National Signing Day: Sacramento-area high school standouts receive college scholarships
The 90-year-old auditorium at Grant High School has some wobbly seats, but it can sure house a festive crowd.
On Wednesday afternoon, Grant hosted a National Signing Day event in the classic venue with student-athletes on a stage and a spirited gathering of students, faculty, coaches and members of the Del Paso Heights and surrounding communities in front of them.
Not long after the nationally recognized Grant drumline revved up the vibe with a spirited tune, three football stars signed full Division I scholarship packages, covering room, board, books and more, and Pacers girls basketball star Samaya Dillard inked a full academic package with Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
The scholar who scored 27 points for the 10-1 Grant girls the night before chose this option over a handful of athletic offers from four-year programs. She has that sort of star power. Seated next to Dillard, on her left, were safety Kingston Lopa, who signed with the Oregon Ducks, running back Devin Green, who signed with the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels, and running back Wayshawn Parker, who signed with the Washington State Cougars.
Each of the seniors beamed in their moment. They thanked their coaches, their parents, their teammates and the Grant community for helping them on this journey. The crowd celebrated each of them with ovations and chants and handmade signs because this is what Grant does. It celebrates its teenagers for their academic and athletic achievements.
“Special day, special kids,” Grant football coach Carl Reed said.
An alum of the school, Reed introduced each student-athlete and detailed their accomplishments. He then handed the microphone to the parents of these achievers, and each spoke of pride, if they could get through the tears of joy.
The 6-foot-5 Lopa grew up in the area, one of a number of Lopa student-athletes to leave a mark on the football program and the campus as a leader. He first started running around with a football when he was 2 years old. Lopa is such a good student that he graduated from Grant early and was off to Eugene for a head start on his college experience by Friday.
Green and Parker were football stars in the Elk Grove Unified School District before their transfer to Grant, youth teammates reunited.
Green overcame the challenges of type 1 diabetes that requires constant monitoring to excel in football. He rushed for 693 yards and 15 touchdowns in eight games, having missed seven games as the CIF’s governing body initially planned to sit him for the entire season before an appeals committee overruled.
Roosevelt Green, Devin’s father, laughed as he recalled first sitting in one of these auditorium seats. He nearly spilled out of his spot in the summer when he packed in for a meeting. On Wednesday, the elder Green wore a UNLV cap and an expression of pride.
“So proud of Devin,” he said. “This is all a culmination of hard work, the countless hours of training, of practice, of school. It’s a dream of so many, but it’s so had to achieve. It means everything to us as a family. It also lifts a huge financial burden off our shoulders because this scholarship will pay for everything, and we’re so excited for Devin.”
Parker enrolled at Grant before his senior season and produced a tremendous campaign for a program that repeated as CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III champion and reached another CIF state bowl. He rushed for 2,055 yards and 25 touchdowns in 13 games, running with power and fury, or, as coach Reed said: “With anger.”
But after games, the kid known as “Bobo” was all shy grins and good manners. He said he was a heavy kid early in his prep career before shedding weight, mainly by eliminating junk food. He then feasted on defenses geared to slow him down.
Parker also graduated early from Grant and will report to WSU before the first of the year.
“I want to thank everyone here,” Parker said, all grins before getting drowned out by the cheering.
Grant led the region with three full Division I football scholarship rides, which is no easy feat given that there are tens of thousands of high school prospects and thousands more in college looking for a change a pace.
“It’s so hard to do what these three are doing,” Reed said. “You have to be a really special player to sign out of high school because the transfer portal is full of college-ready players. This is why we do what we do at Grant, why we work so hard, why it matters so much. We want our kids to have an opportunity to do big things.”
Back to Dillard. Her radiant smile lit up the room. Nothing rattles her — no amount of defensive pressure in basketball games or academic studies or tests. She was moved by the cheers of her basketball teammates, classmates and family. She leads Grant in scoring (13.5 points) and rebounds (12.3), and she will continue to compete in college.
Dillard played last season at Antelope High and transferred for a change of pace by becoming a Pacer. She was touched at how the school and community embraced her. Her parents were equally moved.
Grant girls basketball coach Meshal McCauley told the crowd that Dillard has already earned 240 high school credits, adding, “you only need 220 to graduate!”
That led to more cheers, more ovations. It was that sort of day for the Pacers.
In all, 17 Sacramento-area football players signed D-I scholarship packages on Wednesday. This signing period ends on Friday.
The next signing period begins Feb. 7.
A closer look at football players who signed full Division I scholarship packages on Wednesday:
Auckland Asiata
Sutter | Defensive Line | 6-foot-3 | 250 pounds
School: Fresno State
Frank Cusano
Granite Bay | LB | 6-3 | 220
School: Washington State
Ethan Dasmann
Oak Ridge | OL | 6-5 | 290
School: Fresno State
Brody Fortunati
Vacaville | QB | 6-3 | 190
School: Air Force
Devin Green
Grant | RB | 5-11 | 205
School: UNLV
AJ Hasson
Davis | OL | 6-5 | 285
School: Washington State
Matt Long
Vista del Lago | WR | 5-11 | 190
School: Air Force
Kingston Lopa
Grant | S | 6-5 | 190
School: Oregon
Brandon Nazworth
Vista del Lago | OL | 6-4 | 270
School: Air Force
Mohammed Othman
Pleasant Grove | LT | 6-6 | 270
School: San Jose State
Cole Owens
Casa Roble | WR | 6-0 | 180
School: UC Davis
Wayshawn Parker
Grant | RB | 6-0 | 185
School: Washington State
Tommy Poe
Del Oro | WR/TE | 6-4 | 200
School: Sacramento State
Brian Ray III
Folsom | WR | 6-0 | 200
School: Army
Phoenix Rose
Whitney | CB | 6-0 | 170
School: Sacramento State
Noa Siaosi
Vacaville | DL | 6-3 | 240
School: San Jose State
Baron Taylor
Inderkum | DB | 6-0 | 170
School: Southern Utah
Mason Vicari
Christian Brothers | OL | 6-3 | 265
School: UNLV
▪ Who did we miss? Email jdavidson@sacbee.com.