Tucson CitizenTucson Citizen

Rutgers transfer quarterback Tom Savage sets recruiting visit to Arizona

Tom Savage threw for 2,211 yards and 14 touchdowns as a freshman in 2009.
Photo by David Butler II-US PRESSWIRE.

Former Rutgers starting quarterback Tom Savage will take a recruiting trip to Arizona later this month, he told TucsonCitizen.com on Wednesday night.

“As of right now, that’s my only visit,” said Savage, who said he talked to quarterbacks coach Frank Scelfo on Tuesday night. “I think I will visit another school soon.”

Savage decided to transfer after last season and he left school for this semester while he chooses a new destination.

Rutgers coach Greg Schiano originally gave Savage a conditional release, barring him from contacting certain schools, including Miami and Florida. Schiano lifted those restrictions Monday after meeting further with Savage and “understanding his reasons better.”

Savage last week told TucsonCitizen.com he had interest in Arizona, no matter what schools he would be allowed to contact. That appears to be true.

As for Miami and/or Florida, he said, “I just wanted to open up my options a little bit more.”

He said he will arrive for his recruiting trip to Tucson on Feb. 15.

“It’s just small talk right now,” he said of his conversations with the coaching staff. “I’ve looked into their quarterback situation and all that, and I know there will be competition wherever I go. I just need to go out there and see if I feel comfortable.”

Whatever he decides, Savage (6-5, 226) said he would try to arrive at his new destination early in the summer. He would have to sit out the 2011 season if he transfers within the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision.

“Right now, I’m just trying to work out and try to be physically ready,” he said.

“I don’t want to drag this process out. I want to know where I’m going and know what I have to do to prepare.”

Savage was a Freshman All-American in 2009, becoming a starter in the second game and being voted the team’s Offensive MVP for the season. He was ineffective early in the 2010 season, suffered a hand injury and then didn’t play much the rest of the way.

Out of high school, Savage was rated the 125th-best overall high school prospect and the 10th-best quarterback in the country by ESPN.com. Rivals.com rated Savage, from Springfield, Pa., outside of Philadelphia, as a four-star prospect and No. 131 overall nationally.

With a trio of senior quarterbacks for the 2011 season, Arizona could very well lack any experience at the position in 2012, making someone like Savage an attractive recruit.

Search site | Terms of service