New England Star Makes His Choice

Danvers (Ma.) St. John's Prep tight end/offensive tackle prospect Jonathan Loyte received the offer he dreamed of last week....and then decided to commit elsewhere.

"I really have mixed emotions about all of this, but as long as Jonathan is happy then I'm very happy. He thought about it a lot and lost plenty of sleep over this decision, but he committed to Vanderbilt today," said Loyte's father, Al. "He's been waiting for an offer from Boston College for more than a year now and finally got it, but he really fell in love with Vandy when he was down there."

Loyte, a 6-foot-6, 245-pounder who will play tight end at Vanderbilt, grew up a huge fan of Boston College as did his family. However, his unofficial visit to Vanderbilt a month back made the difference.

"They couldn't have been better about things," he said. "They really made it all about Jonathan even though there were about 40 other prospects there for the day. They showed that they wanted him and he loved the coaches, campus and everything there. They even told him he could play baseball there because they knew he loved it. They wanted him more than anyone else it seemed."

The Loytes left Vanderbilt to continue their tour of the south and we just about two hours from Duke when Jonathan asked to turn around.

"He wanted to go back to Vandy," his father said. "He loved it so much there, he wanted to see the city of Nashville and see the players work out. He hit it off with all the players so well. At that point it was down to Vanderbilt, Boston College and Maryland but I still thought BC was it."

Loyte worked out at BC last Wednesday and received a written offer just a day later as a tight end. However, Vanderbilt was still on his mind.

"Jonathan was really torn between the two schools and I think last week when he received the offer from BC, he was leaning towards committing right then," he said. "But he thought it over on the weekend and just really felt better about going off to Vanderbilt and perhaps being a big fish in a small pond and getting to see another area. I even made him sleep on it for a couple more days just so he'd be sure, but he told me he was more certain than ever."

For Al Loyte, it's all about Jonathan being comfortable.

"Like I said, I have mixed emotions because I really love the coaches at BC and I've been going to games there for years," he said. "Jonathan was really broken up about things when he told me, but I am so happy for him because he's found a place he can call home and really likes. We'll be there to support him and he has a plane ticket home ready for him anytime he needs it."

Loyte had offers from Vanderbilt, Boston College, Maryland, North Carolina, Syracuse, Rutgers and many others. As a junior, Loyte didn’t allow a sack on offense and made 72 tackles, registered seven sacks, forced four fumbles and recovered three more on defense. He'll likely play left tackle at St. John's his senior season, but most schools wanted him as a tight end because of his size and athletic ability.