Though he orally committed to play football at the Virginia Military Institute in January, South Carroll senior Chris Gavin made things official Wednesday when he signed his national letter of intent to become a Keydet.
Gavin, who broke Carroll County's 16-year-old single-season rushing record with his 2,016 yards last season, said he will enroll at VMI for summer school June 22.
“What I see it as is breaking a barrier kind of thing,” Gavin said of the commitment. “I think next year definitely there is going to be way more Division I football players coming out of South Carroll. I mean Carroll County in general, but in South Carroll, I know there will be.”
Across the country Wednesday, highly-touted recruits held massive celebrations — some were even nationally televised — as they decided where they would begin their college careers. Gavin's ceremony was much more low key, especially because he had already announced his plans to attend VMI nearly one month earlier.
For now, Keydets coach Scott Wachenheim said he plans to keep Gavin at running back, but that doesn't mean he couldn't see time at other positions, if necessary. The senior was an all-county selection on both offense and defense in the fall.
The coach said he's looking for “a football player that can help us win the Southern Conference, and we think Chris will do that.”
Wachenheim said he always followed Penn State football when he was young. When the coach watched Gavin's film, he likened his skill set to that of John Cappelletti, the 1973 Heisman Trophy-winning running back-fullback.
“First of all, we're looking for men of great character,” said Wachenheim, who also mentioned Gavin's academics as reasons to recruit the Cavalier. “Everyone speaks so highly of Chris as a person.”
VMI will travel to Muncie, Ind., on Sept. 5 to take on Ball State to open the season.
With the recruiting season officially behind him, Gavin said he will not miss all the phone calls from competing schools. While it was fun, he said he's very happy with the decision he made.
“Now that it's over, I only have one team to call now,” he said. “I'm really looking forward to getting out there.”