Recruiting heats up for '10 QBs

By Mike Farrell, special to SI.com, courtesy of Rivals.com

Notre Dame has shown interest in Nick Montana, son of NFL Hall of Famer and Irish alum Joe Montana. Marin Media/Cal Sport Media

The class of 2010 might not be as top-heavy at quarterback as the 2009 class, but it should be a much deeper class overall.

Numerous quarterbacks are starting to reel in multiple offers, led by 6-foot-2, 215-pound Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, Va.) standout Phillip Sims. He has at least 14 written offers, including one he received from Georgia at the end of last week. Sims also has offers from, among others, North Carolina, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Alabama, West Virginia, Clemson and Boston College. He plans on visiting Alabama sometime during the spring, and the Georgia offer is of interest to him as well. Sims said Georgia has told him true freshman quarterback Zach Mettenberger could be moved to tight end eventually and said Alabama told him redshirt freshman Star Jackson could be moved to another position as well.

Skyline (Sammamish, Wash.) quarterback Jake Heaps continues to visit schools in hope of narrowing his list to 10 soon; he wants to make a decision by the end of the summer. Heaps' latest offer comes from Florida State. The offer made Heaps rethink a top 10 he named in late January that consisted of BYU, California, Colorado, LSU, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Oregon State, Tennessee, UCLA and Washington.

Oaks Christian's (Westlake Village, Calif.) Nick Montana, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana, received his most recent offer from Florida State, and the 'Noles join Maryland, Ohio State, LSU, South Carolina, Arizona and Stanford as schools that have offered. Montana recently visited Ohio State and currently is at Texas. UCLA, USC, Oregon and many others are showing interest, and there doesn't appear to be any early leader. Notre Dame has shown interest but doesn't appear to be in the game at this point. Montana's father starred with the Irish.

Bishop Carroll's (Wichita, Kan.) Blake Bell is up to 15 offers, with the latest coming from Oklahoma. However, Colorado State has to be the team to beat here. His father, Mark Bell, and his uncle, Mike Bell, played at Colorado State before moving on to lengthy NFL careers. But schools such as Oklahoma, Georgia, Miami, Nebraska and Missouri will be tempting. Notre Dame could offer soon.

Liberty's (Bethlehem, Pa.) Anthony Gonzalez has recent offers from Florida State, West Virginia, Missouri, Maryland, Illinois and Penn State in addition to his first offer from Pitt. He claims no early leaders, but his childhood favorite was Penn State and he's interested in visiting Florida State and Illinois.

St. Mary's (Orchard Lake, Mich.) star Robert Bolden hit double-digit offers with recent tenders from Michigan and Virginia. Bolden plans to take things slow, but Michigan has to be considered the team to beat with its need at quarterback, proximity to home and Bolden's athletic ability.

Iowa City's (Iowa) A.J. Derby recently received an oral offer from Nebraska and has offers from Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Illinois and Stanford. But the clear leader is Iowa. Derby's father, John Derby, was a captain for the Hawkeyes in 1991 and his brother, Zach Derby, is a freshman tight end for Iowa. Derby will make his decision by the end of the summer.

Steamboat Springs' (Colo.) Austin Hinder is up to six offers, with the latest from Colorado State. Hinder also has offers from California, Stanford, Kansas State, Nebraska and Colorado. Florida, UCLA, Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and many others are showing interest, and Hinder doesn't appear close to a decision.

Saline's (Mich.) Joe Boisture is starting to get more and more attention, but he plans on ending the process before things really get rolling. Boisture recently visited Pitt and Boston College and will visit Cincinnati this weekend before talking things over with his parents and making a decision. Wisconsin also has offered, but the Badgers appear to be on the outside looking in.

Valhalla's (El Cajon, Calif.) Pete Thomas received his first offer from Boston College and has gotten them from Maryland and Northwestern in the aftermath of the BC offer. USC, Oregon State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Alabama and others are showing a lot of interest. BC remains his early leader, but once some Pac-10 offers come in, Thomas seems likely to stay out west.

Parkway West's (Ballwin, Mo.) Tyler Gabbert is expected to follow his older brother, Blaine Gabbert, to Missouri, but he recently received an offer from Kansas and has offers from Iowa and Nebraska.

For more recruiting news, head to Rivals.com.