It's Not 'Roll Tide' or 'Go War Eagle!'

For Nature Coast Technical offensive lineman J.J. Baker, the decision on what college or if he should go to college was made clear to him long ago by his father James.

"Since he was in grade school he's been told he's going to college," said his father. "I've been preaching to him that this is no joke. That he wasn't going to go to school for a year or two and then come back home.

Recently, his son signed a football scholarship to play for Huntingdon College - a Division III school located in Montgomery, Ala.

At the signing ceremony at NCT, J.J. believes he and his father made the right choice.

"I went up there for a visit and I just like the atmosphere, said the 5-foot-11, 260-pound senior. "I like the football program and I feel I can come in there and contribute to the football team right away."

'Bama bound

Both the son and the father made some visits to other schools in Ohio and Georgia that had shown an interest. But they liked the Alabama school for different reasons.

"We went to Hiram (Ohio) College and a school in Georgia, but I just liked Huntingdon better," said the Shark senior.

Baker played two years for the NCT team, playing his junior year as a defensive lineman before moving to offense his senior year.

"He's been a hard worker," said Shark assistant coach Mike Lastra. "He made the transition over the summer from the defensive line to offense. And he made our right side one of the strongest right sides in the area."

Originally, Baker was at Central before transferring to NCT.

And his head coach Jamie Joyner said he was an important cog in the Sharks making the state playoffs. "When he came over from Central, he turned into a starter for us," pointed out Joiner. "Not just a starter, but an important player on our offensive line."

Which school?

His father said that deciding on a school meant different things to both of them.

"This decision was real important. It's where he is going to get his education and maybe where he'll spend his whole life," said James Baker at the signing. "I told him he can handle the physical part of it, he went through Joyner's program. It's the mental part of it, he has to take this a whole more seriously."

For the son, being close enough to home also was a factor.

"I wanted to stay kind of close to my family so I can come back and visit," said J.J. "It's only a 7-hour ride and that made a difference."

The NCT lineman also knows he has some things to improve on if he wants to play college football.

"I'm going to have to improve my footwork," he said. "The linebackers on the collegiate level are just so much faster. I have to get better at moving my feet."

His father James said that there was a difference in what kind of school his son was looking for.

"My son likes this program because he got to see how other schools ran there's. For me, it's more about the school situation. The dorms are nicer and this one is a liberal arts college with a good reputation of its graduates finding good jobs later," James Baker added.

"I think I should have a say since I'm paying for it," the elder Baker said with a smile. "But I tried not to and let him decide."