BRISTOL — Two years ago, Rayshon Andrews made a tough decision to transfer from Bristol Eastern to Avon Old Farms in hopes of further developing as a football player in a prestigious powerhouse boarding school.
The transfer was also in hopes of getting more eyes on the three-star defensive back as he prepared to play at the top collegiate level. The gamble ultimately paid off for Andrews as he received offers from Oregon State, Morgan State, Penn State, Bowling Green, Old Dominion, Akron, Rhode Island, Syracuse, UConn, UMass and Boston College.
This week, Andrews committed to Syracuse University after taking a successful visit to the Orange a few days prior. The 6’4 corner said he’s excited for the next level and chose Syracuse because of the coaching staff and the at-home feeling he felt after stepping on campus.
“I ultimately chose Syracuse because that’s where I felt most at home. The coaching staff every time I’ve gone up there was great to me and my family as well, which is very important,” Andrews said. “I felt I could develop the best, not just as a player, but also as a man.”
He said location wasn’t a factor in his recruiting process. He was prepared to go anywhere, but there is an added bonus of being closer to home. Andrews decision to choose Syracuse was in part to his belief that the Orange have one of the best defensive back coaches in the country.
Last season, amongst 130 FBS teams, Syracuse ranked 17th in red zone defense, 56th in scoring defense, 65th in total defense, 84th in total interceptions, but 15th in defensive touchdowns and 78th in passing yards allowed per game.
While Andrews’ presence in the Syracuse secondary will certainly help improve those numbers, playing corner at the Division I level wasn’t always the position he had imagined he’d play.
Andrews shined on both sides of the ball at Bristol Eastern. Whether it was taking a smoke screen to the house or returning a pick-six, Andrews was always all over the field, but once he made his decision to leave the Lancers he focused more on the defensive side of the ball.
At Avon Old Farms, he realized his size, length and speed made him a tough matchup against opposing receivers.
“Honestly going into Avon, it wasn’t really my intention to actually end up playing corner. I actually was going for receiver mainly, but I got there and we saw that I could be more than just a receiver and that I could be a really good corner,” Andrews said. “You don’t see a lot of 6’4 corners that can move. Going to corner was definitely the best move for me.”
Andrews added while football has been the focus at Avon Old Farms he’s learned just as many life lessons from the passionate coaching staff. He said leaving Bristol Eastern was difficult, but to achieve his goals it was the best choice.
“It was a hard decision, even though it’s not that far. Going to Avon was a decision more to achieve my goal of playing college football. I could have done it at Bristol Eastern, yes, but to do it at the level that I really wanted to do it going to Avon was the best thing for me,” Andrews said.
He said reclassing at Avon Old Farms allowed him to work on his craft, develop as a football player, but it also prepared him for college by being away from home and working on a schedule that has to do so much with football and school.
Andrews added the competition also made him become a better player.
“It’s a different level of competition for sure,” he said. “When you’re on a team where everyone is, if not just as good as you, better than you, you have to compete every time you jump on the field, especially when you’re going against other teams who have some of the best players in the country on their team.”
Going into his final season at Avon Old Farms, Andrews will be even more determined than he was before. He said his commitment to Syracuse doesn’t allow him to relax, it’s only the start of more work that needs to be done.
That work will be two-fold as he not only continues to develop as a defensive back, but he’ll also return to the offensive side of the ball to play wide receiver again.
Andrews credits his work ethic on the foundation that he created from the coaches, teachers and teammates at Bristol Eastern.
“Mentally, I know I had a lot of great teachers at Eastern. They were always on my side when I needed help with anything, whether it was on the field or off the field,” he said. “I had some really good coaches that I could call friends at Eastern…I also had a lot of really good teammates around me, whether they were good at football or not, they were good people. When you’re surrounded by a lot of good people who kind of have the same mindset of wanting to be better as a team, as a player, it definitely helps a lot when you’re chasing a dream.”
