By Sammy Batten
©2010 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
As a Pop Warner star for
the Greyhounds back in 2001, Chris Hairston dreamed about playing
running back at Winston-Salem's Parkland High School. Hairston would
often go from Greyhounds practice on Friday night to watch the Mustangs
and their star running back Jed Bines during their run to the state 3-A
championship.
“I couldn't wait to put on
that uniform and play for Parkland,'' said Hairston, who now wears the
same jersey No. 1 that Bines wore while piling up 3,388 career yards for
Parkland.
Of course, Hairston was an
offensive lineman back in those early years with the Greyhounds. But he
eventually found his way to running back and is now in his second
straight season as a starter in the Parkland backfield.
Next fall, the 6-foot-2,
195-pounder is hoping he can have a similar impact at East Carolina.
Hairston made a verbal commitment to play for the Pirates on July 31
over scholarship offers from Wisconsin, Coastal Carolina and
Winston-Salem State.
Hairston said the ECU
staff made him feel like he was their priority at the running back
position in recruiting for the Class of 2011.
“The coaches made me feel
at home,'' he said. “I liked all the coaches, especially Coach Ruffin
(McNeill). He is really family oriented.
“They also told me they
were only going to take one player at my position in this class, and
that was the No. 1 on the their (recruiting) board. That really got me,
too.''
Hairston's football career
began at age 10 in the Pop Warner ranks. He first played on the
offensive line, then became a wide receiver-kick returner, linebacker
and finally a running back.
“I was a pretty big kid
back then, which is why they put me on the offensive line to start
out,'' Hairston said. “That was tough. But as that first year
progressed, I got better and better. Even though I was big, I was also
pretty fast. So they eventually got around to trying me at running back.
I've been there ever since.''
Speed is also one of
Hairston's best assets today. He's been timed at 4.49 seconds in the
40-yard dash, at 10.92 seconds in the 100 meters and 22.3 in the 200.
That's one of the reasons
he was poised to become a member of the Parkland varsity as a ninth
grader. A broken collarbone suffered in the preseason, however, derailed
those plans.
Hairston would begin his
sophomore year on the junior varsity, but after two games was promoted
to the varsity. It was after that promotion and the subsequent playing
time he received on the varsity that Hairston realized he might have a
chance to play at the college level.
“I had a pretty good
sophomore year after I made it to the varsity,'' he said. “I thought to
myself that if I kept doing what I was supposed to in the weight room
and just kept working hard, I could make that dream of playing college
football come true.''
Hairston became even more
convinced he was capable of playing at the major-college level after
piling up 1,279 yards and nine touchdowns on 187 carries as a junior.
Those numbers are likely
to increase dramatically for Hairston this season. Parkland coach
Deangelo Bell has changed the Mustangs offensive alignment from the
spread to a one-back set, which should translate into more carries for
Hairston.
Although he loves to run
the football, Hairston said that's not his only skill.
“I would say I'm an
all-purpose back,'' he said. “I can do anything. Whatever the coaches
need me to do, that's what I can do.''
Hairston believes his
talents will mesh well with ECU's new offensive philosophy.
“They said I'll get the
ball, no doubt about it,'' he said. “They'll get it to me running,
passing with screens, everything. I think I'll fit in well.''
The Pirates will graduate
three players from their running back corps following the 2010 season,
including Giavanni Ruffin, Jonathan Williams and Norman Whitley.
Hairston will join a group of young remaining backs (Michael Dobson,
Alex Owah, Damonte Terry) in the fall of 2011 to battle for the starting
job.
