Prep notebook | High school football recruiting focus turns to 2013

National Signing Day is almost a week old. That means many members of the current junior class are now on the clock.

Carolina Forest running back Harold Atkinson, who has one official offer from Minnesota, could have at least one more in hand by the beginning of next week. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound back is planning on a trip to Georgia Tech this weekend, according to Panthers coach Drew Hummel.

“I know that Paul Johnson and [Atkinson] are going to meet in his office,” Hummel said. “I don’t know if an offer will be extended, but it kind of sounds that way.”

Chances are, the chatter Atkinson has stirred up around the Southeast means this won’t be his only other offer to come down the pipe. He’s already spoken with coaches from South Carolina and Clemson, and he’s been blanketed with letters expressing interest from dozens more.

If it all plays out as expected, Hummel knows one of his biggest jobs will be preventing Atkinson from being “overwhelmed” by the recruiting experience. If that means holding off on committing, so be it.

“It will be intimidating,” Hummel said. “Everywhere you go is nice, and you’ll like it. The thing that you need to do is not get carried away. You need to not make a decision before you feel comfortable.”

It’s something Hummel was a part of at North Augusta, where he and the rest of the coaching staff there went through a highly contentious recruiting saga with defensive back C.J. Byrd in 2004-2005. The eventual Georgia Bulldog took five recruiting trips, and he told coaches at each school he was going to attend that one.

Atkinson won’t be able to officially sign with any school until February next year, but the heaviest recruiting period for a player of his level could come in the next four to six months.

The same can be said for Myrtle Beach cornerback Chocolate Wilson and Conway quarterback Mykal Moody.

Wilson’s name began popping up on message boards around the country after he received his first official offer (Purdue) last year. The highly electric Moody – often considered the best player on the field in any high school game he has played – is getting plenty of interest of his own.

There will likely be a domino effect in place. With three players at three different Grand Strand high schools attracting the attention of so many major college programs, other players who have slid under the radar to this point likely are going to be noticed.

Basketball playoff push

Only a small handful of area boys and girls basketball teams have been eliminated from playoff contention, which means the final week of the regular season is going to be as important as ever.

The race for the postseason is no hotter than it is in Region VIII-AAA. On the boys side, St. James and Myrtle Beach have already secured spots, while Socastee, Georgetown and North Myrtle Beach are still in the running with two games left. The girls side of the region includes St. James, Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach – all of which have already qualified – fighting for position. Socastee still has a chance at qualifying as well with two games remaining.

Two other area boys teams are headed to the postseason, although their seed has yet to be determined. Carolina Forest (Region VI-AAAA) will qualify for the playoffs, but the Panthers have just Friday’s home game against Conway to state their case for the region title. Carvers Bay (Region VIII-A) is also headed to the postseason in one of that region’s top two spots.

Class AA teams Waccamaw and Loris are still alive out of Region VIII-AA.

The girls teams with postseason hopes still alive include Carolina Forest (Region VI-AAAA), Aynor and Waccamaw (Region VIII-AA) and Carvers Bay (Region VIII-A).

CBCA weekly honors

The Coastal Basketball Coaches Association released its honors from last week, and not surprisingly, Carolina Forest held on to the top Grand Strand honors after a pair of impressive victories.

The Panthers beat West Florence and Sumter last week, and as a result, remained the top team among the teams in the area. They were followed by Carvers Bay, which remains second in Region VIII-A, and Myrtle Beach, which has already sealed up a playoff berth out of Region VIII-AAA.

Top player honors for the week went to Jarvez Holmes (Carolina Forest), Emaray Johnson (Myrtle Beach), Dejan Frasier (Waccamaw), Kendall Henry (Myrtle Beach Christian Academy) and Shayton Durand (Carvers Bay).

Waccamaw’s Gregory named to all-star staff

Waccamaw baseball coach Jeff Gregory will serve as one of the assistant coaches for the 2012 North-South All-Star Baseball series, the South Carolina Baseball Coaches Association announced last week.

The games, which take place June 13-16 at Coastal Carolina University, will include some of the best players in the state. Gregory, in his seventh season at Waccamaw and 20th overall, will help coach the South squad.

This will be Gregory’s first all-star assignment. Once a coach works as an assistant, he is then eligible to be named as a head coach for the event.