Palmer Coming Down The Homestretch

In the Fall of 2008 NC State was looking forward to suiting up one of the fastest young men in the state of North Carolina. Tobais Palmer was coming off his third straight 1,500 yard (rushing) season at Northwood High School (Pittsboro, NC) and also a State title in the 100-yard dash. In his '07 Senior campaign Palmer accumulated 1,600 yards rushing and 25 touchdowns (he averaged 24 touchdowns a year over his final three years at Northwood). His blistering time of 10.58 seconds on the 100-yard dash sealed the deal for the 2-A State title. There were also rumors floating around of a 40-time that sounded straight silly. Bill Hall, his Northwood High School coach told Scout "his speed is his best attribute. Tobias isn't a 4.4 guy... try 4.2. He [had] been timed between 4.2 and 4.3 at some combines." Unfortunately NC State would have to wait to get this speedy young man on the field. Palmer was unable to qualify academically in 2008 and enrolled at Georgia Military College. It didn't matter where Palmer suited up last season, he was going to be very hard to catch no matter what uniform he put on. Last season with Georgia Military College, Palmer averaged a gaudy 7.2 yards per carry. Curious just how fast Palmer really is?

"When I was graduating high school I probably ran a 4.3 or a 4.4," Palmer told us. "Since I've been down here in Georgia I have gained a lot of flexibility. I'm running a 4.25 right now. When asked how he came to be so fast he said that he had always been blessed with speed. "The coaches where I'm at compare me to Reggie Bush," Palmer said. "I'm not that big, but I'm really fast."

Palmer says that he has learned from his experiences and that he has become a stronger person as a result. "Coming out of high school I thought I was good. I thought that my counselor had me taking the right classes. Obviously things didn't work out the way I planned," Palmer said. "Through my experience down here, It's made me work harder. The things that I hated in high school, I’m doing now. I’m learning from my mistakes."

Palmer is looking forward to enrolling at NC State in January so he can begin working out with the team. "Things are going good down here. I'm coming down the homestretch," Palmer said. "The NC State coaches call me all the time to make sure I'm up to par. Basically I’m going to be the little dog and learn from the guys there. Hopefully I’ll be a good fit and I’ll help the program.

Palmer isn't the only member of the Wolfpack family down in Georgia. Linebacker Roy Mangram was also supposed to join the Pack in '08, but also ended up down at the Georgia Military College with Palmer. "Roy and I have been roommates every since we arrived here," Palmer said. "We talk about when we are going to arrive at NC State and how things are going to be. We want to keep this brotherhood going because good friends are hard to come by."
The Pack is fortunate that Palmer chose to stay close to home. He also saw considerable interest from UNC, FSU, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Oregon and Hawaii. "Family was a big deal for me. I would rather my family be at my games instead of going way off," Palmer said. "It was also important to me that the program fit me and that my position was going to be open. NC State also had the major I'm looking for."

Palmer's godfather was influential in his new found interest in electrical engineering. "It hit me in March last year. My godfather is an electrical engineer and he was telling me about what he did," Palmer said. I was interested and wanted to learn more about it and he challenged me to go for it."Even though Palmer is ready to arrive in Raleigh in January, he still has high expectations for this season down in Georgia. "My personal goal is to be honest with myself and my teammates. I mean going hard and never take a break. I'm going to be a leader and not a follower," Palmer said. "The guys on the team look up to me as a scholarship guy. I'm going to play my hardest because you never know when your last game is going to be."