Gilman's Darius Jennings will not be able to play in tonight's Under Armour All-America Game because of lingering effects from a concussion he received in last week's Chesapeake Bowl all-star game.
The Baltimore Sun's Offensive Player of the Year is in St. Petersburg, Fla. this week for the game, but because he still had a headache when he arrived in Florida Friday, Jennings said, doctors would not clear him.
Jennings said he suffered the concussion after being tackled on a sweep in Thursday night's Chesapeake Bowl at Towson University's Johnny Unitas Stadium in which he played quarterback and wide receiver. His 150-yard performance led the South to a 30-27 win over the North in a battle of the top seniors in the Mid-Atlantic region.
"They guy came around the edge and hit me in the backfield," he said. "It wasn't the hit that did it, but hitting the turf. I hit pretty hard."
He said he woke up Thursday night with a headache and that his "head was spinning." He flew to Florida Friday and didn't see a doctor until he got there. He still had the headache Friday, so the doctor told him he could not practice or play this week.
"He said I had to wait at least a week and it happened Thursday," Jennings said.
Although he played primarily quarterback for the No. 2 Greyhounds, the versatile Jennings had planned to show off his ability on the other side of the ball, playing cornerback, at the Under Armour game, which will be broadcast live on ESPN from Tropicana Field at 7 p.m.
"I'm getting recruited as an athlete," Jennings said, "and I was able to play receiver in the Chesapeake Bowl and I was going to play cornerback here. That would give me a little better feel for what I might be playing in college. It just kind of stinks, because I was expecting to play against the best in the nation. I know a lot of other people were looking forward to seeing me represent Gilman and Maryland, but I'm just trying to make the best of it, stay positive and just get healthy."
The only player from a Baltimore-area school selected for the Under Armour game, Jennings -- who has narrowed his college list to Ohio State, Virginia and Wake Forest -- could play many positions in college.
"He's a great athlete, and he can project at a lot of different positions at the next level," Mike Farrell of Rivals.com said in September. "When you see him with the football and the ability to make people miss, his speed -- I know he's a very, very fast kid -- we could see his explosiveness. The fact that he can play wide receiver, cornerback, safety, running back -- all those things in college is really impressive to us."
Jennings said he will make his last official college visit -- to Wake Forest -- on Jan. 14 and will announce his decision sometime after that.
This week, Jennings will participate as much as possible in other events surrounding the game and said he enjoys interacting with the other players. Another bonus: "All the free stuff," Jennings said of uniforms and other items presented to the participants.