Rivals100 junior takes ND unofficial

2007 Rivals100 tight end Rob Gronkowski out of Williamsville (N.Y.) Williamsville North took an unofficial visit to South Bend last weekend. The 6-foot-6, 232-pounder enjoyed taking in the Irish's 34-10 victory over Syracuse.

"It was a pretty good game," he said. "I really liked the student section as they did push-ups and the band there was cool. I enjoyed watching the game, it was exciting and they scored a lot. I know they have one of the top tight ends in the country and a good tight end coach and on the field they looked really good.

"I also got to walk around the campus and it's nice. The locker rooms are high quality and the campus is beautiful and clean. I talked to the quarterback coach a little bit and he told me he liked my film a lot and said to keep in touch."

Currently, Maryland and Arizona are the only teams to have offered the tight end prospect.

"They are my top two choices," he said. "I like Maryland because they're sponsored by Under Armor which is a nice feature, they've got a good field, faculty and they're not too far away. Also my brothers go there. I'd probably say they are leading.

"I also have been looking at Arizona a lot too. I like the weather, coaches and they have a nice stadium."

Gronkowski and Williamsville North finished the season three weeks ago.

"I ended with 36 catches for 648 yards and seven touchdowns. I also had 73 tackles, five for loss and six sacks," he said. "I saw a big improvement in my play from last year. My catching ability is a lot better. I also caught a lot more passes and my blocking really improved too."