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Terriers' Lamar Built For Speed

Tribune photo by CLIFF MCBRIDE

Lindsey Lamar's exploits in track have helped him immensely on the football field for Hillsborough High.

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By BILL WARD

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 19, 2008

TAMPA - Hillsborough senior running back Lindsey Lamar can recall precisely when his cell phone began ringing on a regular basis with college coaches offering him scholarships.

Funny thing is, the event that started the avalanche of offers had little to do with his skills as a football player. Lamar hit the college recruiting radar in a big way after he won the 100-meter dash at last spring's regional track meet in Punta Gorda in a sizzling time of 10.35 seconds.

True, it probably was a wind-aided time (no gauge was present), but the 10.35 still was among the nation's fastest under any conditions and the type of performance most college coaches just can't ignore.

Why? Because in today's game, speed makes the difference.

"It can be the tiebreaker," Hillsborough coach Earl Garcia said. "A school could be recruiting two players who both rushed for 1,000 yards but if they see a kid like Lindsey who has run the times he has, they're going to go with speed."

In terms of speed and agility, Garcia says the 5-foot-8, 165-pound Lamar has been compared by some college recruiters to former University of Florida and Tampa Bay Bucs receiver Jacquez Green. Lamar, however, is known more for his rushing ability, gaining just under 1,000 yards last season. And that was coming off a sophomore campaign cut short by a serious knee injury.

Both Green and Lamar possess outstanding speed, but as fast as he was, even Green didn't run 10.35 for the 100 in high school, which is why Lamar is also being heavily recruited by college track coaches.

Besides football scholarships from such schools as Duke, Michigan, Iowa State, Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Boston College, Lamar, who carries a 3.5 GPA, also is being sought by track powerhouses Florida State, UCLA, Louisiana State and Georgia.

And that's where Lamar is torn between two loves, football and track.

"I love track more, but football was my first love and I feel like I'm never going to be too far away from it," said Lamar, who finished fourth in the Class 3A state track finals in the 100. "But I just like running track more. It's hard for me to make a choice."

Lamar, therefore, is giving stronger consideration to those schools that have said he will be able to compete in both sports.

Of course, the coaches of most colleges are going to tell Lamar he won't have to choose. But during the recruiting process, he says he wants to get to know the coaches better to find out if they really mean what they say.

For now, Lamar says, Wake Forest is his leading choice. He says he likes the school's strong academic and athletic reputation. If he has any advice for other recruits, it's to do a little research and listen carefully to what the recruiters are saying.

"Pay attention to what the coaches are saying to do and watch how they act toward you," Lamar said. "And look closely at their academics. You can go on the Internet and find out if their athletes are graduating. Some schools have a better graduation rate than others. Some are a lot better than others."

Reporter Bill Ward can be reached at (813) 259-7456

or wward@tampatrib.com

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