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Liberty's Corey Lillard says he'll play for Cavaliers Date published: 4/13/2008
BY TAFT COGHILL JR. Corey Lillard made his college decision on his own, but it didn't hurt to have a group of close friends constantly razzing him. The Liberty High School safety prospect became the third Fredericksburg-area football player from the Class of 2009 to orally commit to Virginia yesterday when he chose the Cavaliers over scholarship offers from eight other Division I-A schools. Lillard, a junior, made the decision following the Cavaliers' spring game, where he sat with Virginia commits Quintin Hunter (Orange), Dominique Wallace (Chancellor) and Ross Metheny (Sherando). Lillard and Hunter were AAU basketball teammates and friends before the recruiting process began. "They were definitely a part of [my decision]," Lillard said of his friends. "They kept saying: 'When are you going to pull the trigger? Why are you sitting there waiting?' I told them to let me think about it." When he had time to weigh his options, the Cavaliers came out on top. "I always leave U.Va. feeling good," Lillard said. So I thought it was time to [make a commitment] and do the right thing." When he's allowed to officially sign with the Cavaliers in Feb-ruary, Lillard will become the ninth Liberty player to sign with a Division I-A school since head coach Tom Buzzo took over the program in 2002. However, Lillard is the first one of those prospects to sign with Virginia. "We're excited," Buzzo said. "Last year we had a kid represented in the ACC, the Big East, the SEC, the MAC, the Big 10. This is another one in the ACC, but it's the first one we've had [at Virginia]. That's exciting for us because of how close they are." The 5-foot-11, 209-pound Lillard played running back, safety and outside linebacker for the Eagles. He was the Cedar Run District's co-defensive player of the year last year and a second-team all-Northwest Region selection. He was also a second-team Free Lance-Star All-Area selection. Buzzo said he's one of the hardest hitters he has ever coached. "He has a lot of good qualities," Buzzo said. "But his best is his ability to strike a blow." Taft Coghill Jr.: 540/374-5526
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