Dorbeck still set on USM as signing day approaches

St. Aloysius coach BJ Smithhart is a Southern Miss alum and admitted fan who tries to trek down to Hattiesburg a handful of times a year to watch the Golden Eagles play.

When it came time for St. Al’s most sought after recruit in a decade to make his decision on where he would attend college, Smithhart could have pushed hard for his alma mater to be at the top of the list.

But like a responsible coach should, he put his allegiances aside and let offensive lineman Drake Dorbeck handle his own business.

“I stayed out of it,” Smithhart said of Dorbeck’s college choice. “He knew I’m a Southern (Miss) fan. He’d pick with me, but I wanted him to decide to do what he thought was best for him.”

Even without his coach’s influence, the multi-sport St. Al star will be lining up in the black and gold.

Dorbeck committed to Southern Miss in the fall and will sign on the dotted line on Wednesday, national signing day. The 6-foot-6, 315-pound tackle will pledge his talent to a team that has been in rebuilding mode after finishing the 2011 season 12-2 and ranked No. 19 in the final BCS standings. The Golden Eagles followed that banner year with an 0-12 season and have slowly crept up the win column since current coach Todd Monken’s arrival in 2013.

The hope of regaining the rich tradition Southern Miss once built its foundation on became a motivating factor for Dorbeck, who hopes to make an immediate impact as he joins a recruiting class littered with junior college players.

“I went down there for the first game and I noticed all the tradition, all the things they do before (the game), and all the fan support still even when they’re down,” Dorbeck said. “There’s only one way they can go right now and it’s up.”

His advantageous size notwithstanding, Smithhart believes Dorbeck’s athleticism and persistence are what make him a premier FBS talent, and one that will immediately better the Southern Miss roster.

Dorbeck not only helped St. Al reach the Class 1A championship game this season, he’s also a standout baseball and basketball player.

“He listens to us and he really makes a conscious effort to be hard on himself and correct his mistakes and be coachable. I think that’s a big part of being a good player,” Smithhart said. “If he didn’t care for it or play hard, he would just be a guy. It wouldn’t matter. He wouldn’t get these opportunities. He’s a good ballplayer first and just happens to be a big guy second.”

The chance to assist USM’s rise out of the proverbial ashes coupled with the hospitality of the coaching staff drew Dorbeck to Southern Miss, which went 3-9 (1-7 in Conference USA) last season.

“All of them are friendly. All the players, I talked to some of the players, they like them. They get along with all the coaches right now,” Dorbeck said. “That had a big pull in my decision making, being able to be a part of something and build it back up.”

Dorbeck passed on offers from Louisiana Tech and Memphis to play at Southern Miss. He’ll be the first St. Al player to sign with an FBS program since wide receiver Dorian Williams went to Marshall in 2002.

“It’s exciting,” Dorbeck said. “You’ve waited all this time for it and you’re a week away from getting it all over with and being finished with the whole process.”

So now, when Smithhart slides into his seat at M.M. Roberts Stadium, he’ll see a familiar face among the sea of players.

“Am I excited he’s going there? Of course,” Smithhart said. “I’ve got season tickets so I’ll be able to watch him, but like I told him earlier, if he had went anywhere else we would have just had to buy season tickets there.”