Enter Mr. Jamal Patterson. He just might be the most balanced student-athlete that I have known in my short life.
His physical prowess is immediately obvious when you happen upon him and it doesn't take long to see that he is supremely skilled, as well.
He carries himself like a top-tier athlete and has the "swagger" that many of the greats always seem to have. He is also usually decked out in some sort of athletic gear (He dresses out as well as anybody has at the Under Armour / Scout.Com combines), and he usually has earrings in.
Add to that his ultra-competitive nature and usually overwhelming success in one-on-one situations and it is easy to see why some people might be turned off.
But one thing I have always found (for lack of a better term) interesting is how so many people will be quick to place judgment but reluctant to find out the truth for themselves.
I, too, have been guilty of this and too often good people are placed under a a very unfair blanket of criticism.
However, as circumstances (and a bit of fate, I guess) would have it, I have had the pleasure of getting to know Jamal as both a player and a person...and the evidence is overwhelming.
What follows is a virtual laundry list of awards (mostly personal) and accolades. They are not, however, meant to be as much an illustration of Jamal Patterson and his achievements as they are an indictment of how we as a society so often miss out on some really neat people. So, sit back and enjoy.
ACADEMIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS
4.5 GPA
THE NATIONAL BETA CLUB SENIOR DIVISION
UNITED STATES ACHIEVEMENT ACADEMY ALL-AMERICAN SCHOLAR
THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARS
WASHINGTON SCHOLARS AT AMERICAN UNIVERSITY
LEADERS OF AMERICA
THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA 2008 CERTIFICATE OF MERIT WINNER (TOP 5% SCHOLAR STUDENTS IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA)
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE ON STATEWIDE TEST (PASS-PLUS)
2008 ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
PERFECT ATTENDANCE 9TH GRADE THROUGH 11TH GRADE
HENRY COUNTY SCHOLAR ATHLETE
WHO'S WHO AMONG AMERICAN STUDENTS
NATIONAL HONOR ROLL (EVERY YEAR IN HIGH SCHOOL)
MENTOR SPEAKER FOR YOUTH
ATHLETIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS
GATORADE PLAYER OF THE YEAR (TRACK) 2006
2006 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (TRACK)
2006,2007,2008, 300 METER COUNTY CHAMPION
2006,2007,2008 MOST VALUABLE RUNNER
4X400 RELAY RECORD HOLDER
300 METER HURDLES RECORD HOLDER
4X100 RELAY RECORD HOLDER
HENRY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL MVP 2006,2007,2008 (TRACK)
HENRY COUNTY 110M HURDLES RUNNER-UP 2006,2007
HENRY COUNTY 110M HURDLES CHAMPION 2008
REGION 4-AAA 110M HURDLES CHAMPION 2007,2008
REGION 4-AAA 300M HURDLES CHAMPION 2008
FIRST STATE BANK TRACK ATHLETE OF YEAR 2006,2007,2008
ALL-STAR TROPHY TRACK ATHLETE OF YEAR 2007,2008
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL STATE CHAMPION 110M HURDLES 2008
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL RUNNER-UP 300M HURDLES 2008
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL 4X100 RELAY 6TH PLACE 2008
FIRST STATE BANK 2008 TRACK ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL REGION 4-AAA FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS 2006
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL REGION 4-AAA CHAMPIONS 2007
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL STATE PLAYOFFS 2007
2006 ALL-SOUTHERN CRESCENT FOOTBALL 1ST TEAM WR
2007 ALL-SOUTHERN CRESCENT FOOTBALL 1ST TEAM WR
2006 ALL- REGIONAL 1ST TEAM WR
2007 ALL- REGIONAL 1ST TEAM WR
2006 ALL-COUNTY 1ST TEAM WR
2007 ALL-COUNTY 1ST TEAM WR
MVP WIDE RECIEVER 2007 HENRY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL
2007 ALL-STATE WR HONORABLE MENTION
GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL REGION 4-AAA BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS 2006-2007
HENRY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL COACHES AWARD 2006-2007
SCHOLAR ATHLETE
SELECTED TO 2009 UNDER-ARMOUR ALL-AMERICAN GAME
SELECTED TO 2009 U.S. ARMY ALL AMERICAN GAME
SOUTHEAST TOP 50 PLAYER (SUPER.PREP) 2008-2009
SCOUT.COM TOP 25 PLAYER FOR GEORGIA 2008-2009
So it comes as no surprise why he has so many offers from which to choose and that list is equally as impressive.
Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, North Carolina, South Carolina, LSU, Florida State, Florida, Central Florida, Rutgers, Minnesota, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia Tech, Stanford, Oregon, Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, Cornell, Mississippi State, Ole Miss., East Carolina, Coastal Carolina, Troy, Michigan, Boston College, Connecticut, Arkansas, Duke, NC State, Wake Forest, Purdue, Indiana, Marshall, Army, Tulane, Louisiana Tech, Miami (Ohio) and Northwestern.
Quite an impressive list no doubt, but what might most impressive is its diversity. The reality is that the list is a perfect mirror for Patterson himself, and I'll bet that if we looked hard enough, we might find that there are more like him than we thought.
Burke Hayes is the Southeastern Regional Manager for Football Recruiting at Scout.