Recruiting goes national for Hannah

Every year there are at least a couple of prospects from North Carolina that are courted by schools all over the nation. One of this years is tight end/defensive end Jonathan Hannah, a rising senior who's hearing from some of college football's heavyweights.

The 6-foot-4, 265-pound prospect from Hope Mills (N.C.) South View runs the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds and is one of the top "big athletes" in the Atlantic East region.

"I got back from Oklahoma the other day and loved it," said Hannah. "You can tell they take their football seriously over there. Their coaches are looked at as some of the best in the game and I'm definitely interested in OU."

The local schools are sure to have some serious competition with the Sooners involved. Do the schools in the ACC region still hold an advantage?

"That's tough to say," he said. "I've liked NC State for a long time, UNC is recruiting me hard and Virginia Tech has left a good impression on me. It's going to be a really tough decision that I'm nowhere near ready to make."

Hannah has now camped at Oklahoma, Penn State, Clemson and NC State. He's mentioned that the visits to Oklahoma and Penn State were the most impressive trips he's taken, but he plans on waiting a while to make his decision. What will be the biggest factors in his decision?

"I'm going to look at the total package that each school has to offer," he said. "I want to play at a quality football program where there's a big emphasis on the game, I want to play for a strong coaching staff that will help me develop, and I want to really experience college. The atmosphere will be important."

Hannah is now up to 17 offers and still plans on taking more visits this summer.