Baker preparing for fourth visit

Strongside defensive end / tight end prospect Ryan Baker from Indianapolis (Ind.) Bishop Chatard took his third official visit last weekend, a visit to Michigan, and is preparing to take his fourth this upcoming weekend. Rated the No. 13 strongside defensive end in the country by Rivals.com and the No. 2 prospect in Indiana he had a good experience in Ann Arbor and is close to sitting down and going over his options.

“It was pretty good, real good,” he commented on his trip. “I had a great time. I got all the information I needed.” He rated the visit a nine and was hosted by Jeremy Van Alstyne initially, then by freshmen tight end Adam Kraus later in the trip.

“I got to talk to Coach Sheridan a lot. I had wanted to talk to him, and I got the chance. I also talked to Jeremy a lot. He is a great guy.”

In addition to his visit to Michigan over the weekend, Baker has also visited Purdue (Oct. 3) and Oklahoma (Oct. 17). He will travel to Boston College this upcoming weekend, then plans to do some soul searching.

“I have been to three, and I will go to B.C. this weekend,” he said. “I plan to sit down afterwards and start thinking about where I want to go. I might take another official, but I am not sure yet.”

So when will he make a decision?

“When it comes to me,” he commented. “If it comes to me on December first I will decide then. If not I will wait.” He has offers from all of the schools which he has set visits, along with Stanford, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and all are still under consideration. He also camped at Notre Dame over the summer, and still has them on his list, but has yet to receive an offer.

A starter at both defensive end and tight end since his freshman season, the 6-foot-6, 225 pound athlete (4.8 second 40-yard dash) was an all-state selection last season, after recording 56 tackles (15 for loss) and seven sacks. He said he is more concerned about team play during the season, so he is unsure of his senior stats, but he is confident they are good in leading his team to a 9-1 record. Bishop Chatard will play in the second round of the state playoffs this upcoming weekend.

Baker will have no problems qualifying academically with a 3.5 GPA and a 900 on the SAT.