Folders |
Prep Sprinter Erriyon Knighton Turning ProPublished by
Florida Standout Spurns College Football Offers And Signs With adidas To Pursue Track By Todd Grasley of DyeStat Erriyon Knighton has become the latest teenage sprint sensation from Florida to turn professional. The junior from Hillsborough High in Tampa has decided to sign with adidas and Stellar Athletics, which also represents 110-meter hurdles world champion Grant Holloway. As a Florida prep turning pro, Knighton joins a list that includes Briana Williams and Tamari Davis, who signed with adidas and Nike one year ago. Kaylin Whitney also turned professonal and signed with Nike in 2015 following her sophomore year at Clermont East Ridge. As a freshman in 2019, Knighton won the AAU Junior Olympic Games 200-meter title in 21.15 seconds and bettered that performance in 2020 with a pair of gold medals in the 100 and 200 meters with blistering personal-best times of 10.29 and 20.33, the latter of which is a sophomore class and 16-year-old age-group record.
"Last year, when I joined AAU I got my confidence and thought I am pretty good at this and I will stick with it as another sport, "Knighton said back in April. "I wanted to go 10.4 or 10.3, but my plans changed after Junior Olympics." Those times not only caught the attention of college coaches around the nation but shoe sponsors eager to sign the young talent. Some were quick to dub him the next Usain Bolt.
By comparison, a teenage Bolt ran 20.13, just two tenths faster than Knighton, one month before the Jamaican legend's 17th birthday.
Knighton excels in both track and field as well as on the gridiron. A top-five wide receiver in the nation, he boasts offers from a who's who of college football programs, including national champion Alabama, Florida and Florida State. However, after his performance at AAU Junior Olympics, he knew his future path to success was on the track. "Even though I love football, after what I just ran, I have to give track 110 percent," he explained last year. "I think that is what's best for me and what my future holds." Now that includes a contract with adidas and dreams of Olympic medals for Knighton, who will continue that journey in Tampa training with his coach, Jonathan Terry.
|
