Offers arrive for Shortridge

Loxahatchee (Fla.) Seminole Ridge defensive tackle Kyle Shortridge went from waiting for his first offer to counting four offers to his name in the matter of just a few days.

"All my offers came in last week," Shortridge said.

The 6-foot-2, 273-pound defensive tackle was offered by Indiana, Louisville, South Florida, and Western Kentucky last week. Shortridge has been in communication with the head coach or an assistant coach at each school.

"I have spoken with a coach at each school," Shortridge said. "I called all of the coaches after they offered me."

The first school to step forth with an offer was Charlie Strong's Louisville Cardinals.

"It was a real good feeling. I was excited," Shortridge says of his first offer. "When I was talking to Louisville, they were telling me some good stuff," Shortridge said. "They said that I would have a good chance to start and that I could get a lot of early playing time. I talked with Coach (Clint) Hurtt.

"I plan to visit Louisville," Shortridge added. "I don't know when, but I know I want to get there."

In the past month Shortridge has taken just one visit.

"I took a visit to USF," Shortridge said. "I talked to Coach (Kevin) Patrick. He was just telling me that they were interested in me and that they liked my film."

Shortridge is planning to visit Florida International and Miami this weekend. He says that both the Golden Panthers and the Hurricanes are showing interest. Other schools he mentioned as showing interest include Illinois, Tennessee, and West Virginia.

At this stage of the process, Shortridge doesn't have a leader.

"All the schools that have offered me like USF, Indiana, and Louisville stand out to me," Shortridge said. "They are all at the same level."