Deerfield’s Elic Ayomanor finds next home with Stanford commitment
DEERFIELD, Mass. (BVM) — When Deerfield Academy’s Elic Ayomanor first made the move to the United States, he was surprised by how different the game of football was from his time playing in Canada.
Ayomanor was a rare athlete coming up in his hometown of Medicine Hat, Alberta, and it would take some time for the future Big Green star to adjust his skillset to the game down South. The 6-foot-3, 212–pound wide receiver would get his first taste of action in the States at Peddie School in New Jersey where he repeated as a sophomore.
“At first it was very hard,” Ayomanor told CFC of the move to the United States. “When I went to New Jersey, the first year, we graduated 10 players that year and every single one of them went Division I. The level of competition is a lot higher and the demands are a lot higher.
“The technicalities of the game are much more stressed. For example, if you have a comeback at 15 yards and you run it at 16 yards, you are going to reap the repercussions of that. You have to be on your mark when you have to be there and get out on time. So, I would just say all the technicalities of the game are way more stressed because the game is just a lot faster and you have to be on time every play.”
After his opening season at Peddie School, Ayomanor made the switch to Deerfield Academy, where head coach Brian Barbato featured many other Canadian players.
Throughout his first season with Deerfield, which would be shortened due to the pandemic, Ayomanor would receive attention nationally, collecting offers from Pennsylvania, Princeton and Yale last September and Massachusetts and West Virginia last October.
The ability to play against tougher competition would be a plus for Ayomanor when it came to recruiting. It would also allow for a different mindset for the Big Green receiver.
“[I] would say, just being around a bunch of talented people and trying to make yourself seen out of that group of all very talented kids, just brings another level of competitiveness,” Ayomanor said. “I think it forces you to get better faster than you ever would before. And I think I love that aspect of it. I love competing and I love trying to show myself to be one of the best people in the room every time I’m in any circumstance.”
Throughout this past year, Ayomanor took official visits to Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and California before taking a closing visit to Stanford. The trip to Palo Alto would help Ayomanor with his final decision as the Deerfield senior announced his commitment to the Cardinal program.
Blessed but not satisfied. The grind continues… @StanfordFball @730scouting #GoStanford #CardClass22 pic.twitter.com/T3KkLk0oQk
— Elic Ayomanor (@elicayomanor) August 27, 2021
With his college decision now checked off, Ayomanor can focus on what should be a more regular fall campaign before he heads off to Stanford. Deerfield is scheduled to open its season with a matchup against Lawrenceville on Sept. 18 and will look to build off the shortened three game season from the prior year.
