Lobdell keeping options open

While most recruits are busy making their decisions or narrowing things down, wide receiver Lavar Lobdell is still taking his time. What schools still have the attention of the Syracuse (N.Y.) Christian Brothers Academy athlete?

"I'm still pretty open to all the schools that have offered me," he said. "I have a top seven, which is basically USC, Miami, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, NC State, Pitt and Wisconsin. Then after those schools there are more that are on the outside looking in, like Syracuse and Maryland. But I'm not ruling them out just yet."

The 6-foot-3, 195-pound receiver has the speed to get downfield and the size to give smaller cornerbacks fits. On the season he caught 38 passes -- with 21 of them going for touchdowns, for 740 yards.

"I'll be at West Virginia all this weekend, and that's the only thing that's really finalized. I am sure I'm going to USC and Miami in January, but I don't know about dates or anything like that. I'd like to take all five of my visits, so my decision will probably come pretty late. It will go down to the wire."

Coaches from West Virginia and Syracuse have gone by Lobdell's home, and coaches from Virginia Tech and Pitt are slated to in the next week.