All-District player each of the last two years at Left Tackle. He will enter school undecided about his major.
Two Dinwiddie seniors will remain teammates next season at Virginia State University, as RT David Abbey and WR Terron Adams bothed inked with the Trojans.
The 6-3 240-pound Abbey made the move out to RT this season after starting last year as the Generals center. He was one of the Generals captains and one of the team’s most vocal leaders. It was no surprise who Abbey credited with his success when asked, “I owe it to Coach Mills and my teammates, we all push each other.” Off the field, Abbey also excels in the classroom where he carries a 3.8 GPA, and he will be entering VSU as part of their Honors Program.
For Terron Adams the thought of taking part in National Signing Day just a year ago likely seemed far-fetched. The talented wideout didn’t play football his junior year but through hard work and determination worked his way back onto the Generals team for his senior season. “After all the stuff I’ve been through, this feels great”, said Adams.
Adams played this season as the Generals only two-way player, playing WR on offense and starting at free safety on defense. Despite the double duty, he still managed to grab 41 passes for 878 yards and 12 TDs. On defense, Adams was second on the team with 5 INTs. At VSU, Terron plans to focus on offense, where the Trojans look for him to be the big-play threat for them that he was for the Generals, while also expecting him to return kicks and punts.
National Signing Day was a big day for both the young men involved and the Dinwiddie football program including Head Coach Billy Mills and all his assistant coaches. They should all be very proud of what they have accomplished - not just on the field, but off the field as well. Congrats and good luck to the these fine young men.
Although National Signing Day is complete, it does not mark the end of recruiting. Several other Dinwiddie seniors are still making decisions on college and will be making things official in the coming weeks and months. We will keep you updated as more Generals players decide where they will play their next game.
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