LB Alvarez pledges to Harvard
Yorkville (Ill.) senior linebacker recruit Ben Alvarez (6-foot-2, 220 pounds) was able to make am East Coast swing and visited a handful of Ivy League schools including Harvard. Alvarez came away highly impressed after his Harvard visit and a few days later gave the Crimson his verbal commitment. Alvarez discusses his college decision in this latest recruiting update.
"I was able to get out and make a handful of visits to Ivy League schools to Harvard, Dartmouth. Yale and Princeton," Alvarez said. "I was able to find a great fit for me at Harvard and after talking things over with my parents I decided to give Harvard my commitment."
Alvarez pointed towards some of the key factors which led to his decision to commit to the Harvard Crimson.
"The coaches at Harvard really made a big impression on my when I made my visit. Harvard just has a great overall atmosphere both in the football program along with just within the school community. Harvards is located in Boston and it's definitely a heavy urban area and setting which is a big change for me coming from Yorkville. It's a great chance and opportunity for me at Harvard both on the field and also in the class room. Harvard offers a world class education and I decided that it was time to bet on myself and go to a school that is going to challenge me on and off the field over the next four years."
Alvarez, who had athletic scholarships from multiple schools discussed which other schools he considered before pledging to Harvard.
"I looked pretty hard at some of the service academy schools like Air Force and Army. and I also had scholarship offers from Western and Eastern Michigan. I really decided earlier this summer that I wanted to focus in more on the Ivy League schools. The overall level of academics along with the great alumni networks in the Ivy League was really attractive to me. In the end I made a good move to commit to Harvard and my family is fully supportive of my decision."
So what was the hardest part of the recruiting process for Alvarez?
"Just making a final decision was the hardest part of the process for me.Having to tell the other coaches I was going to another schools was not easy, but I just had to man up and take care of my business. It's easily the biggest decision I've had to make so far in my life, so it became stressful. Distance from home honestly was never a big factor for me. I'm excited to start a new chapter in my life, see new places and meet new people."
Ben Alvarez is verbally committed to Harvard.