Raving about his receivers. Spewing praise every which way What depth. What talent..

He threw out names like Ryan Millwood, Damien Bennett and O.J. Lennon.

The name Arnold Gaither was not mentioned.

Bennett admits there was a good reason for that.

Bennett didn’t know his name.

“I always just called him A.G.,” chuckled Bennett Tuesday. “I thought his name was Arthur.”

And then, Catawba ripped Mars Hill Saturday 34-6 in Shuford Stadium.

Gaither will live in obscurity no longer.

n

Gaither is a 6-foot-5 stringbean who burst onto the scene Saturday. Until going up against Mars Hill, he had caught exactly zero passes in two games. The 4,000 fans probably thought his name was Arthur too.

“A.G. had graded 100 percent in blocking in two games and hadn’t had a ball thrown to him,” marveled Bennett.

Considering both coach and player say Gaither is unselfish, the stat did not phase him.

“I wasn’t upset,” the redshirt sophomore said. “I just happened not to be in there when we did throw.”

Early in the second quarter Saturday, Gaither got his chance.

Catawba led 3-0, thanks to a Matt Gross field goal. The Indians had driven to the Mountain Lion 6 where quarterback Mitch Ellis called for a run.

“Mitch, being the quarterback he is, noticed a defensive back was right in my face,” said Gaither.

Ellis audibled, calling for a fade route to his tallest receiver. But at first glance, Bennett wasn’t thinking touchdown.

“I thought, ‘It’s underthrown. Dadgum, that ball is going to be picked off,”Bennett recalled.

“The next thing I know, I see these long arms come right over the guy and take the ball and lift it up.”

Gaither’s first reception of the season had gone for a score.

“Our receivers coach (Chip Hester) said when the ball’s in the air, go up and get it,” said Gaither.

He didn’t have to go up and get anything the next time Ellis threw his way.

Early in the third period and facing a third-and-15 from the Mars Hill 47, Gaither beat the cornerback by a couple of steps. Ellis led him perfectly. All he had to do was catch it.

“When the ball’s in the air, I don’t hear anything and I don’t see anything but the ball,” Gaither said. “I’m concentrating.

“I get chills all over my body,” he said of making the big catch. “I’m so happy for our offense as a unit.”

n

That last statement is what gives Bennett chills. Gaither is a Catawba family man, whether he catches balls or not. Success is definitely a team thing.

Bennett could see that attitude from the time Gaither’s prep coach at North Iredell, Charles Love (a Catawba graduate himself), began promoting him.

“Coach Love said he was a super young man and a hard worker,” said Bennett. “But he was a scrawny old thing. We called him pipe cleaner.”

Gaither, sitting across from Bennett, gave a sheepish grin and put his head in his hands. But he agreed.

“Ihit a growth spurt at the end of my freshman year,” Gaither said. “I came in about 6-foot-2, 180.”

Three inches and 20 pounds later, he is a name that Bennett will surely remember from now on, especially each and every time his three-year old son Jeb watches “Hey Arnold!” on Nickelodeon.

“His name is Arnold,” Bennett said when asked if he’d ever forget it again.

“But I’ll probably still call him A.G.”

n