KELSEYVILLE >> So much for the full, full-ride scholarship. Kelseyville High School senior Codi McGuire will have to pay for a parking pass later this summer as he changes locales and football teams.
McGuire, an All-League first-team lineman for the Kelseyville Knights each of the last two seasons, won’t be paying for anything else. He was one of thousands of high school players across the country committing to a four-year university on Wednesday during National Signing Day. In McGuire’s case, his next stop is Eastern Washington University in Cheney, Washington, where he will play offensive line for the Eagles, a NCAA Division I (FCS) powerhouse. McGuire’s combination athletic/academic full-ride scholarship is guaranteed for five years.
The youngest son of Mike McGuire, Kelseyville High School’s varsity football coach the past two seasons, and Deondra McGuire, Codi was among a group of more than 20 football players committing to Eastern Washington on Wednesday, many of them linemen just like him.
“They’ll be losing seven linemen over the next two years, three starters and four other guys who are key reserves,” Mike McGuire said.
Codi picked Eastern Washington over a handful of other schools, including San Jose State.
“I like everything about it,” Codi said of the Eastern Washington football program. “The coaches, the other players … they all made me feel at home.”
He has visited the campus three times since last spring.
“It’s a college town, Mike McGuire said of Cheney, which is located about 17 miles southwest of Spokane.
It’s also a big, big football town, especially these days. The Eagles won the FCS championship in 2010 and have been in the playoffs every year since. Under current coach Beau Baldwin, they’ve won the Big Sky Conference four times in the last five years, including a 7-1 conference mark and 11-3 overall record in 2014. They play at Roos Field, which features a distinctive red artificial turf surface and is affectionately known as The Inferno. Baldwin, who is returning for an eighth season as head coach in 2015, owns a 67-25 (.733) career record. He ranks second among Eastern Washington head coaches in career wins and first in winning percentage.
That’s another reason why dad Mike is thrilled with Codi’s choice — the school’s success and current coaching stability, two things that go hand in hand.
“Their line coach has had eight All-Americans in the last nine seasons,” Mike said.
While many incoming freshmen usually red-shirt their first season, that might not be the case for Codi. Currently third on the Eagles’ depth chart at center, he could make the roster in 2015 as a true freshman if he can move up a spot on the depth chart between now and next summer. He also might end up at guard depending on a variety of factors. “I would rather play guard,” Codi said.
“He’s one of their most mobile and athletic linemen,” Mike said of the incoming freshman class.
At 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds, he’s also one of the smallest, if 6-3 and 260 can be called small.
The Eagles run a pistol offense common in the college ranks these days, according to Mike.
“They average over 40 points a game,” he said.
Codi hasn’t picked a major yet, perhaps history, as he prepares to transition from his playing days at Kelseyville to Eastern Washington. He said he’ll miss his time in Lake County and all the people who helped him reach this point in his athletic career.
“I’ll try to remember everything my coaches taught me,” Codi said.
“A lot of coaches invested time in him over the years and not just high school coaches,” Mike added. “It takes a village to make this happen and Kelseyville (High) contributed a lot to his success, from his counselor (Areli Dohner-Chavez) to Matt Cockerton (high school principal) and his coaches, including Mr. Conrad (Scott Conrad, the school’s varsity boys’ basketball coach and athletic director). The teaching staff at Kelseyville does a great job of preparing kids. They demand a lot from them.”
Codi’s parents can only guess at the number of hours and dollars they’ve invested in Codi.
“He’s been playing since he was 7 years old and there has been a lot of sacrifice,” Deondra said. “I don’t know how many hours I’ve spent sitting at the football field watching him play … sweating in the summer and freezing late in the fall. It’s all turned out for the best.”
“Scrimping and saving as two teachers, our friends would be going to Hawaii or buying that RV and we’d saving up so we could send him to the right camps,” Mike added.
Both agree it has been worth it.
“It’s like winning the lottery,” Deondra said of the full-ride scholarship Codi is receiving from Eastern Washington.
The Eagles open next season with an away game against Oregon — as in the Ducks of the Pac-10 — and also play at Sacramento State, one of their Big Sky Conference opponents, on Sept. 26. With a little luck, Codi could be in uniform for one or both of those games.
“Wouldn’t that be something, playing against Oregon,” Mike said.
Yes, it would.
