Once he announced his decision to play college football at Rutgers, Harrisburg senior-to-be Robert Martin mentioned all of the factors what went into his decision Friday evening at Severance Fieldhouse.
Academics, family atmosphere and the chance to compete right away for the starting tailback spot were at the top of the list.
But Martin, the incredibly talented running back who helped the Cougars to an 11-3 season and a trip to the District 3-AAAA finals as a junior, slid in one more reason.
"From a football standpoint, they're going to be Big Ten and part of one of the biggest football networks in the country," said Martin, who rushed for 1,812 yards and 18 touchdowns last season as junior.
"And I think I have the opportunity to come in and compete for a starting job my freshman year.
"And they preach family."
Rutgers, who will join the Big Ten Conference in 2014, will host Penn State on Sept. 13, 2014
Martin also said he was eager to get his college decision out of the way early.
"I didn't want to let the opportunity go by," said Martin.
"This is a great opportunity for me and my family and they only had one scholarship spot for a running back and I didn't want to take the chance that someone else would take that spot."