There's a nice article on C. Little
here. The reporter seems to be obsessed with the possibility of him changing his mind again:
Chris Little: All grown up
By Rick Nolte
TELEGRAPH STAFF WRITER
JEFFERSONVILLE - The image is crystal clear in Dexter Copeland's mind.
Chris Little had arrived to play football at Twiggs County, and the head coach was impressed with the freshman's imposing 6-foot-5, 280-pound frame, but little else.
"He was really just a big ol' boy," Copeland recalled. "He still had a lot of baby fat. He looked good in pads, but he didn't particularly like to work too hard."
But when a coach is at a Class A school and is presented with a youngster that size, he'll give a short pass on a suspect work ethic, especially for someone whose face hadn't honestly needed a razor put to it probably more than a handful of times.
If Little really wanted to be a football player, the kind Copeland envisioned he could help develop at that first meeting, this man-child would catch on to the fact that there's more to high school football than afternoon practice and Friday night games.
And catch on Little did - in a hurry and with a sense of purpose that was absent during his early days on Copeland's watch.
So rapid was Little's grasp that in little more than a year, he was drawing mention from every college coach who was in the stands to watch a couple of older teammates, particularly linebacker Antonio Clay. So diligent was Little's drive that before the season was over, he had his first official recruiting letter.
"He watched what was happening to the other kids in the recruiting process and saw then that maybe he could have a chance, too, if he really worked at it," Copeland said.
Little, now an inch taller, 65 pounds heavier and significantly wiser than during those formative days with the Cobras, did work at it - athletically and academically. And Wednesday, as one of the nation's top high school offensive linemen, he'll accept a scholarship to play at college football's highest level, likely with its most storied university, Notre Dame.
Little has given the Irish a verbal commitment, but it isn't binding. He already has withdrawn one of those to Florida State. And his state university in Athens hasn't given up hope on getting him in red and black. Regardless, by mid-morning Wednesday, the next football game Little plays will be against the best of the best. Four years ago, he wasn't anywhere near there - even in Twiggs County.
BE LIKE ANTONIO AND JOJO
Despite the work ethic question, Little was a fixture on the line not long after he showed up for practice. Size is one of those attributes that can't be coached, and when there is a fair amount of agility to go with it, the player is going to be on the field unless he's a total mess.
Little is far from that kind of young man.
Copeland didn't hesitate to put Little at left tackle, the prime protector of his quarterback. With his height, long arms and - for his experience level - good footwork, Little was wall-like on that side of the Cobras' offense. Runs for first downs behind him were numerous, sacks were few.
Copeland estimated that during the Cobras' drive to the GHSA state quarterfinals two years ago, they ran behind the junior 85 percent of the time.
"He's our money-maker," the coach said. "Always has been. We need yards, we're going behind Chris."
Quarterback JoJo Cox was the player who benefited most from Little's presence. Cox signed with Clemson at this time last year after a sparkling career with the Cobras, but he didn't qualify academically and spent the year at Fork Union (Va.) Military. He's expected to re-sign with the Tigers on Wednesday.
It was he and Clay, now a rising junior standout at Clemson, who attracted the college coaches to the school during Little's formative seasons. They were hard after Clay three years ago and Cox a year later. All the while, they had an eye Little, who was developing into one of the best linemen in Georgia and thinking maybe he could be the center of attention next.
"They both inspired me to work harder so I could get where they were going," said Little, whose soft voice, when balanced against his imposing stature, almost causes a double-take at first meeting..
Copeland pointed to Clay's signing as the clincher.
"It was like the light went on for him," the coach said. "It was like he said, 'I can go to college by doing this football stuff.' "
BIG WORK, PRIZE
Little finished his sophomore year of school in May, 2004, weighing 330 pounds. He reported for preseason camp in July, 50 pounds lighter and a ton heavier in desire.
Even Copeland was surprised at the change and not just physically. In addition to the development in his body between those seasons, Little also stepped up to be a leader.
"You knew he could do it," the coach said. "But you never know until they do. He buckled down that summer and worked his tail off every day and really had his best season."
With Cox at the helm of Copeland's offense, college coaches remained a fixture on the Twiggs County campus and at Cobras games. Because Little was usually in front of Cox, coaches couldn't help but notice his flattening blocks on runs or impenetrable presence on pass plays.
Lighter and faster, but with added strength, Little had the foundation of the prototypical college lineman. Despite much more height and weight, he showed the ability to cover short distances like skill position teammates.
"Sometimes he jumped into running back drills, he thought he was so fast," Copeland joked. "Really, he's so athletic for his size. The way he moves laterally and straight ahead, the strength with those long arms and flexibility, there's your offensive lineman."
Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis was sold last spring.
"He called and said, 'Coach, this is Charlie Weis at Notre Dame,' " Copeland said, relating the initial phone inquiry on Little. "I said, 'Yeah right.' He said, 'No coach, really, this is Charlie Weis.' I thought it was somebody pulling a joke, so I said, 'Who is this?' He said, 'It's Charlie Weis.' I said, 'Oh, Lord, it is Charlie Weis.' "
Weis visited with Little and his family, watched a workout and said a scholarship was waiting when the player was ready to make his college selection.
"That showed me how important I must be to them," Little said, breaking into his characteristic, beaming smile. "Coming to a small school like Twiggs County in Georgia, not too many people get that. And then an offer from them to play and get that kind of education. I felt really good."
The Irish then went to the head of a prime recruiting list that included LSU, Georgia, Florida State and Florida, each of which he visited during his senior season. It also reinforced Little's commitment to offseason work.
"This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he said. "I didn't want that offer pulled, so I was gonna do all I could to be ready for the season."
TOUGH SEASON, DECISION
The 2006 season was a rocky one for the Cobras and Little, whose offseason weight work and conditioning had him at 330 pounds, but a far more muscular 330 than the figure two years prior. Twiggs finished 4-6 and failed to qualify for the playoffs, but its senior leader went above and beyond the call in an attempt to prevent it, Copeland said.
Despite battling a shoulder problem for much of the season, Little was on the field for every snap on most nights. And despite his stature as one of the most sought-after linemen in the country, Little structured his recruiting visits so he wouldn't miss any game preparation time with his teammates.
"Last season made him a football player," Copeland said. "This season showed what kind he was. It was a testament to his character how much he wanted to play and help us in a very tough year. He probably didn't play at 65 percent (health) of what he did as a junior in most games, but he was still out there because he thought he could make a difference even if he wasn't his best."
Off the field, the pace of the recruiting quickened. A typical day saw as many as eight to 10 coaches at school for a visit. Another seven to eight sent text messages to a cell phone that left callers hearing Little's voicemail recording instead of his soft "hello."
Other than class interruptions to talk with recruiters, Little was able to maintain his place as just another member of the Twiggs County student body. It was something that came as no surprise to teachers and school officials.
"If he wasn't as tall and as big as he is, you'd probably never know he was in the building," Twiggs County principal Walter Stephens said. "For his size, his whole demeanor and how he functions here, he's very quiet."
The highlight of Little's season was his selection to the East team in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. It was his chance to play with and against the best players in the nation on national TV.
Little was still bothered by nagging injuries when he went to San Antonio for the Jan. 6 contest, and he had picked up a few pounds since the end of the season. Copeland said he had a good week of practice, but his mobility was limited by the ailments.
"If this had been just a regular game, he wouldn't have played, he was that bad," Copeland said. "But you'd have had to drag him off that field."
It was an eye-opening experience for Little, who was matched against more speed and quickness than he had ever faced. He now knows what he'll see at the next level.
"Those guys had everything," Little said. "I have to get my speed and footwork up."
The game also presented (some would say strongly offered) players who are still undecided on colleges a chance to announce their choices on segments during breaks in the action while surrounded by family and friends. Little was among those who was undecided and turned out to be the first to reveal his decision on the afternoon.
To the surprise of most, including Copeland and probably the Notre Dame staff, Little pulled on a Florida State hat to announce his commitment, bypassing a similar hat for Irish.
"Until that minute, I thought he was going to say Notre Dame," said Copeland, who'd heard his player do nothing but gush about Notre Dame since his visit to South Bend, Ind., in early September. "When he pulled that Florida State hat, I was shocked."
Little admitted he was caught up in the moment of the spotlight and the pressure of the game's organizers, who use the players' on-air commitments as much as their on-field performance to draw an audience. In the days leading to the game, he said he became torn between his interest in the Irish after his visit and his parents' hopes he would stay closer to home. If he could do it over again, he likely would've just bypassed the chance.
"I thought about it a lot when I went back to the hotel room," said Little, whose team lost 24-7. "It was my decision for the next four years and not theirs."
He and Copeland discussed the commitment more on the plane ride home, and it was there that Little decided to apologize to FSU that his decision was hasty, and he was casting his lot with the Irish.
THE LITTLE LEGACY
The all-star game had an impact on Little that those around him quickly saw upon his return. Stephens said a few minutes of interaction between Little and Mack Carswell, a veteran science teacher at Twiggs County, showed a different side of the student-athlete.
"Mr. Carswell knew instantly something had changed about Chris just by him being at that game," the principal related. "Being on national TV, in front of all those people with the best players in the country. That's the point where youngsters can really begin to visualize themselves that this is Division I football, and I'm going to be a part of it."
The way Little handled the commitment flip-flop in San Antonio was likely the cap to the maturation process those around him saw during his recruitment. He went from wide-eyed player in his mid-teens to a young man confident in a decision that will be the first block in his foundation for the future.
"We're talking about 17-, 18-year-old teenagers growing up fast when they have to make a decision like that with those pressures," Stephens said, "it's been amazing to see Chris go through this process. É
"From this time last year, you've just started to see him blossom into the man. OK, it's time we have to make decisions. That's been our conversations with him whole time. Whatever the decision is, make it for yourself."
Little will be the fourth Twiggs County player in the past decade to advance to a major Division I school. Tony Hollings was the first in 1999, going to Georgia Tech and then on to the NFL with the Houston Texans for three seasons. Then came Clay and Cox.
Now there's Little, who if his decision holds, he will have a scholarship to one of the most prestigious academic and athletic institutions in the country. Stephens said it's a testament to Little's excellence as student, athlete and person and serves as a model for other youngsters in Jefferson that they, too, could follow Little and his three predecessors.
Little's advice to them is typically short in length, but long on meaning.
"Don't let all the attention get to your head," he said. "Stay the same person you've always been and trust yourself to make the right decision because it's only yours."
And don't forget the hard work it takes to earn the chance at that decision.
