St. Pauls’ quarterback J Greene will get a chance to play for the defending national champions.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior committed to West Florida on Saturday. The Argonauts beat Minnesota State 48-40 last month to win their first Division II national title in just four years of football.
“He’s committed to play for the defending champs,” St. Paul’s head coach Steve Mask said. “You can’t do much better than that. It’s really good football. My son played at North Alabama and had a great time.
“West Florida has built one of the premier programs in the country in a short period of time, and the Gulf South Conference is the best conference in Division II. For them to offer him, I think it says a lot about what the coaching staff thinks of J’s ability.”
Greene also had offers from Georgetown, UT-Martin and Morehead State.
As a senior, he completed 123-of-238 passes for 1,555 yards and 15 TDs. He also made some crucial plays with his legs, running for 428 yards and four touchdowns.
“He made a lot of plays both throwing the ball and with his feet,” Mask said. “He was injured as a junior. This year, he really made us go and gave us a dual threat at quarterback. I think he has tremendous upside going forward because of it.”
Greene led St. Paul’s to a 15-8 record in two years as the team’s starting quarterback, both of which came after the Saints were moved up to Class 6A due to the AHSAA’s competitive balance ruling.
“West Florida is getting an excellent young man in and out of the classroom and a really good football player,” Mask said.
A pair of St. Paul’s seniors signed during the early period. Defensive lineman Daniel Foster-Allen signed with Auburn, while LB/DB Reggie Bracy signed with Iowa.
The second national signing period for football begins Feb. 5.
