Armstrong inks with Centre

By ROCKY STANLEY -- The Independent

WESTWOOD May 09, 2008 11:11 pm

— Fairview High School senior Daniel Armstrong has his sights set on law school.
First, he will attend Centre College and play some more football.
Armstrong, a 6-foot-4 defensive lineman and fullback, signed a Letter of Intent on Thursday afternoon in Fairview’s library with many of his high school teammates watching.
“I’m a little nervous, and pretty excited,’’ said Armstrong, who wore a Centre football jersey for the occasion.
Centre College has an outstanding academic tradition and a winning football background to match. Armstrong is looking forward to experiencing both.
“I’m planning to go to law school and a Centre education goes a long way in that,’’ said Armstrong, who ranks third in his senior class with a 3.8 grade point average. “As far as football, it’s a great environment. Danville is a football town and the people come out and show a lot of support.’’
Centre College ranks among the all-time Division III leaders with more than 500 football victories.
Armstrong said he also received interest from Harvard, Western Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky and Army. He took an official visit to Harvard in Boston.
“It didn’t feel like home,’’ Armstrong said. “When I visited Centre, the coaches knew who I was. They were excited about me being there, so it made me excited. I knew that was the place I needed to be academically and athletically.’’
Armstrong is being projected as a defensive tackle for the Colonels, who finished 6-4 last season including a 4-3 mark in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.
“I started there (defensive tackle) as a sophomore, and had six sacks in eight games,’’ Armstrong said. ``It should be fun. I enjoy being nasty up front.’’
As a senior, he played defensive end and fullback as Fairview won six games. Along with his defensive presence, Armstrong rushed for 788 yards and 12 touchdowns.
“He got better and better,’’ said new Fairview head coach Nathan McPeek, who served as the Eagles’ offensive coordinator last season. ``By the end of the season, Daniel was rolling pretty good. Defensively, he made some really good plays and was solid all year.’’
McPeek said that Armstrong’s leadership will be missed.
“Daniel is a very good football player, but a better person,’’ McPeek said. “He will do well in college and I see him adding on to Centre’s tradition in football.’’
Former Ashland Tomcat players Matt Johnson and Clark Norris wrapped up successful careers for the Colonels last season.
ROCKY STANLEY can be reached at rstanley@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2671.