Area high school football players will show off their skills this coming weekend at the ENC HBCU Combine & Showcase at Farmville Central High School, featuring a pair of Black College Hall of Fame members.
Johnnie Walton, the first black quarterback to win a championship in a professional football league, and Timmy Newsome, who finished his career as the ninth leading receiver in Dallas Cowboys history, will share their personal journeys and offer inspiring words to student athletes during an informational seminar at the school, 3308 E. Wilson St., starting at 5:30 p.m. Friday.
The two-hour event for coaches and student-athletes includes other speakers and organizers who will participate in the combine on Saturday. During that event, athletes will be evaluated in several areas including the 40-yard dash, 5-10-5 shuttle run, vertical jump, broad jump and bench press. Recruiters from the CIAA and MEAC conferences as well as Louisburg College are expected to attend.
“We are pleased to provide an avenue for exposure for those high school athletes that often get overlooked by larger universities such as those in the Power 5 Conferences,” said Maurice Jordan, ENC HBCU Combine & Showcase Committee Member. “By bringing college recruiters to one location, athletes have an affordable and time efficient way to showcase their skills without having to travel to multiple college campuses.”
The event is hosted by Visit Greenville, NC and Play Greenville, NC Sports for the third consecutive year said Andrew Schmidt, president and CEO of the organization. “We are excited to work with the committee to provide an excellent experience for participating student-athletes.”
The Eastern North Carolina Historically Black College & University Showcase was established with the mission of providing an authentic football combine experience in which high school student-athletes can gain exposure and expand their recruiting portfolios.
In addition to providing a platform for student-athletes to showcase their athletic ability, the combine serves as a vehicle to educate students and parents about the collegiate recruiting process, organizers said. The goal of the ENC HBCU Combine is to offer a platform for students to maximize all opportunities to receive scholarship or financial aid consideration from college football programs.
This is the third year that the combine has been held in Pitt County and the second year that the event has expanded into a two-day format. Registration for the event is closed.
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