Hey, maybe the pro will reach out first, seeing as how this Najee Goode is also earning some fame.
The 5-10, 165-pound senior is a star cornerback for Imhotep Charter, which has stormed to a 13-0 record, best in Public League history, and with three more wins would become the first 16-0 squad in city-leagues annals.
The Panthers' next game, a Class AA quarterfinal vs. Pen Argyl, will take place Saturday, 1 p.m., at Northern Lehigh High, in Slatington (roughly 20 miles north of Allentown).
Also this weekend, the two still-alive Catholic League squads will compete in quarterfinals. Friday, 7 o'clock at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, Archbishop Wood will meet Interboro in AAA. Saturday, 1 o'clock at Northeast, La Salle will bang AAAA heads with Parkland.
Once Imhotep's season is over, Goode will finalize arrangements for an official visit to Ball State, and almost certainly do so with Towson, as well. Schools such as Albany, Stony Brook, Old Dominion, Toledo and UMass are also routinely in pursuit.
It's good to be Najee Goode. It's also not bad to have a state-title history, though Goode's, admittedly, is not abundant.
In 2010, before he left the school for financial reasons, Najee did his footballing for West Catholic. His first varsity touch that season, a simple dive against Conwell-Egan that he bounced to the outside, yielded a rushing touchdown of 33 yards.
"I always tell people that story," he said, smiling.
And Goode, a distant relative of ex-Mayor Wilson Goode, was in uniform Dec. 18 in Hershey as the Burrs spanked South Fayette, 50-14, to capture Pennsy's AA crown.
"I got on the field for special teams that day," he said. "And I was out there with the [second-string] offense as the game was winding down. We had the ball on maybe their 20-yard line and I thought I was going to get a carry. If so, I was gonna try to score. But time ran out.
"It was so great to be a part of that team. We dominated people that season, and we followed it up by finishing strong."
Each Burr received a ring.
"When I was still going to West, I wore it to school all the time," Goode said. "Now it stays on top of my dresser. Hopefully, I'll get another one, so I can wear it around Imhotep."
While steamrolling to 13 victories, the Panthers have built an outrageous 584-66 scoring advantage. Few of the points allowed have come against the first string.
Goode, loved by first-year coach Albie Crosby, a former West assistant, for his ability to not only cover receivers but come up hard to play the run, is joined in the secondary by cornerback Aramon Piedra and safeties DeAndre Scott (a junior with an already-high profile) and Nyeem Thrones. Qaudeem Starks performs nickel back duties.
"I love reading the quarterback, then jumping the route to try for interceptions," Goode said. "I'm usually on the left side, but if the other team has a top receiver, I'll follow him around. Looks like [Pen Argyl] has a couple decent guys, but I don't have a specific assignment yet."
In college, Goode, who lives on 24th near Diamond, in North Philly, intends to major in business or engineering. All he wants for now is to have a wonderful Saturday.
"So far," he said, "we'll have three buses of students and parents going up to the game. This place has a great environment. Everyone loves the team and the players. It'll be nice to have support so far from Philly."
High school coverage online at www.philly.com/rally
