There's more to Escambia's Copeland than meets the eye: Achatz

There’s much more than meets the eye when it comes to Escambia High wide receiver Jacob Copeland.

Despite being known as one of the top high school football players in the nation, the 6-foot-1, 191-pound Pensacola News Journal Offensive Player of the Year is often quickly judged based on what he expresses on his social media accounts. But that does not paint the full picture of what he stands for.

Sure, he makes it clear that he loves the attention that comes with the recruiting process that has earned him 32 offers, including Florida, Alabama and Tennessee — the three schools he says he'll choose from on National Signing Day next Wednesday, when the nation will get to watch his decision on ESPN.

And he doesn't lack for confidence.

In the week of practice leading up to the Under Armour All-America game on Jan. 4, he stated publicly that he was "burning every defender that stepped in front of him."

More: Alabama head coach Nick Saban visits Escambia, Copeland and talks about talent in Pensacola

On social media, it's not uncommon for him to do a little self-glossing ... even though he almost always backs it up. He has great footwork and likes to talk about it. He has incredible speed and, hey, you probably knew this already, but if you didn't he'll let you know that you can't catch him.

If you just see this stuff, it's not hard to interpret this as some type of arrogance, and to assume that Copeland falls into that "me-first" category of athlete.

What we know now, though, for sure, is that's just not true at all. Because under the surface is an athlete — a young man — who continually shows there is much more to him than any of that stuff.

He's selfless. He loves his friends and teammates. And he's not unafraid to pump somebody else up when the attention is on him.

The most obvious way that Copeland has shown his selfless nature has been his dogged determination when it comes to using the attention he's received on the recruiting trail and trying to bring other area players into the spotlight.

A great example is West Florida High wide receiver Keyshawn Helton, a 5-9, 175-pound playmaker that is likely the most underrated receiver to come through this area since two-time NFL pro bowl selection Doug Baldwin of the Seattle Seahawks – a Gulf Breeze High graduate who went on to play for Stanford.

More: Recruiting Roundup: Helton has in-home visit with FSU, UCF offers Washington

Helton might be undersized by definition but his great skill, hands, speed, route running and leadership ability is something everyone in this area has known about for years. Watch him play once, and you know. He's .

However, he has primarily stayed under the radar in terms of recruitment. Friday, he was finally recognized and labeled with a three-star rating by 247Sports after having zero stars throughout his prep career.

Helton and Copeland have a tight relationship, and Copeland credited his friend for being worthy of multiple offers to Power Five conference schools even before the start of their senior seasons.

And when Copeland had the ear of the coaches from all over the country who recruited him over the last two years — especially lately — he finds a way to work his friend into the conversation.

It helps that Helton, once those same coaches cue up the film (assuming Copeland doesn't do it right then), is nothing short of a revelation. As a senior, the All-Area pick helped lead West Florida to the state semifinals for the first time in school history, with 59 catches for 793 yards and 14 touchdowns.

But, and this isn't a knock on these schools at all, his collegiate attention up until the last month or so has been primarily mid-major programs, with nine offers that include Coastal Carolina, Eastern Michigan and Kent State.

All that changed recently, and even if some of it has to do with schools now being able to look more at players who may have gone under the radar after early signing day in December whittled the field of prospects down ... it's been pretty cool to watch Copeland play hype man as schools like Tennessee and Florida State have started to come around on Helton.

Both schools have made in-home visits to Helton in the last month, and he'll take an official visit to Florida State this weekend.

Copeland doesn't just have Helton's back, though.

Thursday, Copeland was hanging out with teammate and sophomore linebacker Frank Peasant, another All-Area pick, when Copeland received a phone call from Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt.

Peasant, 6-1 and 190 pounds, led Escambia with 71 tackles, forced five turnovers, scored two defensive touchdowns in 2017. Several area coaches believe Peasant will be swimming in a pool of offers by the time he is a senior.

Pruitt was simply checking up on Copeland after visiting him at Escambia on Wednesday, but within the first minute of the conversation, Copeland asked Pruitt: “Why haven’t you offered Frank yet?”

Fair question.

And within an hour, Peasant announced on Twitter that he'd been offered by Tennessee — a mega-leap forward in the recruiting process.

Much like Helton’s situation, the attention is something that Peasant deserves but it seemingly took a nudge from Copeland to put the offer in motion.

And though Copeland will sign in less than one week and be at the university of his choice next fall, his actions and respect for Pensacola-area players indicate that his desire to help others reach their goals won’t ever fade.

Over the next several seasons when discussing Pensacola natives that are making big-time plays at the college level it’s highly likely that Copeland will be brought up.

He’s a standout athlete that has proven he cares about the success of others, not just himself.

And for that, we should all give him some credit.

Brian Achatz can be reached at bachatz@pnj.com or 850-435-8521.