Gatewood School in Eatonton held a signing ceremony last Wednesday to recognize the commitment of senior Evan Bennett to attend and play football at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC.
“This doesn’t happen just because Evan shows up. His hard work is what has got him here,” Gatewood assistant headmaster and assistant football coach Josh Ringer told about 200 middle and high school students who filled the bleachers on one side of the school’s gymnasium. “And if any of you are aspiring to be like him, it is hard work and determination and commitment that gets you to this point. So, keep that in mind, this is really impressive, really incredible, but it can be done.”
Gatewood head football coach Jeff Ratliff then reminded students that of approximately eight million high school student-athletes in any given year, only about seven percent of them will ever play at the collegiate level, and only one percent will do so on a full-ride athletic scholarship like Bennett secured.
“This is a big deal for our school life. As part of our athletic program, part of our school, Evan’s a role model; kids look up to him,” Ratliff added. “He did things right to get to where he’s at. Obviously, there’s the God-given ability that he was blessed with, but he took that ability and he ran with it. He did the things he needed to do and got himself in this position.”
With that, surrounded by his family and coaches, Bennett re-signed the paperwork to officially make him a Tar Heel once he graduates from Gatewood in May.
“I can’t say enough about the people here who helped me,” said Bennett, who despite missing several games with a broken thumb this season, still racked up 93 tackles, 453 rushing yards, eight rushing touchdowns, and one touchdown pass on his way to being named to the 2023 All-State Team. “My coaches and teachers and just everybody here at Gatewood are who allowed me to pursue my dreams. And my teammates, too, I can’t thank any of them enough.”
Bennett described putting some of his game clips on Twitter (X) and sending them to recruiters at several big football schools.
UNC was the first to show real interest, he said, though other Division I programs followed once they realized UNC had reached out. He was then asked to come and visit UNC’s campus by UNC co-defensive coordinator Tommy Thigpen, which led to him getting into contact with legendary head coach Mack Brown.
Bennett’s father, Dan Bennett, said he particularly liked Brown’s message to his son.
“He told Evan, ‘I’m not coaching to win more games to go to the next level. I’m coaching because I want to invest in your future and your life and make you the best you can possibly be.’ And so that really spoke to me as a father because that’s exactly what Gatewood has done. They invested in my son’s life to be the best he could be,” Dan Bennett said. “On the next level, Coach Brown, he’s collecting a group of smart, talented young men who wanted to win football games. I really feel like he’s doing it to make (Evan’s) life better.”
Decked out in UNC’s signature Tarheel blue, local alums Kent and Elizabeth Hassell, whose son graduated from Gatewood in 2006, also were in attendance. Kent said he’s excited about having a local rooting interest to go along with his devout Tar Heels support.
“We were really thrilled to learn that Evan had been able to be found by the recruiting staff at Carolina,” Hassell said. “It’ll be fun to follow him. We wish him all the best.”