From pinboards of photos that their parents created, to the big banners with the school logo, to the illuminating sign reading ‘Signing Day,’ the click of the pen echos at Coppell High School Arena on Wednesday as four Coppell boys basketball players signed to continue their athletic careers at the collegiate level.
Hands are brought together, tears slide down the faces of people in the crowd and a smile plasters across each person’s face behind the table.
Senior Collin Griffith signed to the University of Texas at Dallas to play men’s basketball. With his time at Coppell, he remains humble in his journey, embraced by the people around him.
“My dad has been my biggest motivator,” Griffith said. “He’s always on my case about everything and always pushes me to do my best and to make sure I’m giving my 100%. My senior season definitely helped my confidence and showed me that I really could compete at the next level, so that gave me a lot of confidence to go into college knowing that I can contribute in some way.”
Senior Jack Taylor signed to Southwestern University to play men’s basketball. As time passed in the Coppell program, he has found his place and strengths.
“When I first started playing basketball, I relied on my ability to shoot and now I have expanded my game a lot,” Taylor said. “My dad originally got me into basketball. He always played on Saturdays, and he made me come a couple times. I fell in love with it, I stayed with it and this is what it came to be.”
Senior Isaiah Fleming signed to Texas A&M International University to play men’s basketball and has dedicated time and effort to achieve constant recognition about his craft.
“I did pretty good the first round of playoffs this year,” Fleming said. “I felt like it was a game we were definitely supposed to lose, and we would have a year ago. I feel like as a team and me as a player, we matured to win that game.”
Senior Sibu Socks signed to Trinity Valley Community College to play men’s basketball, finding his confidence through his journey on and off the court.
“I’ve grown in my confidence and my skill set through training, coaching and the work I’ve put in,” Socks said. “The toughest challenge is to not worry about where I am at the moment and just focus on where I’m trying to go because sometimes you can get caught up on what people have on stats, and you forget about the work you put in.”
The Cowboys now hang their black and white jersey, stamping their dedication and craft on the generations that come after them in the Coppell boys basketball program.
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