National Signing Day: Buchholz’ Dylan Lloyd signs his way to the next level
BY CLIFF TUMETEL
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – It’s a day every high school athlete dreams of: putting pen to paper and taking their talents to the next stage in their young careers.
That’s exactly what happened at Buchholz High School today as offensive lineman Dylan Lloyd committed to play football at Florida Atlantic University.
The senior signed his National Letter of Intent today, and right now he can breathe a sigh of relief that the process is finally over.
“It was really spur of the moment. It was just yesterday that they offered me, and I just said, ‘Yup, I’m going to sign, I’m going to commit,’ and so it was kind of out of the blue. We’ve been talking for a little bit, but other than that, it was a really rapid process, and then I just decided I wanted to be committed to FAU,” Lloyd said.
He also added that Florida Atlantic University was a great choice to further his education while also staying close to home.
From playing for Buchholz to now playing for a Division 1 school, FAU, Lloyd knows it’s time to go to work and to push past his limits, but he is excited for it and has experience in that regard.
He’s learned a lot from the Buchholz program, but the one thing that he took away throughout his time as a Bobcat is the mental toughness he’s gained.
“When I came in, I didn’t even know what it’s like to be pushed to my limits, but throughout Coach Bell and especially Coach Whitt, I’ve really tested my limits, and I think it’s made me a better person,” Lloyd said.
Head coach Chuck Bell couldn’t be happier to hear that; he said that Buchholz is always expected to win and that puts a lot of pressure on his guys, so he can’t help but feel proud seeing Lloyd rise up to that challenge.
“At Buchholz we’ve always said, ‘Pressure is a privilege for us,’ and every game, people expect us to win,” Bell said. “Just the ability to deal with it all, I’m proud that he said that. I’m proud that he took that away, and that is a key component for our program to be able to challenge kids mentally.
Bell notes that FAU is going to have a great guy in Lloyd, as he’s played against some SEC linemen like Bobcats alumni Gavin Hill and Kendall Jackson in practice every day for the last three years.
“He’s played against the best, he’s one of the most athletic linemen in the state and just a good kid to boot. A scholar athlete all the way through, really can’t say enough about him,” Bell said.
Another Buchholz Bobcat, wide receiver Jordan Richardson, also signed his NLI today with Copiah-Lincoln but decided to do his ceremony in private.