By By Marty Stamper/The Meridian Star
June 15, 2001
Cory Whisenant, Mr. Football in Alabama for the 1999 season and a participant in the spring drills at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba, was listed in fair condition Wednesday night after being beaten with a tire iron on a rural road outside Ashville, Ala., according to news reports
Whisenant, 20, and friend Jonathan Gregory, were outside Ashville when a truck pulled up behind them and flashed its headlights about 1 a.m. Gregory, who was driving Whisenant's car, stopped because he thought he knew the occupants of the truck, according to reports.
Three men, who Gregory did not know, got out of the truck and dragged Whisenant from his car, beating him with a tire iron. The blows broke bones in Whisenant's face and left a deep gash on his head, according to The Birmingham News.
When the attackers left, Gregory took Whisenant to Medical Center East's emergency room. Hospital officials called the Ashville Police Department.
Whisenant has undergone at least two operations and had a reconstructive plate inserted into his head.
Whisenant did not attend college in 2000 after signing a national letter-of-intent with the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
Whisenant averaged 232 rushing yards per game his senior year at Springville High School. He had 38 touchdowns and rushed for 2,997 yards, finishing just 22 yards short of the state's single season rushing record.
St. Clair County sheriff Terry Surles said his investigators were still trying to determine what caused the attack.