Two Jackets Sign Scholarships

Courtesy of The Anniston Star

Oxford's Pilkington, Edwards ink baseball scholarships

By Nick BirdsongSports Writer

11-13-2008

OXFORD — Oxford High School seniors Trey Pilkington and Judd Edwards were both dipped in their Sunday best as they each signed Division I baseball scholarships at a ceremony held at the school's media center on Wednesday, the first day of NCAA's early signing.

Pilkington (a 6-foot-4, 210-pound pitcher) signed with the University of Alabama, while Edwards (a 5-11 shortstop) signed with Louisiana-Monroe of the Sun Belt Conference.
Pilkington sported a red-and-white, pinstripe shirt accompanied by a platinum tie — dotted with "As" — while Edwards sported a long-sleeved, white button-up and a tie to match the school he signed with.

Both players said signing early would take a lot of pressure off of them to perform and free them up to just go out and have fun as they prepare for their senior seasons.

Pilkington became the second player from Calhoun County in the past two seasons to sign with a Souththeastern Conference school after former Saks catcher Caleb Bowen went to Auburn.
Pilkington's decision to go to Alabama was essentially a no-brainer, though the lifelong Crimson Tide fan toyed with offers from LSU, Mississippi State and Auburn.

"I felt like it was the place that was home for me," said Pilkington after he and Edwards posed for pictures for nearly 15 minutes in a room spilling over with coaches, teammates, family, friends and various other well-wishers.

"I loved Mississippi State and LSU, but I liked Alabama that much more," he added.
Pilkington went 6-3 as Oxford's ace this past season to go along with 48 strikeouts, and his fastball now peaks at anywhere from 92-94 MPH. It was only topping out at 82-83 as a sophomore, but he put in the necessary work to mold himself into a big-time college prospect with a shot at the pros.

Oxford coach Wes Brooks said Pilkington has worked diligently to become the player he is today, employing a training regimen that utilizes a combination of medicine ball drills, arm band drills and throwing sand balls that weigh as much as a pound more than a baseball — all to build arm strength.

Pilkington also used what Brooks referred to as a "prehab" workout, which employs the same tactics that a rehab program would to restore a pitcher's arm after an injury to condition it before they begin throwing.

"We'd have 10 guys in there doing the program, and he'd be in there sweating the whole time," Brooks said. "As a 10th grader, he only threw 80 but wanted to throw 90 and had the work ethic and the drive to do it."

Brooks compared Pilkington's willingness to pay the cost to be the boss to that of former Oxford and current Jacksonville State standout Ben Tootle.
Tootle threw in the mid-80s while he was a Yellow Jacket, but has been a clocked at 100-plus MPH in summer league and is destined to be a first-round choice in the Major League Baseball Draft this spring.

"I didn't think I'd be getting what I got," said Pilkington, who has heard from the San Diego Padres, New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins. He added that he didn't know at the time if he'd entertain any offers from professional teams.

Edwards chose Louisiana-Monroe over offers from Auburn, UAB, Memphis and the College of Charleston.

Edwards played summer ball for the Alabama Bombers two years ago where he ran into then-Memphis assistant Cory Barton, and the two stayed in contact with one another.
Barton, now an assistant at Louisiana-Monroe, linked up with Edwards again at a tournament this past summer where Edwards was playing with the Excel Baseball Academy team out of Oxford.

"They gave me a call. I went out there for a visit. They offered me a scholarship and I committed the following week," said Edwards, referring to the mid-September events.

"It (Monroe, La.) was a big city with a small -town feel and I loved that," Edwards said. "It's a top-of-the-line school. I'll have a chance to play early for a school that won a conference championship last season. What more could I ask for in a baseball school?"

Edwards was just they type of player and person the Warhawks, who went 34-28 last season, were looking to add to their program, according to Barton.

"It's just his attitude, the way he carries himself on and off the field," Barton said. "He's a hard-nosed competitor. Offensively, he runs well. He hits for average, and we think he'll be able to hit for power down the road once he focuses solely on baseball."

Edwards started at quarterback for Oxford in 2008, leading the Yellow Jackets to an 8-3 record. He completed 134 of 261 passes for 2,009 yards and 15 touchdowns, with only five interceptions. He also rushed for 636 yards on 81 carries.

Edwards completed 22 of 26 passing attempts for 298 yards and two touchdowns and added 103 yards and another touchdown on the ground as he racked up 405 yards of total offense in the Yellow Jackets' season-ending, 48-45 loss to Bob Jones in the first round of the state football playoffs last week.

He said he'd received interest from Eastern Kentucky, Army and Navy among others to play football.

"Him playing football really tells you about what kind of athlete he is, and that type of ability he has that he could play both sports against good competition in Alabama at a high level," Barton said.