Ledger-Enquirer’s 2017 Dandy Dozen squad announced

For Glenwood wide receiver Cameron O’Neil, Aug. 12 was the realization of something the star senior has been working toward for quite some time.

O’Neil recalled growing up in Smiths Station and seeing the older Panthers make The Ledger-Enquirer’s Dandy Dozen, the preseason list of the area’s top 12 players.

Now on the cusp of his final year as a Gator, O’Neil can check that goal off his list.

O’Neil was one of 12 players named to the 2017 Dandy Dozen squad. He is joined by Central’s Justyn Ross, Peter Parrish, Ray Thornton, and Jahlil Ryles; Northside’s Caleb Johnson and TaLon Gamble; Jordan’s Quinten Duke; Hardaway’s Marco Lee; Carver’s Andrew Ogletree; Spencer’s Davonte Webster and Smiths Station’s Deondrae Williams.

O’Neil joined several of his fellow Dandy Dozen members at Garrett-Harrison Stadium on Aug. 12 and shared his excitement about the honor. After spending plenty of time watching others stand in the spotlight, it’s now the 6-foot-3, 190-pound Pittsburgh commit’s time to shine.

“That’s something I always looked up to,” O’Neil said. “All the high school players would be in the Dandy Dozen, and it’s something I’ve always wanted to be in. To be in the Dandy Dozen, that means a lot.”

O’Neil wasn’t the only Dandy Dozen member to talk about the honor’s ability to motivate. Ogletree has had no shortage of Carver teammates make the preseason list. The defensive lineman, considered a three-star prospect by Rivals, said his selection made all the work going back to his first year as a Tiger worthwhile.

“Since I was a freshman, I’ve been seeing players like Mekhi Brown, Jawon Pass and all of them,” Ogletree said. “I looked up to them and said, ‘I’m going to be one of the Dandy Dozen one year.’ It means a lot. I work, and it was a very big goal in my life.”

There are a number of ways to dissect this year’s Dandy Dozen. Ten seniors and two juniors comprise the team, with the duo of Parrish and Thornton the only Class of 2019 players. There are seven defenders and five offensive players on the team, as well as seven players from Georgia and five from Alabama.

Of those five from Alabama, four play for Central. Ross, a five-star recruit considered the top player in Alabama, said his selection as well as his teammates’ shows their work with the Red Devils is paying off.

“It’s really cool,” Ross said. “It shows how good our program is doing, and for all four of us to be selected, it means a lot.”

The players’ chance to gather together and celebrate being part of the Dandy Dozen came on the brink of the 2017 season. Several were fresh off Friday night scrimmages, while others had just finished Saturday morning practices for their teams.

Before too long, the talk of preseason teams and projections will subside. And for players like Johnson, it will instead be time to take the field and show what all the offseason fuss was about.

“I’m hyped,” Johnson said. “It’s going to be fun.”

This story was originally published August 19, 2017 at 9:12 AM with the headline "Ledger-Enquirer’s 2017 Dandy Dozen squad announced."