Times All-City Defensive Player of the Year Davin Cotton.
Three titans of an Evangel defense that enabled the Eagles to win the 2016 LHSAA Division I state football championship have committed to LSU according to coach Byron Dawson.
Lineman Davin Cotton, defensive back Ar’Darius Washington and linebacker Michael Baskerville attended Junior Day at LSU Saturday and gave coach Ed Orgeron their commitment.
“I’m proud of the kids and the way they handled the whole recruiting process,” Dawson said. “All three of them had numerous big time offers, but they didn’t talk about it a lot and remained humble. It says a lot about our program when a school like LSU offers three of your kids.”
Byron Dawson
The Times All-City Defensive Player of the Year, Cotton had offers from Alabama, Ole Miss, Louisiana Tech, Texas A&M, Arkansas, Tennessee and Missouri among others.
“I committed to Coach O this morning,” Cotton told The Times. “We had a long talk and he sounded excited.”
Dawson said the 6-foot-3, 280-pound Cotton is in the mold of himself, a former LSU defensive lineman.
“For sure. He is a physical run-stopper, who plays with a high motor,” Dawson said.
Nearly impossible to block in one-on-one situations, the junior was one of the reasons why the Eagles allowed just 113 points in the regular season with 5 shutouts.
Baskerville had offers from UCLA, Mississippi State, Louisiana Tech, Kansas State, Ole Miss and Tennessee. Among a group of great linebackers, this multi-sport standout plugged holes with speed and power better than anyone.
Micah Baskerville
Washington, a bone-crunching safety, had been offered by TCU, Louisiana Tech, Arkansas, Missouri and Colorado State. Washington told The Times he verballed Saturday morning also. Any wide receiver that faced the Eagles’ defense knew to keep a wary eye out for hard-hitting Washington, who made a living out of severing ball carriers from the football.
Ar’Darius Washington
“All three of these are four-year starters – a great feat and something very tough to do here,” Dawson said. “I had no idea they were going to commit today, but I’m proud of them for making their decisions.”
Twitter: @JimmyWatson6
Evangel’s Ar’Darius Washington jump on the goal post after scoring a touchdown against Airline in their District 1-5A matchup.