Whether it?s running with the football or dribbling a basketball, it doesn?t matter: Hereford?s Lonnie Liggins is one of the best athletes in Baltimore County.
Hereford?s two-sport senior star returns to the football field after a leg injury kept the Bulls running back sidelined for the last third of the football season and several weeks of the basketball season. But that didn?t stop many Football Bowl Subdivision teams, including, Virginia, Army, Navy, Duke and Kansas State to recruit him ? especially after he ran 40 yards in 4.45 seconds at a recent combine.
“Duke likes me at defensive back, but I like the ball in my hands,” he said with a laugh. “But colleges want to see you playing both ways and that?s what I want to do, while helping out my team.”
And the 5-foot-8, 175-pounder will do just that this year, as Liggins will play running back and safety.
But he also will be the leader of a team that went 10-2 last year after falling to eventual-2A champion Edmondson in the North Region final, 37-17.
However Coach Steve Turnbaugh expects Liggins to fill the leadership void left by graduated running back Nick Narango?an All-State honorable mention?and lead the Bulls to their 11th postseason appearance in the past 12 seasons.
Liggins freshman and sophomore years ? including 2004 when Hereford lost 19-12 in the state title game to Potomac?he started at cornerback, but played running back exclusively last year when he ran for more than 700 yards and 12 touchdowns in seven games. Projected over a full season, those statistics could be exactly what Hereford needs to be competitive in its first year in the 4A/3A Baltimore County Division, Turnbaugh said.
“He is a top recruit and has been offered by several schools,” Turnbaugh said. “If that?s the level of player he is we expect him to be a playmaker and to do things an average kid can?t. If we are to be a successful team he will need to put up nice numbers.”
Athleticism runs in Liggins? family. His father, Ray Charles, played in the Oakland Athletics? minor league system as a pitcher in the early 1970s. Charles said that emphasizing grades and the importance of team goals has always been important to Liggins, who maintains a 3.5 grade-point average.
“My goals are our team goals,” Liggins said. “It?s going to be a challenge this season, but if we get off to a good start and win counties we will go into the playoffs.”
