Bremen defensive back Keithan Hedrick had a fine performance at the Under Armour/Scout.com combine in Cincinnati. In fact, he did well enough to make 2nd team all combine; but like all great athletes, he is always striving for more.
"I think I didn't pretty good," he said of the combine, "I was happy I made 2nd team, I wanted to make 1st team and felt that I should have, but it was a great experience. There was great competition, it is invite only and it is called the All-American combine, the title says it all. I got to go up against guys with offers and I felt like I'm equal to them."
Hedrick proved he can play some football as a junior as he made 110 tackles, returned an interception for a touchdown, forced five fumbles and recovered three. Those numbers along with his playmaking skills at running back earned him All-State honorable mention as well as All-Area and All-Conference honors. However, at 5'8, 200-lbs, he is undersized and has to prove to colleges this summer that he can overcome his height.
"Northern Illinois and Northwestern are very interested, but they want to see me at camp to see what I can do in their system with my size. They like my film, they see that I can make plays."
In addition to those schools, Colorado has sent letters along with Central Michigan and a host of 1-AA and D2 schools. An outstanding student carrying a 4.3 gpa, Hedrick has heard from Ivy League schools like Penn and Columbia and is keeping every door possible as open as it can be.
"My options are totally open," he said, "I have no favorites right now and I always say, 'your interest in me is my interest in you.'"
This summer, along with the aforementioned camps at NIU and Northwestern, Hedrick will camp at Ball State, Purdue, Western Illinois, Illinois State and Notre Dame. While he has the ability to play many different positions, he has decided to show colleges he can stick with his current defensive spot.
"The position I want to play and my coach and my family and I talked about this and we decided it was best to market myself as a safety."