By CASEY OLSON

Sports editor

Darin Harris won’t have the normal worries following his college years — like paying back student loans.

Harris signed a National Letter of Intent to play football at the University of Washington Wednesday morning, becoming part of Husky coach Keith Gilbertson’s first recruiting class. The Decatur High School senior’s full-ride scholarship will pay for everything, including room, board and books. He was one of 23 players signed by Washington Wednesday.

“They all jumped out at us, if they didn’t jump out at us we weren’t going to recruit them,” Gilbertson said about his recruits. “All of these kids, when you turned the video on, were making plays and they jumped out, they were the dominant players in the game.”

Harris, who played quarterback and safety at Decatur, was an all-state selection by the Associated Press, threw for 507 yards and rushed 54 times for 303 yards and four touchdowns in leading the Gators to their first postseason appearance in the school’s history. The 5-foot-11, 200-pounder is listed as a defensive back on the Huskies’ press release.

“This was quite an effort on behalf of our staff,” Gilbertson said. “It speaks well of what this university has to offer and this city. It’s a great place to visit, it’s a great city to live in and we still have a proud tradition as a program.

Antonio Lindsey

The 6-1, 285-pound defensive lineman made it Bofficial Wednesday by signing his letter of intent to play football at the University of Idaho for new coach Nick Holt. Holt was hired on Dec. 8 and identified the defensive line as a need for the Vandals, who finished 3-9 last season.

“We had to get some linemen in the program,” Holt said. “That was the first area of concern when we looked at the depth chart on the board. I feel good that we took care of the defensive side.”

Lindsey was an All-South Puget Sound League South Division selection following his junior and senior seasons.

Lindsey was joined in the Idaho recruiting class by former Decatur standout Tracy Ford. The cornerback/running back transferred to Bellevue High School last summer, where he won the state 3A championship. He was chosen as Bellevue’s Most Valuable Player after rushing for 1,978 yards and 26 touchdowns. Holt has expressed interest in moving Ford to wide receiver to take advantage of his 4.31 40-yard speed.

Brittany Gilmer

The Decatur High School senior signed her National Letter of Intent Wednesday to play soccer at the University of Alabama-Huntsville. The school is an NCAA Division II university.

Huntsville finished the 2003 season with a 10-6-1 record in the Gulf South Conference, including a 6-0 record at home. That was good for fourth place in the nine-team conference.

The Gulf South Conference includes schools like West Florida, Central Arkansas and Harding, among others.

Gilmer led Decatur in scoring last season during their run to third place at the Class 4A state championships. Gilmer, a midfielder, tallied eight goals and two assists for the 15-4 Gators. She was named All South Puget Sound League South Division and All-Area following the season.

Kyle Jenkins

The Jefferson senior is still up in the air about where he will be attending college, according to his father, William. Jenkins has been getting a lot of interest for the last couple years as a triple jumper. He won the state championship as a junior. But football programs started showing interest after he led the SPSL in receiving yards.

“He is just trying to get it all figured out,” William Jenkins said.

Jenkins has taken recruiting trips to Washington State and Indiana and has been contacted by schools like Tennessee, Texas and Yale, among others, with possible track scholarships.

“He is looking to figure it out before April,” William Jenkins said.

Sports editor Casey Olson: 925-5565, sports@fedwaymirror.com

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