Signing Day: Gamecocks, Bulls, and Seahawks, Oh My!

Four Falcon student-athletes signed to Division I schools to continue their sports at the collegiate level on December 3.

Noah Clark: Football @ University of South Carolina

After getting offers from over 40 Division I schools, Noah landed on South Carolina, the school that gave him his first offer. Noah has been a vital part of the Jordan football team for his 4 years here and Antonio King, head football coach at Jordan, says that he will likely go to the NFL someday.

Chase Hunter: Track and Field @ University of South Carolina

Chase, a high jumper who recently transferred to Jordan, had multiple offers in his signing process. In addition to his official visit to South Carolina, he also had offers from North Carolina A&T and NC State. He is a two-time national champion in the high jump and a five-time All-American, all before his senior season. Find him on the field in the indoor and outdoor T&F seasons this year to see what more he can do.

Sophie Thornburg: Swimming @ State University of New York at Buffalo

Sophie has been swimming competitively for over a decade, and decided to continue in college because she couldn’t imagine stopping and appreciates the structure that it provides her. She competes in distance events, like the 1-mile free which takes around 17 minutes, and her favorite part of swimming is the friends she has made through the years. For her, the signing process was a step outside of her comfort zone, filled with lots of emailing coaches and waiting for responses. Before settling on Buffalo, she visited multiple other programs, none of which felt right. When asked about choosing Buffalo, she said “It was like [I] immediately knew. I felt at home there.”

Ryan Sutherland: Swimming @ University of North Carolina Wilmington

After swimming for the majority of his life, Ryan decided to swim in college to see where swimming could take him. The signing process was pretty straightforward since UNCW was his top school and the coach recruited him just two days after he emailed. Currently, he competes in a variety of events, including the 200 fly and the 400 IM. Ryan will be continuing a family legacy in the program at UNCW, since his uncle swam there when he was in college, and has heard so much about how good the team there is, “Plus, who can say no to the beach!”