3 more offers for Dobbs

To put it mildly, the recruitment of Joshua Dobbs, a junior quarterback from Alpharetta (Ga.), is picking up.

"I had seven offers before today," Dobbs told Rivals.com on Wednesday night. "Then I got three more - Mississippi State, Syracuse and Maryland. We had our spring scrimmage and Syracuse was there, Mississippi State was there, Kentucky, Georgia, Vanderbilt, Nebraska and Wisconsin. I think there might be a couple more that are vclose [to offering]. A lot of them are very impressed with my skills and my performance. It's very promising stuff."

The 6-feet-3, 195-pound Dobbs passed for 3,100 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2011. He then competed in the Rising Seniors Georgia Junior Bowl, and was one of that game's top performers.

Since then, interest in Dobbs has swelled.

"It just means a lot," he said. "I'm thankful for all the opportunities I'll have to continue to play football at the next level."

According to Dobbs, he has not yet started to trim down his list of potential choices. He said he is strongly considering every school that has offered.

"I'll discus every one with my parents in order to make the best decision," Dobbs said. "I look to have my final decision this summer."

So far in 2012, Dobbs has visited Duke, Mississippi State, North Carolina and Wake Forest. Duke, one of the schools that has offered Dobbs, also has offered him in baseball.

"I enjoyed my time at all of those schools," he said.

This summer, Dobbs plans to visit "all the schools that placed an offer on the table that I haven't already visited." A schedule for those trips has not yet been mapped out.

Academics ultimately will play a major role in his decision. Dobbs carries a 4.0 GPA, and his course load includes all advanced placement and honors classes.

"They've always been an important part to my family," Dobbs said. "My parents taught me that you can't always play football. Someday you have to put the ball down, and you have to have academics to back you up."

Keith Niebuhr can be reached at Keithrivals@yahoo.com. You can follow him on Twitter @KeithRIVALS.