(WRBL) - High School football players and coaches from across the Chattahoochee Valley come together for a media day hosted by News 3.
The keynote speaker for the event is Jeffery Whitaker Jr, an inspirational speaker and non-fiction writer.
Born in Macon, GA into a single-parent household with his mother, Gwendolyn Brown and older brother, Lorenzo Brown. Jeff is what you call a “community baby,” someone who everyone had to chip in and help after his mother suddenly became ill and soon after, passed away from cancer, at the age of 40.
Jeff gives special thanks to his Aunt and Uncle, Cynthia and Milton Joseph, for allowing him to call Warner Robins Home. He credits their act of kindness for where he is today. Due to forgiveness of past, he now has a great relationship with his father, Jeff Whitaker, Sr.
Jeff graduated from Warner Robins High School in Warner Robins, GA in 2010, where he was ranked as the No. 54 high school football player in the nation, the No. 5-ranked defensive tackle and No. 5 player in Georgia by Rivals.com. Jeff was named a PrepStar All-American his senior year and participated in both the 2010 U.S. Army All-American Bowl and the Georgia North-South All-Star game. As a senior, Jeff had 38 tackles including 11 tackles for loss and two sacks.
Jeff signed with Auburn University, where he was a part of the Undefeated 2010 SEC and BCS National Championship team, appearing in all 14 games as a freshman. In 2011, Jeff started 13 games at defensive tackle, recording 25 tackles, including 2 for loss with three QB hurries, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble. Injuries impacted his junior and senior years and he was forced to sit out the Tigers’ 2013 SEC Championship season but provided leadership and motivation for his teammates throughout the season, which ended with a heart-breaking, last-minute loss to Florida State in the BCS Championship game. In 2014, Jeff returned after a medical redshirt, starting the season opener against Arkansas before a back injury limited his final year on the Plains.
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