HOUSTON - Since he was a sophomore at Dickinson High School, Mike Welch has dreamed of pulling on the red and white of the University of Houston.
It's something about representing this city. Having Houston across the chest. It's a bit of H-Town pride mixed in as well. Welch wanted to be a part of that.
On Tuesday night, Welch closed down his recruiting process and announced his verbal commitment to his dream school.
"I wanted to stay in my city, I loved the atmosphere of the school, the coaches and I have a lot of friends attending the school," Welch told VYPE about his commitment to UH. "I've wanted to go to UH since my sophomore year and it was a dream come true. This means a lot to me and my family and I will try to show out for the City of Houston."
Let's get it poppin‼️🔴⚪️ @Doug_Belk @UHCougarFB pic.twitter.com/pJUMD410w0
— C W ⁵ (@welchris_) January 28, 2020
Welch has played quarterback for the Gators the past two seasons, leading Dickinson to the second round of the playoffs in of those years as their starter.
In his two seasons, Welch passed for 4,438 yards, 42 touchdowns and just 11 interceptions. The dual-threat quarterback also rushed for another 1,463 yards and 39 touchdowns in 24 games played.
But for UH, which lost D'Eriq King to the University of Miami on a transfer, Welch will not be looked at to play quarterback. Instead, the senior said they have recruited him for the defensive side of the ball as a safety.
"I feel like it's going to take some time, but with a Safety coach like Coach Belk , he'll be a great mentor and will bring me up to speed in no time," Welch said about the transition. "I love the defensive side of the ball, so this will be a move that I'm extremely happy about."
