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In-state schools stand out to Vero Beach lineman

Vero Beach, Fla. defensive lineman Cody Horstman has helped anchor a solid defense for the Indians for two years already and he is expected to continue his stellar play as a senior in 2010. This spring, several schools took notice of Horstman as he currently holds four offers.
"I have four offers right now," the 6-foot-3, 245-pound Horstman said. "I've been offered by FIU, Memphis, Youngstown State and Illinois State. FIU was my first one. It came right before spring ball. Memphis was next and then Illinois State. Youngstown State was the latest one. It came probably a month ago."
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Though Horstman says they all came as a shock to him, the first offer was particularly surprising.
"The FIU one caught me really off guard because, at the time, I had no offers," he said. "I got an email from coach (Alex) Mirabal and he was like, 'Cody, we're really excited about offering you a football scholarship. We think you have a great motor,' and all this other stuff. I didn't know what he was talking about.
"I went and talked to my coach and asked him what was going on. He was like, 'Oh I forgot to tell you, FIU offered you like two days ago.' I had no idea. It was a great feeling to get that first one, though. I ended up calling their coaches after school and they told me the good news and everything."
Horstman has been busy this summer, hitting up camps at several in-state programs.
"I went to an FIU one-day camp, an FAU one-day camp, UCF's one-day camp and then I went to USF's four-day camp," he said. "All the camps went really well. I felt I did really well at all of them.
"The FAU one, they said they really liked me. The d-line coach told me later that he wants to offer me but he has to go through all the other coaches. I also talked to my area recruiter and he said that they really liked me and that they want me and everything. I've heard just about everything you can hear but an actual offer from FAU.
"The UCF one, the coach said he really liked me and was glad I came and everything but that was about it. They didn't seem all that interested. The USF one, I went there and the coach said he absolutely loved me. He told me it helped that I came and they all go to see me in person. I haven't gotten an offer from them yet either, though."
While the Bulls have yet to offer, they made quite an impression on the big defender.
"That's the one that I'm really hoping I get," Horstman said of a South Florida offer. "I was talking to the d-tackle coach when I was there and he said they're only taking one d-tackle. That's the position they're recruiting me to play. If they were to offer me, I'd probably commit there."
In addition to USF, one other in-state school is also under heavy consideration by Horstman.
"USF is sticking out a lot, obviously," he said. "As of right now, with what offers I have, FIU is in the lead by far. If every school in the country offered me, I really like FIU a lot. I love everything about it. When I went down there for the one-day camp, they showed me the facilities and everything and I loved all of it. I definitely love FIU. The only one out of all the schools that could probably steal my heart away from them would be USF."
Though it looks like it will be hard to tear him away from his home state, Horstman says he is not in a rush to make a commitment.
"Right now, I'm just trying to wait and see what all happens," he said. "I want to make the right decision. With my mom and dad, I've been talking to them and they want me to make sure my heart is completely into whatever decision I make. They know how big of a decision it is. I can't really give a certain timeframe or anything. I do know, though, if USF offers I would probably jump on that one right away."
Though he played his junior year as a 230-pound defensive end, Horstman's future could be on the interior in college. It is something with which he is perfectly content.
"At my school, we have four good defensive linemen," he said. "Last year I stayed at right end most of the time. I'd switch to left end a little bit, too. This year I'm going to be playing right end, d-tackle and left end. I'm the biggest one on our defensive line. I played [tackle] a lot during the spring and a lot of the colleges want me to play there."
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