Hargrave called Gorham in February to get him to visit the school for a trial workout. Interested in his speed and agility in the football realm, the academy put him through such individual tests as the 40-yard dash, the shuttle run and the bench press. Gorham, 5’8”, 188 lbs., completed the shuttle in 4.3 seconds and pressed 225 pounds 15 times.

His strength and work ethic earned him a phone call from Hargrave two weeks ago, as the school expressed its interest in his becoming a corner on the pigskin squad.

Gorham said he likes the prospect of becoming a corner from the physical aspects. Playing ironman ball at Knightdale, he played various positions beyond being a running back, including roles on the return team and in the secondary, as a safety, on defense. But when it all boils down, he says he’d rather be on the offensive side of the field.

“I like to have that rock in my own hands,” Gorham said. He proved that time after time on breakaway dashes over the course of his senior year.

He said Hargrave coach David Tavenner seemed down to earth when he spoke with him on the phone and he’ll find out how true that is when he heads to Chatham, Virginia in mid-July.

Gorham plans to use Hargrave as a stepping stone to a chance to play ball at a Division-I school, where he hopes to major in sports or physical education.

“I’m going to miss playing football at Knightdale, and basketball,” he said.

“He’s going to miss playing sports, period,” Knightdale head football coach Kamelio Johnson said.

Gorham, who would’ve attended East Wake High School had Knightdale High not been established in 2004, said he felt the change that fell over the Knightdale program since Johnson and his crew took to the field for the first time last year played to his favor.

Now he’s thinking of getting looks from the big schools with established football programs. Some names mentioned included Louisville and East Carolina.

“It doesn’t matter how far away from home I have to go, I just want to get the football in my hands at a school like that,” Gorham said.

“I hope he maximizes his opportunities,” Johnson said.

Johnson points out that the clock on Gorham’s Division I eligibility won’t begin ticking during his stay at Hargrave, so he said it’s really a good opportunity for him to kick-start toward his goal.

“We feel he’ll be a very good representation of Knightdale High School football and the school itself and we wish him well,” Johnson said.

In the 10 games he played in the tailback position over the course of his sophomore and junior years as a Knight, Gorham amassed 1,540 rushing yards.

In the 11 games his senior year he rushed for a total of 1,135 yards, bringing No. 20’s 21-game career figure as running back to 2,675 yards — a 127-yard average per game as a Knight. He crossed the goal line eight times his senior year, and averaged 12.2 yards per catch, receiving the ball 14 times for 171 yards in his final season.