All it took was one weekend to convince Deontay Greenberry that Houston was the place for him.
Greenberry surprised the college football world by choosing UH over Notre Dame on Wednesday.
The Washington Union High School-receiver originally committed to Notre Dame to join his cousin, Tee Shepard, in South Bend, Ind., but Greenberry’s visit to UH last weekend caused him to change his mind.
“For the first time during his recruiting process, he was going to make a decision that was best for him and not what other people wanted him to do,” Washington Union head coach Jeff Freitas said.
Freitas said that Greenberry fell in love with the coaching staff at UH and the city. One of the most important parts of Greenberry’s descision was the relationship he had built with recently-hired UH special teams coordinator Jamie Christian.
“Jamie Christian has a real good rapport with Deontay, and I know when he was with Arizona State that he was interested,” Freitas said. “When he moved to UH a month ago, there was some interest in UH because of him.”
With all four of the Cougars’ starting receivers graduating, Greenberry also saw and opportunity to make an immediate impact on the field.
“He saw the opportunity to play early and he considers himself one of the best and he’s not scared of a challenge and he wanted the opportunity to get the ball and go,” Christian said.
Greenberry, who was ranked as the No. 7 receiver nationally and No. 46 player overall by Scout.com, caught 109 passes as a senior for a state-record 2,165 yards and 33 touchdowns, helping Washington Union capture the California Division III State Championship.
“What intrigued me with him when we first started talking to him and when coach Christian brought him up was just his mindset that he wants to be a big-time player,” offensive coordinator Mike Nesbitt said.
“Once he got on campus and he could really see the offense and what it truly was about, then that was the thing that sold it.”
