Leonard Aikens had an extra-early wake-up call on Saturday morning, but it was well worth it.
"We left Dallas at 2 A.M. for the drive to Houston," said Aikens. "My teammates and I participated in the Five-Star Performance Camp, and most of the awards went to South Grand Prairie players. We dominated.
"I got the running back MVP. I ran a 4.52 in the 40-yard dash and a 4.4 shuttle. I wasn't happy with my shuttle, but I got good feedback after the camp. The coaches told me I did great and that I was a beast out there.
"I benched 185 pounds for 14 reps and broad-jumped 10-8. I want to take this momentum on to SMU's football camp next weekend. I want a scholarship to SMU. I feel like I could be a feature back there, and I feel at home at SMU."
Aikens is especially impressed with the Mustangs' ace recruiter, Adrian Klemm.
"Coach Klemm keeps it real," said Aikens. "I like the fact that he's calm. He doesn't scream at you like some other recruiters do.
"Some coaches will yell at you to try and get you motivated, but Coach Klemm keeps a calm demeanor. Both Jared Johnson (South Grand Prairie standout QB) and myself noticed that about Coach Klemm, and we both like it. We also saw that Coach (Wes) Suan (SMU RBs coach) is the same way."
South Grand Prairie is stacked in the backfield for 2011. In addition to Aikens and Johnson, the Warriors also feature another senior RB in Quaze Woods. In fact, Woods won The Strongest Man competition at Saturday's camp. Despite giving up more than 100 pounds to numerous linemen, Woods completed more repetitions on the bench (23) than anyone.
"We're going to have competition at running back," said Aikens. "We primarily go with a one-back set, so only one of us will be out there most of the time.
"I'm going to come out and work hard in summer camp. There won't be any hard feelings among Quaze and myself when it comes to playing time. It's a competition on the field, but off the field we're good friends.
"I do feel like I need to prove something this year. You can expect big plays from me."
Aikens says he's received offers from Pittsburgh, North Texas and Ole Miss.