GAMECOCKBOY
09-06-2006, 12:44 PM
By CHIP TOWERS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 09/06/06
Columbia — If you happened to be in downtown Athens on Saturday night, you might have come across a couple of Atlas-looking young men strolling down the sidewalk. If so, a few thoughts probably crossed your mind.
"There go a couple of Georgia football players."
Rich Glickstein / The State
(ENLARGE)
South Carolina linebacker Jasper Brinkley (52) makes a tackle in the season opener against Mississippi State.
"Wait, am I seeing double?"
You would have been right on one of those counts. They were football players from Georgia. However, the two guys in question play football at South Carolina.
And no, you weren't seeing double. Jasper and Casper Brinkley are identical twins from Thomson who were indeed in Athens on Saturday. They were hanging out with their buddy and fellow Thomson High alum Danny Verdun Wheeler, a starting linebacker for the Bulldogs.
"Yeah, we were there," admitted Jasper, South Carolina's starting middle linebacker. "We didn't go to the game but we went out and hung out with some friends and some of their players. We've been going to Athens for years."
In fact, had things gone the way they wanted, "Jap" and "Cap," as they're known by friends and teammates, would be wearing silver britches this season. Both players envisioned playing for the Bulldogs when they finished at Georgia Military College last year.
However, Georgia offered only Jasper a scholarship. The Bulldogs were unable to take on the Brinkleys as a package deal, as the twins insisted. South Carolina, along with Arizona State and a few other Division I-A programs, was.
"They offered me and not my brother," Jasper said Tuesday. "We just wanted to stay together."
That's part of the story, but not the whole story, according to Georgia recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner.
"We recruited both kids," said Garner, who also serves as the Bulldogs' defensive line coach. "Athletically, trust me, we liked them both. But there's more to it than that. I don't want to put anybody down. All I can say is it's very, very difficult for us to get [junior college] kids into school. That had a lot to do with it."
By all indications, Georgia would be glad to have either player on its roster.
Jasper, who is 6 feet 2 and 250 pounds, was accepted at South Carolina last winter and was able to enroll in time for spring practice. He earned the starting job at middle linebacker by the "second or third practice," according to coach Steve Spurrier. Jasper managed 11 tackles, a sack and 1 1/2 tackles for loss in South Carolina's 15-0 win over Mississippi State last Thursday.
Casper (6-3, 250) didn't arrive on campus until the start of preseason camp but still managed to earn the starting job at defensive end. He had three tackles in Starkville while splitting time with Eric Norwood.
"We've been very pleased with both young men," Spurrier said. "They love to practice, they love football and their commitment level is super. Hopefully it will rub off on other guys on our team."
Bert Williams, the head coach and athletics director at GMC, took his entire team to see the Brinkleys play on the way to Ennis, Texas, for its game against Navarro College.
"I'm not surprised," Williams said of the twins' quick success. "Those guys were outstanding talents and great players for us. They've got the size and speed to play SEC ball."
Obviously, both players are extremely motivated to play the Bulldogs on Saturday night in Columbia.
"It's pretty much huge," Jasper said. "It's not that I have anything against Georgia. Now that we're here, it's about the SEC and they're the defending champions. We want to beat them."
For Casper, it's a little more personal.
"I never thought I'd be playing against Georgia," he said. "I thought I'd be playing for them. They could have had two good athletes. I want to prove they made a mistake. Hopefully, we'll make them sorry."
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 09/06/06
Columbia — If you happened to be in downtown Athens on Saturday night, you might have come across a couple of Atlas-looking young men strolling down the sidewalk. If so, a few thoughts probably crossed your mind.
"There go a couple of Georgia football players."
Rich Glickstein / The State
(ENLARGE)
South Carolina linebacker Jasper Brinkley (52) makes a tackle in the season opener against Mississippi State.
"Wait, am I seeing double?"
You would have been right on one of those counts. They were football players from Georgia. However, the two guys in question play football at South Carolina.
And no, you weren't seeing double. Jasper and Casper Brinkley are identical twins from Thomson who were indeed in Athens on Saturday. They were hanging out with their buddy and fellow Thomson High alum Danny Verdun Wheeler, a starting linebacker for the Bulldogs.
"Yeah, we were there," admitted Jasper, South Carolina's starting middle linebacker. "We didn't go to the game but we went out and hung out with some friends and some of their players. We've been going to Athens for years."
In fact, had things gone the way they wanted, "Jap" and "Cap," as they're known by friends and teammates, would be wearing silver britches this season. Both players envisioned playing for the Bulldogs when they finished at Georgia Military College last year.
However, Georgia offered only Jasper a scholarship. The Bulldogs were unable to take on the Brinkleys as a package deal, as the twins insisted. South Carolina, along with Arizona State and a few other Division I-A programs, was.
"They offered me and not my brother," Jasper said Tuesday. "We just wanted to stay together."
That's part of the story, but not the whole story, according to Georgia recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner.
"We recruited both kids," said Garner, who also serves as the Bulldogs' defensive line coach. "Athletically, trust me, we liked them both. But there's more to it than that. I don't want to put anybody down. All I can say is it's very, very difficult for us to get [junior college] kids into school. That had a lot to do with it."
By all indications, Georgia would be glad to have either player on its roster.
Jasper, who is 6 feet 2 and 250 pounds, was accepted at South Carolina last winter and was able to enroll in time for spring practice. He earned the starting job at middle linebacker by the "second or third practice," according to coach Steve Spurrier. Jasper managed 11 tackles, a sack and 1 1/2 tackles for loss in South Carolina's 15-0 win over Mississippi State last Thursday.
Casper (6-3, 250) didn't arrive on campus until the start of preseason camp but still managed to earn the starting job at defensive end. He had three tackles in Starkville while splitting time with Eric Norwood.
"We've been very pleased with both young men," Spurrier said. "They love to practice, they love football and their commitment level is super. Hopefully it will rub off on other guys on our team."
Bert Williams, the head coach and athletics director at GMC, took his entire team to see the Brinkleys play on the way to Ennis, Texas, for its game against Navarro College.
"I'm not surprised," Williams said of the twins' quick success. "Those guys were outstanding talents and great players for us. They've got the size and speed to play SEC ball."
Obviously, both players are extremely motivated to play the Bulldogs on Saturday night in Columbia.
"It's pretty much huge," Jasper said. "It's not that I have anything against Georgia. Now that we're here, it's about the SEC and they're the defending champions. We want to beat them."
For Casper, it's a little more personal.
"I never thought I'd be playing against Georgia," he said. "I thought I'd be playing for them. They could have had two good athletes. I want to prove they made a mistake. Hopefully, we'll make them sorry."