Ad Disclosure
Nate Craig-Myers and Jayvaughn Myers made it clear from the start that they were not a package deal.
They went in different directions, publicly and often. Jayvaughn made a verbal commitment to Florida early in the season while Nate stayed undecided for his senior year.
However, the brothers will be teammates again at Auburn this fall. It’s been two years since Nate and Jayvaughn shared a field together — at Pasco High School in Dade City, Fla., as sophomores.
Nate committed to Auburn before his junior season but he backed away from his commitment after a few months so he could take a better look at his options. And Nate had plenty of options with nearly every major program in the nation interested in his services before the start of his junior year.
Jayvaughn didn’t have the luxury of an early commitment as his recruitment took a slower path than Nate’s. His first offers came from South Florida and Rutgers. As more schools evaluated Jayvaughn’s athleticism, offers came more quickly.
They ended at the same destination.
Were Nate and Jayvaughn really a packaged deal? Only those in their inner circle know for sure. But one man close to both prospects said he would have been surprised if they didn’t go to the same school.
“They are very close off the field and they do a lot together,” said Ricky Sailor, who runs Tampa-based Unsigned Preps, a football development and mentoring program. “They are some good country boys that love the outdoors and they love football. They come from a big family and they just enjoy being around each other. That was going to be a tough bond to break.”
Football is a big part of life for Nate and Jayvaughn. Their older brother, Josh Johnson, went to school at Purdue and has played in the Canadian Football League for the past few years before signing a free agent contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars after the 2015 season.
Johnson might as well be called the information director of the family. When Nate had questions about football things, he went to Johnson. When Nate and Josh’s mother, Nicki Craig, had questions that pertained to the academic side of things, she went to Johnson.
The message Johnson sent to Nate most often was to choose to the school that was the best fit. He wasn’t alone in giving that advice.
“I wanted them to go to the place that felt like home, the place that made them happiest,” Sailor said. “Selfishly you always want kids with that sort of talent to stay in-state and do it for the in-state schools but I played at Texas Tech and even though it was far away from home it was the right choice. For Nate and Jayvaughn they made the right choice for them.”
Their uncle, Trey Dudley-Giles, currently plays football at UMass. He’s also part of the circle that keeps everyone’s head on straight. Salior describes both Nate’s mother and Jayvaughn’s mother Tara Penix as women that are “tough as nails.”
“It’s so important to have that family around you for support, people for you to lean on,” Nate Craig-Myers said shortly after announcing his intentions to sign with Auburn. “Especially when you are making tough decisions like this.”
Both Nate and Jayvaughn are fierce competitors. Jayvaughn in particular isn’t afraid of the pressure and has already said that he expects to be a freshman All-American next season. He carries himself publicly with some reservation, almost with a business-like approach to his craft.
Nate tends to smile more. If he sees a familiar face from the distance he’s quick to say hello. Both players can appear quiet on the surface but Sailor says that’s not necessarily the case.
“Oh those boys talk … believe me they talk a lot,” Sailor said. “Like with anyone you have to be around them a little bit because if you aren’t you’ll get the impression that they are quiet and reserved. But shoot, they are funny. They can be hilarious at times. Both have real good, friendly personalities.”
The competitive spirit, however, doesn’t yield toward each other, at least not in public.
“I’ve had Nate in Unsigned Preps for four years and Jayvaughn for three years and I’ve never really seen them battle on the field against each other,” Sailor said. “Now when they are playing football at home or basketball or whatever, I’m sure that’s when the competitive juices get flowing, but never out in public.”
Jayvaughn’s professional demeanor and his confidence probably come from the fact that recruiting wasn’t easy for him. Whereas Nate was projected to be a big-time prospect as a sophomore, Jayvaughn had to be patient and wait to be noticed by scouts.
“I think Jayvaughn’s recruitment was a little slower because he played on the defensive side of the ball and it’s a lot tougher to evaluate defensive backs,” Sailor said. “Nate always had the ball in his hands, you could see the athleticism, the hands, the power and the skills. When Jayvaughn began playing on both sides of the ball as a junior that’s when college coaches began to see the type of player that he was.”
Whether Nate and Jayvaughn intended to be together or not they will soon enroll together as Auburn Tigers — and will likely share a dorm room and many other experiences in the program.
“It’s exciting to think about. I’m exciting to be playing with him,” Nate said. “A lot of people didn’t think he’d get here but I know I believed in him. [National Signing Day] was a great day but sharing it with your brother makes it better.”
There’s no one that can project what will happen next. Those close to both Nate and Jayvaughn hope that both brothers succeed and can share a similar path. It’s a rare case for that the happen, however. The Pouncey brothers are an exception – two prospects that played together and both became first-round selections albeit in separate draft years.
Mackensie and Mackenro Alexander, twin brothers, chose separate destinations. Mackensie went on to Clemson where he became one of the top defensive backs in the nation and is expected to be an early-round draft selection next month. Mackenro signed with Auburn and was granted his release after a year to play junior college football at Northeast Mississippi. Mackenro signed with South Florida and will try to re-start his career with the Bulls.
The good thing about Nate and Jayvaughn is no matter what happens they will have each other to lean on when times get tough.
“You hate to think about one doing well and the other struggling with the game or injuries or whatever,” Sailor said. “But it’s so nice to have that support system right there next to you. It’s one thing to have friends and coaches that are there but when you look across and see your brother it’s a whole different story.”
Corey Long is a freelance writer for SaturdayDownSouth.com. Follow Corey on Twitter @CoreyLong.
