It's Official: Gooden Off To Missouri School

February 10, 1993
By Joe Williams Of The Sentinel Staff

LEESBURG — Steve Gooden isn't sure if it was mother's intuition or the look on his face, but somehow his mother knew Sunday night that he had signed a national letter-of-intent to play football at Southwest Baptist University.

''It was kind of funny. As soon as I came in she said, 'You signed, didn't you?' I said, 'Yeah,' ''
Gooden said.

''I guess it was just a feeling that she had.'' Gooden, Leesburg High School's starting quarterback for the past three years, signed with Southwest Baptist during a recruiting trip there last weekend, but the signing didn't become official until his mother, Shirley, also signed.



Gooden brought the papers home, his mom signed them and they were mailed back to Southwest Baptist Tuesday. Gooden joins Leesburg linebacker Ty Lawrence, who also signed with the Bearcats during the recruiting trip.

Southwest Baptist, an NCAA Division II school with an enrollment of about 3,500, held open two grant-in-aids, one for Lawrence and the other for Gooden. Lawrence, The Lake Sentinel's two-time defensive player of the year at linebacker, is expected to play on the Bearcats' defensive line. Gooden could be the option quarterback they were looking for.

''In the past few years, they had been recruiting a lot of throwing quarterbacks because they were more a run-and-shoot type team,'' Gooden said. ''But now they have a new coach and they want to run the option. They aren't sure if their quarterbacks can run the option.''

Gooden grew up in Leesburg's option attack, quarterbacking the Wishbone and then the I-Bone offenses. During the past two seasons, he rushed 129 times for 411 yards and 11 touchdowns and passed only 73 times, completing 31 for 687 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Although Leesburg posted 8-2 and 10-2 records the last two seasons, Gooden's contributions to what turned out to be one of Central Florida's best offenses were overlooked, mostly because of his height (5 feet 6).

''I think schools look at me and they say, 'He can run the option, but he is only 5-6,' '' Gooden said. ''At Southwest, everything (the pass plays) are either going to be rollouts or play action. A lot of colleges don't run that kind of offense and they aren't going to change for a 5-6 quarterback.''


Despite displaying good ability at running the offense, Gooden didn't receive any interest from colleges until Southwest Baptist called. They saw Gooden on videotape and decided they wanted him.

''I feel very fortunate for that to happen,'' Gooden said. ''You don't get any letters, any calls. After my senior year, I figured I wasn't going to play football in college.

''Then, somebody calls out of the blue and offers you a full scholarship. Somebody out there has been praying for me.''

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By Joe Williams Of The Sentinel Staff
Orlando Sentinel

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Leesburg's Lawrence Now A Bearcat

February 09, 1993

By Joe Williams of The Sentinel Staff
 

LEESBURG — There were no signs Monday afternoon that Ty Lawrence had signed a national letter-of-intent over the weekend to play football at Southwest Baptist University, an NCAA Division II school in Bolivar, Mo.

Even the shirt he wore to Leesburg High School's baseball practice didn't give it away. Instead of a Southwest Baptist shirt, of which he now has two, he wore a commemorative shirt from the FSU-Miami game played in the fall of 1991 in Tallahassee.

But make no mistake, Lawrence now is a Bearcat.



''I don't know what one is, but I'm a Bearcat,'' Lawrence said with a smile during a break in practice.


Lawrence, who was The Lake Sentinel's defensive player of the year for the past two years as a linebacker, visited the Southwest Baptist campus last weekend along with three other Yellow Jackets. Leesburg quarterback Steve Gooden also signed with the Bearcats, but his parents, who weren't on the trip, still have to sign to make him an official Bearcat, as well.

Gooden and his family could not be reached Monday afternoon to confirm if they had signed.

Leesburg defensive back David Geiger and running back Oran Singleton, whose brilliant high school career was ended with a knee injury in December, also made the trip.

Southwest Baptist was just one of about 20 colleges Lawrence has visited since last summer. Although the NCAA allows only five official visits, of which Lawrence took three, he and his father traveled through North and South Carolina and Georgia last summer, just taking looks at numerous schools.

''Southwest was one of the nicest I have seen,'' Lawrence said. ''I liked the atmosphere and I liked the coaches.''

Many thought Lawrence had signed with the University of Central Florida last Thursday, but that was only a rumor. Lawrence said he did talk Thursday to UCF, which offered him a partial grant, but told the Knights' coaches he still wanted to visit Southwest, which held open grants-in-aid for him and Gooden.

''UCF offered some tuition and books, Southwest was offering me a full ride,'' said Lawrence, 6 feet 2, 230 pounds, who will probably play defensive end or tackle for the Bearcats. ''I liked it up there so I signed with them.

''Plus, I think I have a better chance to start out there sooner. If I went to UCF, I may not start for two or three years.''

Leesburg coach Ed Hoffman, who contacted Southwest Baptist and sent video tapes, was happy to hear of Lawrence's signing.



''I think he will be given a good, fair shake at playing there, rather than him going to some other schools where he might not get a chance to play,'' Hoffman said. ''They say they like his strength and his size.


''The disadvantage with Ty is that you don't see him on the tape playing where he will probably play in college. We used him at center and linebacker but in college he will probably be a defensive lineman.''

Southwest Baptist, after going 7-4 in 1991, suffered through an injury-filled season and finished 2-8 last fall. But the Bearcats play what amounts to a pretty tough Division 2 schedule. Regulars on the schedule include Pittsburgh State, the NCAA Division 2 champs in 1991.



''Ty had four or five viable offers to go to school,'' said Marcus Lawrence, Ty's father. ''UCF called and offered him a partial scholarship, books and tuition. Had they offered him a half scholarship, that is where he would have gone.


''But this (Southwest Baptist) is the school that offered him the most academically and athletically. A full scholarship for a Division II school is pretty good.''

Now signed, Lawrence, who has a 3.4-grade-point-average, now has a little research to do to find out exactly what is a bearcat.

Resources

Joe Williams of The Sentinel Staff
Orlando Sentinel

Article provided by:
Gerald Lacey
CEO/President
Lacey LLC and OmariWholesale, Inc.

http://www.leesburgyellowjacketsfootball.com/
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