Greg Payne and Todd Wofford became good friends while playing baseball together at Shorter College in the late 1980s, Payne from Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School and Wofford from Central High, and they shared a happy coincidence Saturday.
Their sons, now high school juniors who both play shortstop and pitch, committed to college baseball programs on the same day.
Tyler Payne, who plays for the McCallie team his dad coaches, committed to Lee University in Cleveland. Brody Wofford, who stars at Model High in Rome, pledged to Jacksonville State in the Ohio Valley Conference.
“It’s really cool,” Greg Payne said. “Todd and I have several connections and we’ve kept in touch through the years, and this is a proud day for both of us.”
He said Tyler had five scholarship offers already, and four were from NCAA Division I schools, but he never could shake his attraction to Lee’s Division II program.