By Steve Patterson
Kevin Cummings, the younger cousin of California Crespi High School defensive back E.J. Woods, came away impressed with what he saw at Ohio State while at a three day summer camp going into his Junior year. “I visited Ohio State last year when I went to the 3-day camp that I performed very well in. I really liked the campus and everything around it. I would love to go to school there.” Cummings described his visit to Columbus as perfect when asked to describe the facilities and the campus.
Cummings and Woods both visited Michigan after Ohio State while they were in the mid-west. Cummings has good things to say about both Michigan and UCLA, the school Woods has verbally committed to for 2008. “I've visited UCLA and Michigan which are also very nice schools.”
Cummings has had some big days at 7-on-7s on the UCLA campus recently and told us about his ability to route run and to read defenses. “My best attributes as a player are my precise route-running which I take much pride in, my knowledge of the game and what’s happening on the field. I can read a defense pre-snap and if I need to change my route up midstride I have the awareness to do so.”
His junior year wasn’t as productive as Cummings hoped it would be but he is ready for a big senior season. “The highlight of my year would probably be my play in the championship game against Long Beach Poly. Seeing as though I didn’t have that well of a season, I felt like I stepped up my game in the championship when needed. I blocked very well and made the clutch catches. Even though we lost the game I felt like my play in this game promised me a good season for next year.”
Cummings explained further that the quarterback he had gotten to know and had prepared to play with wasn’t available this season. “I didn’t have the stats I was looking forward to having this year. When the QB that id formed a great relationship went down with a torn ACL in the first game of the season a sophomore QB came in to replace him. The new QB felt more comfortable with his 6'7 senior receiver so he received most of the catches. Nevertheless I ended the season with 300 yards.” Wide receiver Joseph Fauria had 35 receptions, 516 yards, and 8 touchdowns for the Celts in 2007.
With his senior year approaching, Cummings is starting to look at different college programs and is drawing the interest of many schools. He told us what he is looking for in a college. “What I’m looking for in a college is a fun campus life and a school surrounded by athletics. I look for a promising program with coaches who have lots of experience and know how to run an offense. I like teams with great prestige and lots of history that I could some day be a part of.”
Three programs stand out to Cummings at this time. “Ohio State, UCLA, Oregon St, Washington, Stanford, LSU, Ole miss, Purdue, and UCONN have all shown interest in me, with Stanford, Oregon St and Ohio State leading the way.” He reported to us.
All his favorites have similar qualities including tradition, coaching, and relationships. “My favorite schools all have one thing, and that’s a good program with lots of history. Ohio State is my family's favorite and every year they continue to get better. All these schools have great coaches who seem to have good relationships with their players which is very important to have a successful team.”