By Chris McCarthy/Editor
Etowah High senior Daulton Hyatt certainly made the most of his single year in Attalla.
The senior quarterback signed a national letter of intent with the University of Arkansas on Dec. 14.
“It’s definitely a great day for me,” said Hyatt, who will graduate from EHS later this month and enroll at Arkansas in January. “I’m ready to get there and start working with [offensive coordinator] Dan Enos. He really knows his stuff and I think I really fit his system. On my visit, I got to meet with [head] coach [Brett] Bielema and the other coaches on the staff, and I really liked their personalities and how they go about their business. It seems like they really care about their players, and that means a lot to me.”
Hyatt, who committed to the Razorbacks in March, will graduate EHS later this month in order to enroll at Arkansas in January. The Razorbacks went 7-5 this past season and finished fifth in the SEC West Division. Arkansas will face Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl on Dec. 29.
“I think that [early enrollment] is beneficial to me as a quarterback because I get to learn the playbook and get started in the weight room and just get to be around everybody.”
Hyatt, who fielded scholarship offers from 17 FBS schools, is a member of the ESPN top 300 Players. The network ranked him as a four-star recruit and as the ninth-rated pro-style quarterback in the nation. 247Sports and rivals.com both ranks Hyatt as a three-star recruit. He participated in the Alabama/Mississippi All-Star Game this past Saturday (Dec. 10) in Montgomery.
This past season, Hyatt was 121 of 184 in passing for 2,240 yards, 25 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He finished with a 66 percent completion rate and a 135.9 quarterback rating. Hyatt also rushed for 419 yards and five TDS on 74 carries. He helped the Blue Devils go 9-3, second in Class 5A, Region 7 and make it to the second round of the state playoffs.
Combined with his junior, sophomore and freshman seasons at Arab High, Hyatt ended his prep career with 6,216 passing yards and 50 touchdowns along with 1,854 yards and 16 scores on the ground.
Hyatt – page 2B
“I want to thank all my coaches and teachers for helping me graduate early, and all my teammates for accepting me,” said Hyatt. “Since my first day here, the rest of the team accepted me and made me feel a part of the team.”
Etowah head football coach Drew Noles noted that Hyatt is the first player under Noles who signed a scholarship with a SEC program right out of high school.
“Daulton had a great year for us and he did a great job of fitting in,” said Noles. “Even though he’s 6-4, Daulton’s a great athlete and can run the football. He’s a competitor who has the ability to make plays when there’s nothing there. Once he got settled in and learned everything that we were trying to do, we were really able to expand offensively. But more importantly, our kids accepted him.”
Noles said that the key element Hyatt brought to the program was a selfless attitude.
“If Daulton would have came in with a prima donna attitude because he was a DI prospect, it might no have worked. But he cane in with a humble attitude and was willing to learn and be one of the guys. He’s a great person as well as a great football player.”