Four-star Shazier down to five
Over the course of the year, Plantation, Fla. linebacker Ryan Shazier has landed a host of offers from around the country. Undoubtedly, Shazier's options include some of the most prestigious programs in the country but with his senior season only a couple of months away, Shazier has now narrowed his list to five.
"My top five is North Carolina, Florida, South Florida, Ohio State and UCLA," Shazier said on Friday night. "That's my top five and it's most likely my final five."
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Though the list is varied by conference and geography, the schools have a lot of commonalities as it relates to what Shazier is looking for in a program. He touched on each of the five choices.
"North Carolina has a great coaching staff," he said. "It's not too far from home but it's far enough that I can grow away from my family. It's a great education there and their broadcasting program is the best in the nation.
"With Florida, it's a program that's already highly ranked. They're kind of weak at linebacker and also they have a great coaching staff. With Florida and South Florida, my family can go to my games and my father can go to Fort Pierce and preach on Sundays. It's also the home state school.
"South Florida, you can drive there. The program is rising and I know a lot of friends there and they're going to be good. It's in a big media market and that can help me with my broadcasting.
"Ohio State is far from home, they have wonderful facilities and a great coaching staff. They're always at the head of the conference and they need linebackers.
"UCLA is also far from home so I can grow on my own. It's a program on the rise. The linebacking corps is weak and it's in a big media market which will help me out. It's a program that's going to go far and I can help them beat USC."
Shazier doesn't have a decision date set but he does hope to get some visits in this summer to help him make that decision when the time comes. He is shooting for either a late summer or mid-season decision.
Shazier is rated as the No. 9 outside linebacker in the country and a four-star recruit.