Breitenstein chooses

SoCon power
By Steve Behr
sports@wataugademocrat.com

In the end, the school that offered Watauga standout runner Eric Breitenstein a scholarship early in the recruiting process ended up getting him in the end.

Breitenstein, Watauga’s record-breaking running back, verbally committed to play football at Wofford over the weekend.

Breitenstein, who gained 2,625 yards last season and 2,297 this year, had a standing offer from Wofford since the beginning of this season. He also received strong interest from Navy, but instead chose Wofford.

He’ll be playing for a team that grabbed a share of the SoCon’s 2007 football championship. The Terriers grabbed the SoCon’s automatic bid into the playoffs and upset No. 2 seeded Montana in the first round of the playoffs. Wofford fell in the second round to Richmond.

The Terriers finished 9-4 overall, 5-2 in the conference. The Terriers averaged 309.6 yards per game on the ground this season, second to Georgia Southern in the league, and 427.5 yards per game.

They put up 34.2 points per game, which was good for fifth in the SoCon.

Breitenstein earned all-state honors from the Associated Press following his junior year as a defensive back. This year, he and teammate Casey Augustine were named all-state on the offensive side of the ball.

Breitenstein earned it as a running back and Augustine as a guard.

Breitenstein led the Pioneers to back-to-back appearances in the fourth round of the state 4-A playoffs. He was knocked out of the 2006 game, a 21-0 loss to West Charlotte. He played the entire game in 2007, but the Pioneers fell 36-14 to Mount Tabor.

Still, the Pioneers had not advanced that far into the playoffs since they won the 1978 state 3-A championship. Breitenstein was rewarded with a spot on the North Carolina Shrine Bowl roster.

Playing fullback, instead of his customary halfback position, he gained 19 yards on one carry in the Shrine Bowl, which was played in a rainstorm. Ironically, it was played at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg, S.C., Wofford’s home field.