Hayfield's Soper Commits To JMU
He believes his style is similar to the last James Madison quarterback.
“We all watched Ben DiNucci,” Hayfield (Alexandria) quarterback/athlete Chase Soper said. “He tore it up on the field and he was a great runner, so I’m looking to do the same.”
Soper announced his commitment to JMU via Twitter late Monday, becoming the 18th pledge in the class.
National Signing Day is Wednesday.
The 6-foot, 205-pounder, Soper, was a second-team All-Gunston District quarterback this past fall after earning Gunston District Offensive Player of the Year and first-team all-district honors as a junior in 2018. He was recruited as an athlete, which means he could play quarterback or somewhere else on the field.
“I’m definitely a dual-threat type,” Soper said of the way he plays quarterback. “I love to get out of the pocket and make plays when everything breaks down. I stay in the pocket when I need to, but I’m a mobile quarterback.”
Soper said he selected JMU’s offer after narrowing down his options to a final group that also included New Hampshire and Davidson. He had other offers from Cornell, Fordham, Valparaiso and VMI.
Across his junior and senior seasons, Soper racked up 4,784 offensive yards while setting Hayfield Records for career rushing yards by a quarterback, career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback and career passing completions.
“I had been in contact with the coaches for about a year,” Soper said. “And we just built a great relationship. I visited this past weekend and I really just connected with ‘em.”
Dukes defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman was Soper’s lead recruiter, according to Soper, who added JMU coach Curt Cignetti played a role in the process as well.
Cignetti also aided offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery in the pursuit of West Lafayette (Ind.) quarterback Kyle Adams, who signed in December after committing to the program in July. Adams was the first prep quarterback JMU inked since current redshirt junior Gage Moloney headlined the 2017 class. Redshirt senior Cole Johnson, Moloney, redshirt junior Patrick Bentley, redshirt sophomore Jake O'Donnell, redshirt freshman Jacob Knight and Adams are all quarterbacks slated to be on the 2020 roster.
“Most of the schools I was recruited by have four or five quarterbacks,” Soper said, “and so I think anywhere I went that there was going to be competition. I’m ready for it.”
Soper said he spoke with former Dukes linebacker Mike Cobbs, another Hayfield product, about his experiences at JMU. Cobbs was a senior on this past season’s team, but had spent five years at the school having played for former coaches Everett Withers and Mike Houston as well as Cignetti.
“And he had nothing but good things to say about the program,” Soper said.