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Wildcats Football: Meet Commit Corner Antonio Parks

By Shereen Rayan

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Wildcats Football: Class of 2015 commit Antonio Parks, he is a very special young man who cannot wait to come to Tucson and show the nation what he is made of, he will be a long way from his home in Louisiana.

Antonio Parks visited the University of Arizona on January 16th 2015 after committing on July 4th, 2014 and a visit from Coach Richard Rodriguez and Calvin Magee in December.  Parks signed his letter of intent this February 4th and couldn’t have been happier with his decision.

Parks was recruited by Arizona Wildcats co-offensive coordinator Coach Calvin Magee as well as being visited by Coach Rich Rodriguez and Coach Jeff Casteel.  They coaches actively kept in touch with him  and his mother Melba Parks, and offered him very soon after watching him live which was comforting to Parks, “They called me later that night and offered me. The offer caught my attention because it was my first offer that came immediately after watching me live so that kind of struck me from the beginning.”

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The coaching staff has options for Parks, they could play him at Corner Back, possibly a hybrid Defensive Back or both, and they are planning on also having him return kick offs and punt returns which he does really well.  Parks also had offers from 15 different schools and interest from many more, but most notably Arizona State University, Purdue, Iowa State, Clemson, and Duke.

Parks was visited by a number of Arizona coaches including Rich Rod and they wanted him to compete early because he is physical and fast at his position. He is looking forward to making a “huge impact on special teams in the return game and locking down guys on D.”

Parks is also looking forward to getting in the classroom, he will be studying Education and plans to get his degree so he can be a coach or athletic director.

He is one of five of Coach Rich Rod’s commit’s coming from the state of Louisiana, a state whose motto is “Union, Justice, and Confidence”, which seems apropos in this case. Parks home town is in a suburb of New Orleans, Reserve, La although he had moved around from town to town growing up, he found a home at East Saint John High School after two years of middle school.  

After Antonio Parks was announced on Twitter Coach Rich Rod, Will Parks (S) No. 11, and Coach McGee through @ArizonaFball all posted Tweets.

According to Brad Allis on www.arizona.247sports.com, Parks Is “Undersized but strong defensive back with decent quickness..Loves to hit..has good instincts and reactions, so he can make some plays.” Since Arizona has lost a number of defensive backs last season, so they are happy to add a bunch for next season including No. 8 Antonio Parks.  Parks is aware that the number 8 is a lucky number in China and he feels that this number represents and describes him well.

Local reporter James Smith from www.NOLA.com says of Park, “He plays with a level of tenacity that rubs off on those around him…it’s apparent that Arizona is getting a good one that should fit very well in the Pac-12 Conference.”

Antonio Parks Selfie

Antonio Parks stands 5-10 3/4 and is weighing in at 181 pounds. He’s used to always being the smallest and shortest guy, but since he still can lock down a big 6’4″ / 6’5″ guys, his size is not a factor in his eyes.  He has worked very hard without the advent of personal “big time” DB coaching, carries himself well, and has a lot of talent.

Parks was rated as a three star recruit by the “experts.” He is hungry to prove all the rankings were wrong and he will be using this as his motivation to be the biggest and best he can be!  In the summer he is looking forward to getting to Tucson to work hard in practice, “forward” being the operative word, he does not want to ever look back.

Antonio loves to represent the U of A by rocking a lot of wildcat gear; he has a lot of different shirts and jackets and two hats. His favorite outfit is his all red shorts and his pull over jacket with the Arizona “A” in the center! Pre-game, Parks listens to Meek Mill sing “Dreams and Nightmares” and Lil’ Snupe sing “In the Air Tonight.”

On a personal note, Parks has overcome a number of major obstacles in life; his dad not in his life since he was four years old and was basically on his own with his mom, brothers and sister. He spent some early years with his grandfather who opened up the world to him and he began to “really notice life.” He says his family is “very excited!”

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Football has carried him through all the drama and he plays with a chip on his shoulder, he enjoys burning wide receivers. This has made him very a determined and goal oriented young man and athlete.  In his free time he hangs out with his friends Xavier Lewis (LSU) and Nigel Anderson (Tulane) and plays video games. He also jokes around a lot with his friend Daniel Ellis (Deciding.)

For him to be in this position about to play football for and attend the University of Arizona is HUGE deal for him, and now that I feel I know him better, it’s a huge deal for the Arizona Wildcats.

Antonio has a message for his future fans:

“I believe Coach Rodriguez era will go unforgotten for many years and I want to be a part of it and I also believe he has built a power house. The coaching staff has made their mark in the Pac-12 to be great for many many years and we are going to reach rose bowls and championships!

I just ask that they support me a lot through thick and thin and wear that number 8 jersey on Saturdays and BEARDOWN!”

You can follow Antonio on Twitter, his handle is @_Str8King.

Welcome Antonio Parks to Wildcat Nation, we are happy you decided on Arizona, and cannot wait to see you return punts and kick offs for touchdowns, and completely disrupt those wide receivers!

Here is Antonio Parks’s Highlight Reel:

Next: Louisiana's Kendal Franklin Celebrated becoming and Arizona Wildcat!

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