Austin Bohannon, surrounded by family and coaches, signs with Shelton State to play baseball.

RHS’ Austin Bohannon made a decision for his future last week and signed to play baseball for Shelton State at Tuscaloosa.

Bohannon, pitcher and first baseman for the Golden Tigers, sees playing for Shelton State and Coach Bobby Sprowl as a good stepping stone for a future SEC athletic career.

“He’s a good coach, and he’s known for sending a lot of player to really good schools,” Bohannon said.

RHS Coach Chris Heaps said Bohannon shows a lot of promise.

“We’re real excited for Austin. Austin has a lot of potential,” Heaps said. “He’s been a very good pitcher for us.”

Bohannon is six and one on the year with a .6 ERA. “He’s only averaging about 3-4 hits per seven innings, so he’s been a very good pitcher for us this year,” Heaps said. “He’s got a lot of big games ahead of him. We’ll see what he’s made of.”

After visiting Shelton State for a weekend showcase, Bohannon said he was pretty well sold.

“It’s really nice. It’s different than any other junior college I’ve even been to,” he said. He said he was excited to continue playing baseball – it’s a sport he loves and has played his whole life.

A high achiever with a good ACT score and grade point average, Bohannon is undecided on his major but is considering political science and possibly law school.