A duo of gridiron stars at West Marion who think of each other as brothers signed scholarships together Wednesday on National Signing Day.
Defensive lineman Jordyn Mahaffey inked a letter of intent with Jones College, while long snapper Josh Ham joined East Mississippi Community College.
Mahaffey said playing football at the next level is his whole future.
“It’s what I’ve been planning on since I was a younger kid,” he said. “It’s always been a dream to play at the college level.”
Mahaffey said he’s seen players he knows have a lot of success at Jones, and he knew the moment he stepped on campus that it was the right place for him to be. The talented pass rusher had Division I offers from South Alabama, Louisiana Tech, Akron and Massachusetts and just about every junior college in the state as well but opted to stay close to home and have a better opportunity to play early.
“I had a few D-1 offers, but I felt like I needed a little stepping stool to get up to the Division I level. I’m probably going to start my freshman year at Jones, and I don’t like not playing,” he said.
Mahaffey thanked his family for always supporting him, friends and coaches, particularly Don Clanton. He said Clanton is one of his best friends who he talks to just about every day, and they share a special bond.
Ham, on the other hand, never dreamed of playing college football and said it was always Mahaffey’s dream. The pair have been like brothers since they were kids, and Ham said it’s special that they got to share signing day together.
“It was his dream, but he got me on board with him,” he said. “Ever since then I’ve loved the sport, and this is huge.”
Ham had a couple other offers, including one from a junior college in Kansas, but he said East Mississippi was his dream program and committed the day the Scooba school offered. The person who taught Ham the mechanics of long snapping, Morgan Stansell, went to East Mississippi, and Ham said he wanted to follow in Stansell’s footsteps.
The official visit is what completely sold Ham as he loved the campus and got along well with the coaching staff.
Clanton was also a big influence on Ham and helped mold his long snapping prowess and is the person Ham credited for making him want to stick with football. Ham said Clanton and coach Todd Harmon were the ones who pushed and believed in him the most.
West Marion head coach Brad Duncan said he’s proud of Mahaffey and Ham for all of the hard work they’ve put in to reach the next level. He encouraged them to continue to work hard and not to slack off on academics.
