Collins sold on Southern Miss
Hinds CC offensive lineman Thomas Collins played junior college football in nearby Raymond, Miss., but the 6-foot-5, 320-pounder had never been to the Hub City. That changed this weekend when Collins, a Southern Miss commit since this fall, got his first taste of Southern Miss and the Hattiesburg community.
The two-star standout has known where he wants to go school for a while now, but he finally got to experience first-hand what truly drives recruits to the area.
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"It was my first time being in Hattiesburg so I didn't know what to expect when I got there," Collins told BigGoldNation. "It was much more than what I expected. The hospitality and the genuineness of the people, they actually care about you."
The visit took Collins around campus and into the community for a weekend of fun and exciting activities with team host Brandon Farmer, a sophomore offensive lineman for the Golden Eagles who showed Collins why his commitment is a good one. Like all great things, it came down to food.
"I'm still full now. I've never eaten like that," Collins said. "I went to Leatha's Bar-B-Que and the meat actually fell off the bone."
And if Leatha's wasn't enough for the former Hinds Community College star, his first steps inside M.M. Roberts Stadium surely sealed the deal.
"I had chills walking on there. They were playing the video of the past games, showing the history, and when you walk out the crowd was yelling on the screen and it just felt so loud," Collins said. "It felt like that's where I was supposed to be."
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