Early offers for 2016 DE

The offers have started early for freshman defensive end Rahshaun Smith. The freshman at Towson (Md.) Calvert Hall, known as "Shaq," has offers from Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Penn State, Youngstown State and picked up one from Rutgers yesterday.

"I really like Rutgers right now because I went up there for an unofficial visit last summer and I really liked the coaching staff and the atmosphere up there," said the 6-foot-3, 218-pound Smith. "I got to see some the players after practice and get to see some of the facilities with them and how their tutoring works.

"I have a few former teammates like Adrian Amos that go to school at Penn State," he said. "I really like how everyone there stuck together to work through the sanctions and had a really successful season. Hopefully the sanctions will not be a problem when I would get there.

"I haven't talked to the Maryland coaches in a while but I was down there a lot during the season," Smith said. "I've been in contact with Coach Washington at Boston College and he's also been talking to my coaches as well."

The recruiting process can be overwhelming of some athletes but Smith is taking it all in stride.

"I feel good," he said. "I feel really blessed to have these offers as a freshman. I feel like you did really well at the US Army national combine. And that's one of the driving forces behind me getting these offers. But now it's not the time to get big headed. I need to keep working and keep my eyes on my goal."

With all of this early attention, there is one school that has already caught Shaq's eye.

"I went up to Ohio State last year for camp but I wasn't able to participate because I was in eighth grade then," Smith said. "The coaching staff showed us a lot of love but there was an instant connection. I'm not going to say Ohio State felt like home but it felt good to be up there. I definitely want to go to a camp there and maybe take a few unofficial visits."

Smith has a good idea of what he is going to base his decision off of.

"The coaching staff and what kind of connection I have with them is going to play a major part in my recruitment," he said. "I want to study business management so I want a business good business school as well."

Smith was one of the top performers from the U.S. Army National Combine.