Glen Ellyn (Ill.) Glenbard South senior inside linebacker recruit Jeremy Gelino (6-foot-0, 205 pounds) this afternoon decided to wrap up his recruiting process and gave in-state Eastern Illinois University his verbal commitment. Gelino breaks down his decision here.
"I just felt very comfortable with Eastern Illinois and especially with the coaches," Gelino said. "I really started to focus in on my college options lately and overall EIU is just the best possible decision for me so I committed."
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Gelino filled us in on what factors helped land him to Charleston based Eastern Illinois University.
"EIU has a great staff and they are in the process of turning the football program around in a big way. I'm looking to come in and have a chance to contribute right away as much as I can at EIU. EIU is closer to home which is a really nice bonus for my family and friends. Distance from home really wasn't a factor for me but looking at it now it's definitely is a plus. I went and made a visit on my own to see EIU during the dead period. I was able to see the campus, see the town and just get a good feel for everything. I just felt that I needed to see the school in person before I made a decision and that visit really worked out well for me and was another big factor. I just really feel a connection to EIU and I feel that I just fit personality wise at EIU. I'm playing in a program now where we are changing the culture and now I'll be heading to play in college in another great opportunity to help change the culture. It just feels like the right fit for me."
Gelino, who was recruited by the Panthers as an inside linebacker admitted that the entire COVID pandemic has played a big role in his recruiting process.
"It was a big factor in my recruiting for sure but I'm also happy that I was able to add some offers based off my junior year video. My original plan was to camp this past summer and wait until after my senior season to make a decision, but that all changed because of COVID. The IHSA deciding to also move the season to the spring also made me look harder at my options earlier than I planned. The overall timing was sooner than I planned but fortunately I found a great fit at EIU."
So what was the toughest part of the recruiting process for Gelino?
"It was just trying to know which schools seemed truly interested in you and which schools just played me along. I was able to figure out which programs rally liked me early on but that made things confusing at times."
Jeremy Gelino is verbally committed to Eastern Illinois.
