More interest for 2014 ATH

2014 athlete Thaddius Smith has pulled in two offers from the Big East to date. The Springfield (Pa.) Cardinal O'Hara is also receiving steady interest from a number of other top programs.

"I got my Rutgers offer and then I went to camp in July and got offered by Temple," he said. "Those are the two offers right now. I am getting a lot of interest from a lot of different schools. I've gotten a lot of stuff from Pittsburgh, Vanderbilt, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, Nebraska, West Virginia, but mainly Boston College and Syracuse."

Smith discussed what schools have been telling him so far.

"Most of the schools are saying once September 1st comes around I'll be hearing more from them since I'm a rising junior," he said. "Boston College, Syracuse and Penn State are the big ones. They all definitely like me a lot."

Meanwhile, Rutgers and Temple have already put offers out. Smith gave his take on both.

"Rutgers was the first offer and that means a lot," he said. "I went to the campus and it's like family there. It's really fun and it seems like the coaches are down-to-earth. Temple I didn't get to look at the campus. But, the downtown is close to home and I'll think twice about it."

Overall, there is one school that Smith hopes to receive more interest from.

"I like Ohio State," he said. "Corey Brown went there and I like him a lot. He says it's really nice up there and that I've got to try to get up there. I just got my first letter from them recently."

As he evaluates his options more, Smith mentioned what he is looking for.

"The one thing I want first is academics," he said. "Aside from that, I want to feel comfortable and at home. I just want the right fit."

Smith and Cardinal O'Hara open their season on September 1st.

"I want to help the team get a championship this year, that's the team goal," he said. "As for me, I just want to play more aggressive. I've got to get better with man coverage and be a playmaker on offense. I need to be a big target to help the team out."