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Norris Chooses Mississippi State
Baseball
By JOSH BEAN -
Mobile Press-Register Sports Reporter
Fairhope,
AL (August 16,
2009) -- Daryl Norris made a big decision over the summer and an even bigger one
last week.
Norris made the mid-summer decision to play baseball in college — not
football — and he committed to Mississippi State's baseball program on
Friday. He confirmed his commitment to the Press-Register on Saturday.
"I've just grown up playing baseball, and that's what I've wanted to do
since I was little," Norris said. "I didn't start thinking about football
until my freshman or sophomore year. I thought about it for a while, and I
just think I have a better chance of going to the next level after college
(by) playing baseball."
Why Mississippi State?
"Just their atmosphere," he said. "Baseball at Mississippi State is not
second to any other sport. Just having that support and all those fans is
going to be nice."
Verbal commitments are non-binding. Norris can sign scholarship papers in
November, and he said doesn't expect a change of heart.
Norris enjoyed a breakout season last spring, winning the Press-Register
Player of the Year award and being named the Class 6A Player of the Year by
the Alabama Sports Writers Association. He hit .487 with 13 homers and 50
RBIs — both tops in the AHSAA Class 6A ranks.
Norris' 57 hits and 42 walks translated into an on-base percentage of
.649, meaning he reached base about two out of every three times he stepped
into the batter's box. On the mound, he finished 8-3 with a 1.25 ERA.
A 6-foot-1 right-hander, Norris' fastball has been clocked consistently
in the low 90s. In a late-season game last year, his fastball hit 96 mph.
He played first, second and third base last season. He said he expects to
play in the field and pitch at Mississippi State, but added his long-term
future appears to be as a pitcher.
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