Gold Mine: Spartan Mines To Play at Austin Peay
(Ashburn, Virginia) - Broad Run High School senior Adrian Mines has accepted a full scholarship to play Division I AA football at Austin Peay State University, which is located in Clarksville, Tennessee. Mines, a standout wide receiver for the Broad Run Spartans, made his decision after an official visit to the university on February 3, 2007. Mines will play wide receiver for the Austin Peay Governors.
"I am really excited about Austin Peay," said Mines. "It is a good school with great facilities and an outstanding coaching staff. As I walked the campus, I could really see myself attending the school. I am looking forward to playing at the next level and welcome the challenge of playing Division I football." Mines made his choice after carefully considering a scholarship offer from Shepherd University and invitations to play at Virginia Tech, the University of Maryland, and Hampton University. Mines also had offers to play basketball at the University of Mary Washington, Frostburg State, Sydney- Hamden and Lynchburg.
Mines is no stranger to Clarksville, Tennessee. His mother is from Clarksville and attended Austin Peay. "I have been visiting Clarksville all my life and I have a good support system there. It is like a second home. It is great to know that I will have family members cheering for me in the stands."
Mines is expected to have an immediate impact on his new team. He will be part of Austin Peay's first full class of scholarship players since 1996. Austin Peay will rejoin the Ohio Valley Conference as a full-scholarship member after a 10 year hiatus. "The team is in a rebuilding stage," said Mines. "It reminds me of the situation I had a Broad Run. There are new coaches and a new attitude. They want to win and I am confident that I can help them do that."
"We are very excited about Adrian," said Marcus Gildersleeve, wide receivers coach for the Austin Peay Governors. "He has outstanding talent and will be a great addition to our team."
Mines had an outstanding senior season where he led all Dulles District receivers with 38 receptions, 573 yards and eight touchdowns. He finished the year with a 15.08 yards per catch average. He received the following honors during his senior year:
1st team All Dulles District Selection
1st team All Region Selection
Top Wide Receiver in the Dulles District
Nominated for All Gameday Player of the Year
Was ranked 5th best receiver in the metropolitan area
Washington Post "All Extra" First Team Selection
Mines thanked those persons that helped him during the football season and during the recruiting process. "My football coach, Mike Burnett, was a great help to me during the season. He encouraged me to try to play at the next level and assisted me in many ways. He made telephone calls to coaches on my behalf and sent out many of my highlight DVDs. I owe so much to him," said Mines. "There are others who also helped me during the recruiting process. I give special thanks to my guidance counselor, Mrs. Burnett, who made sure I stayed on top of my academics. I would like to thank my family who also made contacts with coaches and mailed out my highlight DVDs. Jimmy Kibble of Super Recruits was a big help and was the source of many leads. I truly do appreciate their efforts."
Mines concentrated on basketball for most of his career playing year round from the time he was 6 years old. He started playing AAU basketball at the age of 9. Mines always wanted to play football and played one season of flag football in 6th grade, during which time he suffered a broken clavicle. Mines did not give up on football. The Mines family moved from Virginia to Michigan where Adrian played football during his freshman year at Rochester Adams High School in Rochester, Michigan. He earned the Best Wide Receiver Award at the end of the season. Adrian was invited to join the varsity team the next season, but broke his clavicle again during tryouts.
At the end of that summer, Mines returned to Virginia and concentrated on basketball during his sophomore year. Upon entering his senior year, Mines informed his family that he wanted to play football and the excitement of a new football coach at Broad Run added to his desire to play. The Mines family was apprehensive based on his history of injuries while playing football. Reluctantly, the Mines family accepted his decision. "I knew that Adrian was a great athlete, but I never thought he would do as well as he did on the football field. It was a pleasant surprise. We always thought Adrian would play basketball at the next level. We never thought football would play such a significant role in his life," stated Beatrice Mines, Adrian's mom.
