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Recruiters' radar set for Class of 2009 | Philadelphia Inquirer | 02/07/2008

A lot of big-name coaches have been spotted recently at Cardinal O'Hara. Rutgers' Greg Schiano, Illinois' Ron Zook and Louisville's Steve Kragthorpe, to name a few, have visited Springfield, Delaware County.

"It's pretty cool," Savage said. "One of the nice things about it is that a lot of these coaches also get introduced to my teammates. I think we have a lot of hidden talent on this team. I think it would be great if it got noticed."

After Savage won MVP honors at the U.S. Army All-American Combine, he received handwritten congratulatory letters from coaches at Clemson and North Carolina.

At the start of this week, Savage, 17, had scholarship offers from Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisville, Miami, Michigan, North Carolina State, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Syracuse.

"I want to visit as many colleges as I can," Savage said. "I don't want to make a decision without first seeing what's out there."

The plan, said Cardinal O'Hara coach Danny Algeo, is to have a list trimmed to five favorites by Memorial Day. By mid-August, Savage could be ready to make a nonbinding oral commitment to one of his suitors.

Savage, who expects to visit Georgia in April, will lean on Algeo, parents Tom and Linda, and brother Bryan during the process.

Bryan Savage starred as a quarterback at the Haverford School. He accepted a scholarship from Wisconsin but did not stay long with the Badgers. "They had a coaching change, and things went downhill from there," Tom Savage said.

Once a top-flight recruit, Bryan Savage, now playing for Division I-AA Hofstra, gives his younger brother advice on how to best handle being a highly sought-after prospect.

Said Tom Savage: "One of the big things he tells me is take football out of the equation. He says to ask myself, 'If you couldn't play football here, would you still want to go to school here?' "