| Subject: Sounds like a terrific prospect. Hopefully he’ll want to continue receiving a Jesuit education, here at Fordham. With his GPA and SAT scores, he could earn a substantial merit scholarship here. **If you don’t want to register, click on this message to read the article inside.** |
Author:
ramMan
|
[
Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
]
Date Posted: 07:49:45 12/03/04 Fri
In reply to:
JoltinJoe
's message, "Here's another offensive lineman we are recruiting: Dan Voss, a 6-4, 280 pound tackle from St. Joes Prep in Philadelphia. Has 5.02 speed in the 40. Has a 3.4 GPA and 1370 SATs. Temple and Marshall are looking at him; also Penn, Princeton, Columbia & Cornell. Mentions that he has an interest in Army and Navy. Click Here for Article (Registration Required)" on 06:57:54 12/03/04 Fri
Offensively, Prep's Voss toes the line
By Ted Silary
Dan Voss figures the moment occurred shortly after the end of the 2001 football season.
After being quite an inconsequential wideout (no receptions; action limited to half a season by a back injury) for St. Joseph's Prep's freshman team, Voss was pulled aside by varsity coach Gil Brooks.
"Kid, we're gonna make you a lineman," was the pronouncement.
The reaction?
"It wasn't devastation," Voss said, laughing. "I could run a little, but I didn't have to be a receiver. I didn't need to be greedy. It's kind of cool to clear the way for guys and help them get to the zone.
"Mostly I was curious. I wanted to see what would happen. It was, 'I wonder how this will all work out?' "
In time? Tremendously.
Voss, a 6-4, 280-pound senior tackle, is the most prominent offensive lineman for a powerhouse program that tomorrow, at approximately 7:30 p.m. against Cardinal O'Hara at Villanova Stadium, will attempt to win a fourth consecutive Catholic Red championship.
The Blue title will be decided at 4 when West Catholic meets Archbishop Wood.
Voss is something of a Danny Come Lately; this is his first year as a starter.
He's also a Danny Goin' Places. Marshall, Temple and Fordham are in constant contact, as are Ivy League schools Penn, Princeton, Columbia and Cornell because he sports a 3.4 grade-point average and 1,370 SAT score.
Brooks said Voss, the leading votegetter among offensive linemen on the coaches' All-Catholic team, is equally adept at run- and pass-blocking and has been timed at 5.02 seconds for 40 yards.
"From experience I can tell you that by the time the recruiting process ends in late January, early February, he will have a lot of things going on for himself," Brooks said. "He has had a monster year.
"I told all the colleges in the spring that Dan was about to explode on the scene. I could see it in his practice reps toward the end of his junior year and I could see it in his training from the winter through the spring. Frankly he is as good as anybody we saw all year."
Voss' family goes back a ways with The Prep. His dad, Steve, was a tight end and linebacker for the '71 Hawks and then played briefly at West Chester. His cousin, Chris Short, was a starting lineman for the '99 Hawks.
"I used to go watch a lot of Prep's games," Voss said. "While my cousin was playing and then even the year after he left. I was there for that 2000 game when they got upset by O'Hara [after entering unbeaten]. I think I always kind of knew that I'd be playing for Prep.
"I guess my thought in the beginning was that I hoped to be a starter by my senior year. When I didn't even start on JV as a sophomore, it was, 'This might be harder than I thought.' "
Then came last season. Some players quit or finished developing. Voss served as a co-captain and two-way starter for an undefeated JV and saw at least a hint of varsity action.
"In his junior year, I really started to see good things," Brooks said. "But there wasn't an available spot on the O-line. Dan didn't get frustrated. Instead he had a great year on JV and continued to develop."
Said Voss: "I played a little early ahead of [tackle] Dave O'Brien. But he wound up getting the job and signing with Lehigh, so it wasn't like anyone made a wrong choice. On defense, I was the backup to Brandon Friday [Bucknell] and Charlie Noonan and everyone knows how good he is [All-Catholic this year as a junior]. No one got hurt. I had to wait my turn.
"Brendan Gilroy was the only junior on the O-line. Alex Wade moved to the D-line this season, but otherwise the JV O-line has just moved up and taken the varsity jobs. That's been neat."
The line includes center Scott Howley, guards Gilroy and Jim Dunn, tackles Jim McKenzie and Voss and rotating tight ends Mike Boyle and Matt Leddy.
"It's been a great year," said Voss, who lives in Cherry Hill, and also participates in track (shot put, discus). "I came out of last year not even playing much for the varsity and into this one with coach Brooks hyping me to college coaches. I hadn't even proven myself.
"I'm taking things in stride. With a grain of salt, really. The focus is on the season and trying to win another championship. If that doesn't happen, everything else won't mean too much."
[
Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
]
| |
Feedback: 