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The Samford Crimson
■— 1 Serving Samford University Since 1915 ■ ■ ■ ■■■—■■■
Meet
Nelson Park,
student body
president
i
Davis Ebbert:
Taking life
one flight at
a time
Features , 5
Letter from
the Editor:
You are the
priority
Ф
L*
Opinions , 7
1
, As NFL Draft
kicks off,
Hamilton
/4
searches for
►
- one thing—
• a chance
— iir it
4»
fr.-? i.
«■**
SAM CHANDLER MANAGING EDITOR
SAM CHANDLER
Managing Editor
Karel Hamilton knew what he need¬
ed to do.
The jury of scouts eyeing him from
40 yards down field knew what they
wanted to see— explosiveness, speed,
acceleration. These coveted attributes
are what had drawn them to Samford's
Seibert Stadium on a cool turned com¬
fortable March morning.
So Hamilton, under the collective
gaze of onlookers, dug his neon green
cleats into the turf field and jackknifed
his 6- foot- 1 wide receiver frame into a
sprinter's stance, as if settling into an
imaginary starting block. Head down,
rump raised, he pulled his left hand off
the ground and reached it behind his
hamstring.
He took off.
His face tensed as his legs churned
down the cone-lined straight.
Hamilton's former teammate, James
Bradberry, stood near the home side¬
line and surveyed the scene. He partic¬
ipated in Samford's pro day last spring
before the Carolina Panthers selected
him in the second round of the 2016
NFL Draft.
“Everybody’s been talking about if
he's fast enough or not," Bradberry
said. “He doesn't need to worry about
that.*
A chorus of clicking stopwatches
welcomed Hamilton to the finish. The
consensus was that he ran 4.59 sec¬
onds for the 40-yard dash. Fair or not,
the numbers carry significant weight
in determining his football future.
“That was probably the biggest ques¬
tion mark that he had coming into to¬
day, was actually how fast he would
run in the 40," Samford head football
coach Chris Hatcher said afterward. “I
think he answered those questions.*
Hell find out this weekend.
The 2017 NFL Draft kicks off tonight
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and
runs through Saturday. Hamilton, an
Associated Press Football Champion¬
ship Subdivision First Team All-Amer¬
ican this past fell, is hoping to hear his
name ealled in one of its seven rounds.
History suggests that Hamilton
holds a slimmer chance of selection
than his counterparts from the Foot¬
ball Bowl Subdivision. But that doesn’t
deter him. Beating the odds is familiar
territory for one of the nation's best
small-school wide receiver prospects.
‘Special’ Potential
Michael Pierce still remembers when
Hamilton first arrived at Samford as
a freshman in the summer of 2013.
Pierce, a redshirt sophomore defensive
lineman at the time, had transferred in
from Tulane University in the spring of
that same year.
He said the work ethic Hamilton
brought with him from his Valrico,
Florida, home stood out among his
peers— and hinted at future success.
“Even in his first camp, man, we
knew he was going to be something
special,” Pierce said.
From the get-go, Hamilton proved
his teammates correct. He led the Bull¬
dogs with seven touchdowns and tal¬
lied more than 650 yards receiving in
his first college season, earning a spot
on the All-SoCon Freshman Team.
“He was going out there and making
plays against us, and we were kind of
seen as the veterans of the group,” said
Bradberry, who routinely faced Hamil¬
ton in practice drills. “As soon as he got
on this field from his freshman year, he
had all the confidence in the world.”
But Hamilton’s confidence shouldn’t
be confused with cockiness, as there is
a clear distinction between his under¬
dog brand of self-belief and the type of
arrogance that can fray a locker room.
The roots of Hamilton's self-as¬
suredness can be traced back to his
parents, Steve and Angeria Savory, and
a high school coach, Justin Hickman.
Hamilton said all three restored his
confidence as a sophomore at Straw¬
berry Crest High School after doubt
surrounding his ability had sent it
tanking.
“That’s where I started rising as a
player again and rising to my full po¬
tential again,” said Hamilton, who had
thrived in youth leagues since he start¬
ed playing at age 7.
A reenergized sense of belief trans¬
lated to a breakout 10-touchdown,
59-reception senior season at Straw¬
berry Crest in 2012. Those numbers,
however, failed to attract any high-
oarn
гагат
profile suitors. The only three college
offers Hamilton received were from
FCS schools— Samford, the Univer¬
sity of Tennessee at Chattanooga and
Coastal Carolina.
Samford expressed first interest, and
Hamilton didn't forget it. He rewarded
then-head coach Pat Sullivan with his
commitment to join the Bulldogs' 2013
recruiting class.
“I just felt like Samford really saw my
potential," Hamilton said.
The decision paid off for both par¬
ties, as Hamilton's production in¬
creased each year of his college career.
He accumulated 877 yards receiving as
a sophomore under Sullivan and 880
as a junior during Hatcher's first sea¬
son helming the program.
In Hatcher's offense, which is predi¬
cated upon a rapid pace of execution
and accurate delivery of the football
to playmakers in space, Hamilton
emerged as a reliable weapon his ju¬
nior year. But as a senior, he became
his team’s preeminent threat.
Coining of Age
Samford offensive coordinator Russ
Callaway worked closely with Ham¬
ilton last spring to help him refine
his route-running and pass-catching
techniques. Although Hamilton had
adjusted well to Hatcher's new offense
the previous fall, his position coach
wanted him to better understand the
intricacy of various routes.
Callaway said he wasn’t sure if his
instruction ever got through to his
burgeoning receiver, or if it simply en¬
tered one ear and exited the other.
Hamilton showed it stuck.
In a position meeting with Callaway
and a cohort of his teammates prior to
the 2016 season, Hamilton asked his
coach if he could step in and offer ad¬
vice to a younger player Callaway had
been coaching up on route running.
The anecdote illustrates a trait that
Callaway said came to define Hamil¬
ton’s senior season— leadership. He
was named a team captain, and when
he spoke up, others listened.
“If he’s tuned in and he’s locked in,
the other 21 guys on the field are timed
in and locked in and seem to do a little
bit better,” Callaway said.
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