Gladiator hopes to help out ex-Glad at Louisiana Tech
Dominique Faust's stomach fluttered when the airplane rattled.
The Clarke Central senior's flight to Louisiana Tech for an official visit two weeks ago had a few bumps.
"When we were in the air, the plane started shaking and I got a little nervous," Faust said. "The assistants on the plane went to check and see if something was wrong, but they said it was just some wind."
Upon landing and meeting with Derek Dooley, a Clarke Central graduate hired as Louisiana Tech coach on Dec. 17, Faust's butterflies took flight and his future goals became clear.
The 6-foot, 192-pound Faust signed with Louisiana Tech on Wednesday. He expects to play defensive back, special teams and a "little bit of linebacker."
Faust's rare opportunity - a Division I-A offer made after his high school career ended - stemmed from Gladiators coach Leroy Ryals' commitment to help Faust overcome off-the-field turbulence.
Ryals, who went 6-5 in his first year at Clarke Central, benched Faust for two games because of a classroom mistake.
Although Faust would have helped the Gladiators in their 28-21 loss to Habersham Central and their 10-9 win over Winder-Barrow, he said helping Faust was more important.
"To be honest, I wasn't even thinking about football at that time," Ryals said. "I was thinking about him as a man, needing to grow up and develop. Sports had nothing to do with that. He needed to behave, so he could be better at life."
Faust said he was mad at Ryals at first, but then respected the decision.
"He's a good coach," Faust said. "He'll sit the best player down, and he wants you to do well in school. If you get in trouble in school, you don't play. I think that helped me a lot."
Several schools looked at Faust early, until finding out his grades were low. Ryals helped motivate Faust to improve his grades this past fall, and Faust started receiving late attention from Kent State and South Florida. Ryals and Faust said Louisiana Tech clearly was the best destination.
"I think he'll fit well in that system," Ryals said. "They're probably going to run a 4-3 scheme with a lot of safety involvement in the run game, and that will be good for Dominique. Also, I think he'll have a chance to go on special teams. The terminology will be the same as we use here, so I think he'll have a chance right away to be a contributing factor."
When asked about trying to send future players to Louisiana Tech, Ryals said "that's up to Coach Dooley."
"We're going to have some players, and they'll be well-mannered," said Ryals, who coached with Dooley at LSU. "I don't know how good they're going to be, but they'll do the right things and we'll strive to be the best we can be. A good thing about (Wednesday) is other kids had a chance to see Dominique sign."
Faust had 141 tackles (91 unassisted, seven for loss), broke up three passes and returned the opening kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown against Cedar Shoals in a 24-20 regular-season win on Sept. 8. He was named Clarke Central's Defensive Player of the Year and selected to the Athens Banner-Herald's All-Northeast Georgia and Region 8-AAAA second teams.
Although Faust is on pace to graduate, Ryals said Faust needs to increase his SAT score 20 points to qualify. Ryals is confident that can happen.
"He's got to be cautious because there's still some work he's got to do," Ryals said. "You're happy, but you know the work's not done. If he puts his mind to it, he can do wonderful things."
Reply With Quote
