Cibolo Steele has been a high school since 2005 and has been an athletic power for the majority of its existence. The school's sports legacy continued with its latest signing day ceremony on Wednesday. Eight college-bound athletes were celebrated, including headliners Jaylon Jones (Texas A&M football signee), Daniel Jackson (Iowa State football signee) and Aja Holmes (TCU women's basketball signee).
"It means everything," Jones said of the signing day event. "It's a blessing to have all these people here. You know, friends, family and everything. Couldn't be more blessed to be in this situation right now."
Texas A&M football coaches would be wise to give Jones significant playing time while he's in College Station. He is ranked as Texas' number four football recruit for the Class of 2020.
"School, coaches, players, the culture, just everything about it," Jones said of the benefits of the opportunity. "I knew it was the place I needed to be."
One of Jones' high school teammates is Jackson, who is joining fellow San Antonio area football players Mason Chambers (Schertz Clemens) and Jordyn Morgan (San Antonio Cornerstone Christian School) at Iowa State.
"Really, they have a perfect culture up there [for us]," said Jackson. "So, [we want] to just add on to the amazing culture that they already have [and] try to win some games."
The other notable was Holmes, who excelled enough on the basketball court to earn a scholarship at TCU. Even though she's moving from South Texas to North Texas, she'll feel right at home in Fort Worth.
"For sure the coaching staff," Holmes said of what sold her on her future college program. "Everybody around me felt like family. Basketball on and off the court, they helped me become a better woman and a player, so I think that stuck out to me the most."
The trio definitely deserved the attention that they received during Wednesday's celebration, but you also cannot ignore the hard work and determination of the five other college signees on stage. Evelyn Bruner will swim at Texas A&M, Malia Viernes will play volleyball at Prairie View A&M, Damion Hart will play football at Abilene Christian University, Geneva Moreno will play volleyball at Otterbein University and Stephen Ware-Miller will play baseball at Texas College.
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