Steve Spence came to East
Carolina twice in the past month to improve his football skills. Spence
left with an intense desire to return to Greenville as a member of the
Pirate football program.
Desire met reality on
Monday when Spence became the first member of ECU’s recruiting Class of
2007. The 6-foot-2, 221-pound linebacker from Norfolk, VA, made a verbal
commitment to play for the Pirates following a whirlwind recruitment
that began in earnest only last Wednesday.
Spence, who plays for
former ECU defensive lineman Dealton Cotton (90-92, 94) at Maury High
School, attended the individual skills camp run by Coach Skip Holtz’s
staff on June 14-16 in Greenville. The Pirates were so impressed with
his talent that they invited Spence back to participate in the inaugural
Beast of the East Passing Tournament on June 17.
“The talk was after my
second visit they might offer me a scholarship,’’ Spence said Thursday.
“They didn’t offer then and there. But they did say, ‘If we can get you
here, we want you.’
“I went home and started
thinking about that. I started to think about the atmosphere there, the
facilities and how the coaches had talked with me honestly. I had a
relationship and a bond with them (ECU coaches) within the first couple
of hours of meeting them. So I called (defensive coordinator) Coach
(Greg) Hudson on Monday and told him I was feeling maybe I should go
ahead and do this. I was waiting on some other schools to get back to me
when East Carolina already offered everything I wanted.
“Coach Hudson talked to me
about getting my transcripts together, and said I had done the right
thing by calling, and he would stay in touch. It wasn’t very long before
my high school coach called to say they wanted to offer me. One thing
led to another. I called their coaches and they said they were willing
to offer tonight. I told them I was willing to commit.
“When I spoke with Coach
Holtz his reaction was almost like it was Christmas in June.’’
Holtz had a reason to be
excited, according to Cotton, who has been the head coach at Maury for
two seasons.
Spence is expected to
start at Maury for a fourth straight season next fall. He joined the
varsity as a ninth grader and was a first-team offensive tackle and
second-string linebacker. The next two seasons he would become a starter
both ways.
As a junior, Spence earned
first-team all-district honors on the offensive line. He also
contributed about 60 tackles at linebacker for a squad that went 9-2 and
reached the first round of the state playoffs. The Commodores’ lineup
last season also included Virginia Tech signee Kam Chancellor.
“He’s a physical kid who
is very mobile,’’ Cotton said. “He works on learning the game. He wants
to know what’s going on with the calls and all that stuff. He’s one of
those tough kids who hates to lose, but at the same time he’s very
humble. He has a lot of good qualities about him.’’
Delaware and James Madison
were also recruiting Spence and Cotton felt many others would get
involved in the near future. Despite close ties to ECU — Cotton was a
teammate of Pirate running backs coach Junior Smith — he didn’t try to
influence Spence toward Greenville.
“I’ll be totally honest. I
don’t think Steve even knew I was a player at East Carolina until I told
him at the camp,’’ Cotton said. “I try not to be biased. I love East
Carolina. But I try to let the kids make their own decisions.
“I won’t take credit for
it, but I am very excited about his decision.’’
Spence is carrying on a
family football tradition. His father, Steve Brantley, is a former
Norfolk prep star who started his son’s interest in the sport.
“My Dad didn’t really push
me or force me into football,’’ Spence said. “But he did say, ‘Steve, I
did play football and this is what I did. They called me The Beast or
The Monster.’ So I took that and ran with it on my own. I started
playing back in the fourth grade in recreation leagues.’’
By the time he reached the
ninth grade at Maury, Spence was sure he wanted to play the sport for a
living some day.
“I went from this porky
kid playing the offensive line and in rec ball to this dude who had
sculpted his body into a linebacker,’’ Spence said. “It just really
clicked for me. I want to be one of the best in the world, and I’ll do
whatever it takes to get there.’’
