Eastside's Mangrum waiting on his opportunity
Payton Mangrum has put up big numbers and been one of the state of South Carolina's most consistent and productive wideouts during his career.
The senior's final campaign at Eastside High recently came to an end with a loss in the playoffs, and how he will turn his attention in full towards his next steps.
Mangrum spoke recently with PalmettoPreps.com to recap his season and to update what lies ahead.
Although Eastside's 2019 season came to an end quicker than expected, there were still some highlights. Mangrum finished the year with several 100-yard plus performances and the team beat Greer for the first time in years.
"The last time we beat Greer, I was like one year old," Mangrum said. "We lost to Greenville by a touchdown and took a two seed in the playoffs. In the first round, we played Westwood. We really didn't get stops during the game. I ad 3 touchdowns, 156 yards, all in the second half."
Mangrum's production at the high school level begs the question: why has no college football program stepped forward with an offer yet? He has the numbers and the grades. For Mangrum, he is staying patient and taking it all in stride.
"I try not to let it keep me down or anything. If nothing for football comes around, I know I'll be going to school somewhere. Some schools will ask for a transcript or a test score and they've already seen the film, then I won't hear from them again. I don't know, it's confusing. I don't really get what I'm doing wrong. I can't control what other people think about me."
People around the Palmetto State certainly are familiar with what Mangrum can do, so he just needs one chance to go take his talents to the next level. He broke down what he will be able to bring to a program in college.
"I'm a great learner. I learn the playbook easily. I run good routes and know how to create separation," he said. "I've had schools tell me I'm not fast enough to play there, but it's just about creating space. If you can create space for a quarterback to throw the ball, that's all that really matters. That's what I'm pretty good at. I have really good hands.
Mangrum had 55 catches as a senior on 70 targets, with only one drop in his final game.
The Upstate product. will wait until February before deciding on his next path in order to assess his options at that point. What is he hoping to find at the next level?
"A place that will trust me to play and feels like home, a good academic environment," he said. "The football environment needs to be good as well, to be around people that have the same goals as me. I want to play early."
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