Braden River RB/WR Deshaun Fenwick picks up SEC football offer

In just a couple of weeks, Braden River High School running back/wide receiver Deshaun Fenwick went from not having any college offers to receiving a big-time Division I offer on Saturday.

Fenwick’s second college football offer is from Mississippi.

The SEC school reached out to head coach Curt Bradley on Friday night. Bradley was at a wedding and listened to the voice mail left when he got back home. He then relayed the message for Fenwick to contact Mississippi.

In the span of 12 hours between Friday night and Saturday morning, the Rebels offered Fenwick.

“I got off the phone and was really excited,” Fenwick said. “I screamed, honestly. I was just so excited. Honestly, it hasn’t really kicked in yet. Right now, it’s too good to be true.”

The most recent Mississippi football signing from the area came last year when IMG Academy quarterback Shea Patterson was signed.

Fenwick, though, still has his senior season in 2017.

Ohio University was the first school to offer Fenwick, doing so just a couple of weeks after his 2016 junior season finished.

“It’s really the first time for schools to really get in and see him after what was an incredible junior campaign,” Bradley said. “... I’m sure the ball will continue to roll for him as far as scholarship offers.”

That junior season saw Fenwick, a power tailback at 6-foot-3 and 208 pounds, produce 904 rushing yards and 350 receiving yards with a quicker step and more muscle. Fenwick played the slot in the receiving game and shared backfield duties with teammate Raymond Thomas for the Pirates, who made the playoffs for a third straight season.

“It makes me want to work even harder,” said Fenwick, who had 15 total touchdowns last fall. “I want to go to a big-time school, and I just want to work harder.”

Last offseason, Fenwick started training multiple times a day to prepare himself for his junior season. He hit the weights and adopted agility and speed drills to get quicker. Consequently, his game improved and now colleges are taking note.

“Coming from Kentucky, Florida football is probably one of the best places to play (high school) football,” said Fenwick, who relocated to the area from Louisville before his sophomore season. “... So you have to work hard and put in hard work, and great things can come out of it. I wanted to do it for myself and my family.”

This story was originally published December 17, 2016 at 3:03 PM with the headline "Braden River RB/WR Deshaun Fenwick picks up SEC football offer."