Photo by Kyle Parmley.
Clay-Chalkville's Caleb Toney in a game against Grissom on Nov. 7. Toney signed with Huntingdon College in Montgomery.
Nick Howard, Caleb Toney and Brandon Harper each graduated from Clay-Chalkville High School this spring, ready to take on the next chapter of their academic and athletic careers.
The trio was afforded the opportunity to play college basketball, something that only four players in the previous two decades of school history had been able to achieve.
Howard is heading to Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Toney is going to play at Huntingdon College in Montgomery and Harper will travel down to Lurleen B. Wallace Community College in Andalusia.
Specifically, Howard and Toney were honored at a signing ceremony April 20 in the Clay-Chalkville gym, with extended family, coaches and friends looking on.
Toney’s story is one of hard work and determination to catch the eye of college coaches.
“Caleb is one of those kids that if you would’ve told me four years ago was going to play college ball, I would probably have not believed you,” Clay-Chalkville head coach Jeremy Monceaux said. “But because of his commitment to doing things the right way, working hard and buying in, he was approached with a few opportunities and handled them the right way.”
Toney does not possess a flashy skillset or elite measurables, but the passion he plays with and the ability to do a variety of things on the court make him an attractive prospect.
Howard played just one season at Clay-Chalkville. As a homeschool student living in the school’s zone, Howard decided to play with the Cougars for his senior campaign.
“He could’ve chosen to finish up his senior year and do the homeschool thing, but he thought enough of us to finish his career with us, which says a lot about him and a lot about what we’re doing here,” Monceaux said.
Howard possesses an elite 3-point stroke and has shown signs of being able to make plays off the dribble as well.
Monceaux added, “For him to be able to reach that goal is amazing for him and his family, but it’s also just another example of when you have the right attitude, you’re a character person and you work hard and do things the right way, you can reach your potential and you can reach the goals you put in place.”
With the three players signing this spring, Monceaux’s program has now sent six players to play college basketball in his four years as head coach. Hasan Abdullah (Navy), Edward Leggett (Wallace State) and Jalen Jordan (Snead State) have also moved on to the next level in recent years.
“In an environment of high school sports where creating opportunities for young men is as important as winning games, for us to be able to have six guys in four years, it’s exciting for us and hopefully we can continue that,” Monceaux said.
