Denmark is on the go!

Hanahan football star Samuel Denmark is spending the week in the Upstate as part of the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas festivities.
He will practice every day in preparation for Saturday’s game, which will be played at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg. But the week is more than football. He will visit children in the Shriner’s Hospital, eat at the finest restaurants in town and build bonds with the other 43 top seniors in the state who will represent the Palmetto State in its annual battle against the top players from North Carolina.
“I’m on the go,” said the wide receiver, who is one of the biggest playmakers on the South Carolina squad. “I’m on the go all the time. I am busy.”
It won’t slow down anytime soon for Denmark, whose days as a high school student are numbered. Next month, he will enroll at Virginia Tech, an ACC school with a strong past football reputation and a new coach.
Denmark committed to the Hokies when Frank Beamer was coach. He resigned as coach as Fuentes was named as his replacement earlier this month.
Denmark remains 100 percent committed to Virginia Tech.
“He told me to be strong, remain committed,” said Denmark, a two-time all-state selection. “I have no reservations. I am enrolling early to ease the transition. I can adjust to college life, work on getting better. That way, I will be more comfortable when the season begins in September.”
Denmark’s decision to enroll early will give him a chance to participate in spring practice.
“I’ll get a jump, a head start,” he said. “I will get to know the playbook, get to know my teammates. Sure, I will miss high school. But this is a big step in my life.”
There will be a price to pay for his decision to matriculate ahead of schedule. He was the main force in Hanahan’s back-to-back state championships in track and field.
Last May, he proved to one of the top sprinters in the state when he swept the sprints at the state meet, winning the 100- and 200-meter dashes with respective times of 10.65 and 21.81. He also anchored the Hawks’ gold-medal 4x100-meter team.
The Hokies get the latest in an impressive list of Hanahan wide receivers who have gone on to play at the next level. He’s 6-1 and has an explosive first step to shed defenders. He probably will play the slot receiver for the Hokies and could get playing time early in his career because he is enrolling early.
“Of course I will miss running track,” Denmark said. “At the same time, this will give the other guys a chance to lead the track team. We will still have a lot of talent.”
But for now, Denmark is in the Upstate getting ready for one of the most prestigious high school all-star football game in the country.
“It’s quite an honor to be here,” he said. “It’s an honor to be one of the top 44 players in South Carolina. It’s something every football player dreams about.”