CHATSWORTH, Ga. — A high school senior from Chatsworth walked into a classroom -- itching to meet a 3rd grader she had been writing letters to as part of a pen-pal program.
When she got to the area, she immediately noticed a curly-haired boy sitting among the other kids. The teacher called out the name of her pen pal, and the same boy raised his hand.
That boy was Ladd McConkey.
Now, at 31, Kimberley Crump fondly remembers her correspondences with the former University of Georgia football star and is rooting for him at what is one of the biggest times of his life — the NFL Draft.
Crump said that at her high school, they had to pick a career path, and she chose education. There was a project her teacher put together to work with a local elementary school and provide positive role models for the children, as well as sneaking in lessons on penmanship and how to write letters.
So, at the beginning of the school year, they filled out a questionnaire and matched them up. A mutual love for football created the partnership between Crump and McConkey. That's when they started to pass letters back and forth throughout the year.
The first letters were just to get to know each other, she said. They talked about family, friends and hobbies.
"He talked about football. We were both Tennessee fans at the time," she recalled. "He was so full of personality. He wrote like a boy, so sometimes it was hard to read, but it was really fun."
Years later, it looks like McConkey took his love for Tennessee to become a dominant Georgia Dawg. McConkey was a North Murray High School wide receiver before signing at the University of Georgia.
The wide receiver was a 2023 Wuerffel Trophy Winner and a 2023 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, according to Georgia's roster biography. His career highs at the SEC school included 7 receptions against Missouri in 2023, 135 receiving yards against Auburn in 2021 and against Florida in 2023. In addition, 2 receiving TD against TCU in 2023, a long reception of 60 yards against Auburn in 2021 and a long punt return of 39 yards against Georgia Tech in 2022.
When the football player announced in January that he was declaring for the 2024 Draft, he said that going to UGA was the best decision he had made in his life.
"Y'all believed in me when no one else did and continuously pushed me to become a better player and man," he said.
All these years later, Crump -- along with the Chatsworth community -- has been following and cheering on McConkey.
"Everybody is rooting for him. We're huge football fans in this house," she said. "We've been following him and rooting on all along."
Although she has watched his achievements as a Dawg over the years, she was reminded of just how talented McConkey is while watching TV.
"My husband watches ESPN religiously, and he had it on listening to a morning talk show, and they were talking about draft picks," she recalled. "One of the announcers was like, 'I project Ladd McConkey to be a standout.'"
She was in shock that someone she had met as a child was now an NFL draftee and a standout at that.
"I'm like, wait a second. Ladd? Ladd! What? Just hearing that was so awesome," Crump said.
She then dug out her box of high school memories and found the letters. When reminiscing, she said that while being in the education field, it's been amazing seeing young adults blossom but it's especially a highlight seeing Ladd go into the NFL.
"Just to be this little dot in his life. It's just so cool because it took a village to get him there. And I'm happy to be part of that," Crump said.
She added that Chatsworth is a small community where everyone loves McConkey and is supporting him on his journey to the NFL.
And in terms of what she wants to say to her pen pal all these years later? She's rooting him on during this next chapter of his life.
"Just go, Ladd. You're doing so good. You've made it. Go, Ladd," she exclaimed.