Photo’s courtesy of Rick Martin
The list of area high-level talent continued their college choices. On Saturday, St. Joe Prep linebacker Anthony Sacca selected Notre Dame as his next football destination, and on Thursday in live stream from Spring-Ford High School, Spring-Ford rising-senior quarterback Matt Zollers choose SEC Missouri over Georgia, Penn State and Pitt.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound quarterback threw for 37 touchdowns last season, against two interceptions, completed 182/290 (63%) for 2,917 yards, and rushed for 431 yards on 67 carries and seven touchdowns.
“Basically, I felt most comfortable at Missouri,” said Zollers, who made his selection Thursday morning. “My No. 1 priority was finding who I connected best with, both players and the coaches, and I just felt best there. I feel like there is great stability there, and I felt there was an instant connection. Going there reinforced that. It was definitely difficult. I was going back-and-forth with my parents. It was with everyone.
“It was pretty difficult (not choosing Penn State). It’s definitely intriguing going to college two hours away, obviously being able to come home pretty easy. I fell back on what I looked for most in a school. Missouri was my best fit.”
The Tigers finished No. 9 in the nation with a 11-2 overall record last season and 6-2 in the rugged SEC. They had wins over four ranked opponents, including a 14-3 victory over depleted Ohio State. The victory was Missouri’s first bowl win since 2015 and the first of Coach Eliah Drinkwitz’s four-year career.
Zollers was very impressed by Tigers’ offensive coordinator/quarterback coach Kirby Moore.
“I don’t think Matt could have made a bad decision, and he was pretty set even a couple months ago, despite what he said, and I spoke to his parents about slowing down and with the help of his parents, he decided to do one more round (of visits),” Rams’ coach Chad Brubaker said. “But he was set for some time on Missouri. Kirby Moore set offensive records at Fresno State and we run a fairly complicated offense, replicated what college coach’s expectations are. Matt was really about feeling most comfortable about Missouri and where they are headed.”
Georgia seemed to be a strong consideration, and looked as if Penn State was a strong consideration, before Missouri came into the picture.
“Matt and I never had a conversation about the order, but we did speak about when he was leaning heavily towards Missouri, what if Alabama comes calling, what if Notre Dame comes calling, and they both did. Matt remained solid with Missouri.”
Led by Zollers, Spring-Ford finished No. 4 in PIAA District 1 Class 6A, reaching the district quarterfinals before losing to eventual District 1 champion Central Bucks South, 35-19. As a sophomore, Zollers led the Rams to the district quarters, losing to eventual District 1 champ Garnet Valley, 30-27.
Zollers, who is considered by numerous scouting services to be among the best passers in Pennsylvania for the coming season, is on pace to break every significant Spring-Ford career school passing record his senior season.
Joseph Santoliquito is a hall of fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]
