Greg Tunnicliff
Sports Scene
Carman-Ainsworth has a football player that is going to play at the next level.
Big surprise!
The Cavaliers have been one of the Flint area’s top college-producing programs lately, having sent 29 boys to the collegiate level from 2008-11.
While senior-to-be Gerald Holmes recently became the Cavaliers’ 30th commitment in the last five years, he will only be the program’s second at a Football Bowl Subdivision school.
The 6-foot, 205-pound running back has verbally committed to Michigan State University.
He is the program’s first FBS player since Bobby McFadden signed with Eastern Michigan in 2010.
“I talk to the kids all the time about seizing the moment and appreciating every opportunity they get,” Carman-Ainsworth head coach Nate Williams said. “The recruiting is so huge for the big schools. They recruit all over the country. When they [high school players] get that opportunity, it feels good.”
Holmes is listed a three-star prospect and the No. 40 player in the country at his position by rivals.com.
University of Toledo and Central Michigan University also offered him scholarships, but he opted for the Spartans.
Michigan State won the Big Ten Conference Legends Division championship last year before losing to Wisconsin in the league’s championship game.
According to Williams, the Spartans’ style of play suits Holmes just fine.
“[MSU] is a downhill pro-style team, and that is the type of back he is,” Williams said. “He is one of those kids that has the physical ability to run through you and the speed to run around you.”
This will be Holmes’ third season on the Cavaliers’ varsity squad.
He earned first-team All-Big Nine Conference honors as a sophomore while helping Carman-Ainsworth post a runner-up finish in the league standings.
He suffered a foot injury during the first quarter of the Cavaliers’ season-opening contest against Grand Blanc last fall.
Because of the injury, he was limited to only five games. Even so, he still managed to rush for 363 yards and three touchdowns on 70 attempts (5.2 yards/rush).
He helped Carman-Ainsworth post a 6-4 mark, win the outright Big Nine title, and earn a berth in the Division 1 state playoffs, the Cavaliers’ first trip to the postseason since 2006.
“He’s a tough man to bring down because he runs hard and he has the size to go with it,” Williams said. “[Michigan State] was a good choice.”
The Cavaliers will be hoping Holmes can help them pick up where they left off last year.
“He’s all healed up, he’s been working hard all summer,” Williams said. “I’m expecting him to have a great year.”
Carman-Ainsworth will begin play in the Saginaw Valley Conference South Division this fall, opening on August 24 against Grand Blanc before taking on SVC North rival Heritage on August 31.
The Cavaliers have not made back-to-back playoff appearances since making three straight trips from 2002-04 and have not won or shared consecutive league titles since they captured five straight Metro League crowns from 1969-73.