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Everybody knew that Gavin Rainwater would have something fun planned for his signing on Wednesday afternoon at Neosho High School.
The senior defensive tackle didn’t disappoint.
After hearing a few kind words from Neosho athletic director Corey Roy and head football coach Jared Schoonover, Rainwater signed his letter of intent and promptly stood up and started to unbutton his shirt.
“I didn’t bring hats,” Rainwater said. “But I did get this.”
He removed his button-up shirt to reveal a camouflage Pittsburg State shirt.
Classic Gavin.
Rainwater and his fellow Neosho defensive star Ethan Epperson signed national letters of intent to continue their football careers.
Rainwater has a career-long list of accolades to carry with him to the defending Division II national champions. As a senior, Rainwater was named all-conference, all-district and all-state. He was also a member of the All-Ozarks team and the KURM Dream Team. As a junior, Rainwater was the Central Ozark Conference defensive player of the year.
At the beginning of the season, it looked as though Rainwater would sign with a major Division I program. During the summer, Rainwater was receiving letters of interest from the likes of Missouri and Oklahoma. As the season went on, the senior seemed set on attending Tulsa University.
But after taking a visit to Pittsburg State, Rainwater was absolutely blown away.
“The national championship obviously speaks for itself,” Rainwater said. “It doesn’t get any better in D-II or, in my opinion, Division I. I was looking really hard at Tulsa and thinking I was going to go there. Then, Coach Wells from Pittsburg called me and told me to come and check out a game. I went, and it may be Division II football, but there was no difference in the atmosphere and the way the guys played from Division I. Those guys fly to the football and there were big hits. I talked to almost all the players there and it just is a great place to be.”
Rainwater was complimentary of his coaches dating back to when he was a youth.
“It feels great but this isn’t where the work stops, now is when the hard work really starts,” Rainwater said. “This goes back to when I was a little guy. Coach Pogue and Coach Rathmann and Coach Harris (youth coaches) really made it possible. You move up through the ranks and two guys that really helped me a lot are Coach Burr and Coach Perkins. Schoonover and the rest of the guys really pushed me, but those guys in particular really helped me get here.”
Everybody knew that Gavin Rainwater would have something fun planned for his signing on Wednesday afternoon at Neosho High School.
The senior defensive tackle didn’t disappoint.
After hearing a few kind words from Neosho athletic director Corey Roy and head football coach Jared Schoonover, Rainwater signed his letter of intent and promptly stood up and started to unbutton his shirt.
“I didn’t bring hats,” Rainwater said. “But I did get this.”
He removed his button-up shirt to reveal a camouflage Pittsburg State shirt.
Classic Gavin.
Rainwater and his fellow Neosho defensive star Ethan Epperson signed national letters of intent to continue their football careers.
Rainwater has a career-long list of accolades to carry with him to the defending Division II national champions. As a senior, Rainwater was named all-conference, all-district and all-state. He was also a member of the All-Ozarks team and the KURM Dream Team. As a junior, Rainwater was the Central Ozark Conference defensive player of the year.
At the beginning of the season, it looked as though Rainwater would sign with a major Division I program. During the summer, Rainwater was receiving letters of interest from the likes of Missouri and Oklahoma. As the season went on, the senior seemed set on attending Tulsa University.
But after taking a visit to Pittsburg State, Rainwater was absolutely blown away.
“The national championship obviously speaks for itself,” Rainwater said. “It doesn’t get any better in D-II or, in my opinion, Division I. I was looking really hard at Tulsa and thinking I was going to go there. Then, Coach Wells from Pittsburg called me and told me to come and check out a game. I went, and it may be Division II football, but there was no difference in the atmosphere and the way the guys played from Division I. Those guys fly to the football and there were big hits. I talked to almost all the players there and it just is a great place to be.”
Rainwater was complimentary of his coaches dating back to when he was a youth.
“It feels great but this isn’t where the work stops, now is when the hard work really starts,” Rainwater said. “This goes back to when I was a little guy. Coach Pogue and Coach Rathmann and Coach Harris (youth coaches) really made it possible. You move up through the ranks and two guys that really helped me a lot are Coach Burr and Coach Perkins. Schoonover and the rest of the guys really pushed me, but those guys in particular really helped me get here.”
Pittsburg State will begin the defense of its national championship on Sept. 1 at Northeastern State (Okla.).
Epperson signed his national letter of intent to play linebacker at Central Methodist University.
“I am really looking forward to going up to Central Methodist,” Epperson said. “I went up for a visit a couple weeks ago and I really enjoyed the campus, the philosophy and the people there. I just really think I am going to do well there."
Epperson is coming off of a season in which he led the state of Missouri with 152 tackles. He was named first team All-COC and first team all-district. Epperson was also the defensive MVP for both the conference and the district in 2011. He was also the Neosho Daily News All-Area MVP for 2011.
Epperson had a handful of other schools interested in his services, including Central Missouri and Missouri Valley. Ultimately, Central Methodist won out because of his comfort level on the campus.
“During the season I visited Central Missouri and Missouri Valley,” Epperson said. “Valley actually called me the night that I committed to Central Methodist and asked me if I would come take a visit. The program at CMU is just ‘me.’ It’s everything I was looking for in college. The people there are kind and the coaches aren’t just there to coach you, they are there to be your family.”
One major factor that Epperson had to work against was his size. He was an outstanding middle linebacker and a three-year starter. But, most colleges want to see their linebackers at least 20 pounds heavier than Epperson’s 185-pound frame. But the senior erased any doubt about his toughness with his final prep season.
“Even in high school, there are times when I was the smallest guy on the field,” Epperson said. “I pride myself on outworking those guys and in the fourth quarter, I will still have gas in the tank and those guys will be sucking wind. That’s what I strive for.”
Central Methodist opens its season on Sept. 1 at home against MidAmerica Nazarene.
