Desmond Tisdol is a starting inside linebacker at Wilcox County High School in Rochelle, GA. The 6-foot, 215-pound senior is currently the 13th ranked linebacker in the country and 24th overall player in the state, according to the 247Sports Composite. Tisdol is being heavily recruited and he recently announced his top seven schools: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, Georgia Southern, Nebraska and Troy.

Wilcox County head coach Rob Stowe told us that Des’s recruiting process has been hectic, and there were days when four or five coaches would be at the school at the same time. Coach Stowe also said he wants Des to be more of a true linebacker this season, because that’s what he’s being recruited as, and his goal is to help him get all of his reads right and play as fast as he can.

Tisdol and the Wilcox County Patriots look to get back to the playoffs this year after falling to Trion in the first round last November.

We caught up with the defensive standout to ask him these five questions.

What advice would you give to freshman athlete you? “Don’t ever give up on your dreams and take everything serious because it will be over real fast.”

How has your recruiting experience been? “It’s been kind of up and down. I just want to feel like I’m at home with a school and get a lot of energy from the coaches.”

Who is your biggest role model? “Bug Howard (Denver Broncos TE) because I grew up watching him play and when he went off to the NFL I stayed right beside him. I’ve been looking up to him since he was in high school.”

What is something on your high school bucket list? “I want to ride a bull because it looks like it’s fun, and I think it will be really exciting knowing I did it.”

What is it like to play under the lights at Wilcox County High School? “I get real serious under the lights and it’s kind of a dream come true because I didn’t know that I would ever be playing at Donnie Clack Stadium.”

Follow Tisdol on Twitter at @Des_Tisdol