Ohio DE sets first trip

Cleveland St. Ignatius defensive end/offensive tackle Reilly Lauer didn't go out the way he wanted to as a senior. Ignatius had so much promise this season, and plenty of big name Division I prospects. But in the end injuries and a tough schedule caught up to them.

"It was a tough end to a promising season," Lauer said.

"We were such a close knit group of guys that when (Notre Dame commitments) Rob Parris and John Ryan went down it really hit us pretty hard. It was really rough seeing those guys on the sidelines. With the type of schedule that we played this season you can't afford to let up and we struggled towards the end of the season to bring everything back together.

"It's hard not to look back on this season as a dissapointment because we had our hearts set on bringing home the state championship. But this year overall was an amazing experience, and I wouldn't trade what I shared with that group of guys for anything in the world. But now it's time for me to look forward and focus on getting into college and finding the right fit."

Speaking of the right fit, several schools are starting to move to the top of Lauer's list and his first visit has been set up.

"I'm taking it one day at a time," he said.

"I have a lot of great options at this point. I'm not ruling any schools out at this point, but my favorite schools are Vanderbilt, Virginia, Wisconsin, Florida Atlantic, Kansas and Miami of Ohio. I take my first visit to Vanderbilt on December 2."

Lauer finished his senior season with around 60 tackles, seven sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.