Arizona football appears to have finally solidified its quarterback blueprint for at least the next three seasons.
After finishing up his official visit on Thursday, former Rutgers quarterback Tom Savage decided to join the Wildcats next season.
“”Coaches were awesome, campus is great and I bonded with the players a lot,”” Savage told TucsonCitizen.com via text message.
TucsonCitizen.com broke the news early Thursday morning, and the acquisition was confirmed shortly after. Savage has already signed an aid agreement and will enroll in the summer, according to a release.
Savage, who was an All-American freshman with the Scarlet Knights in 2009, will have to sit out next season but will be eligible to play in 2012 and 2013.
“”Tom’s a great addition to our recruiting class,”” head coach Mike Stoops said in the release. “”It gives us a game-experienced quarterback to compete in the near future. Getting him is similar to us getting Nick (Foles) as a transfer a few years back.””
If everything goes as planned for the Wildcats, quarterback Matt Scott will redshirt this season and most likely compete with Savage for the starting job in 2012. Even if Scott gets the nod as a redshirt senior, the Wildcats will have Savage as their starter the following season, filling a void Arizona’s feared for years.
The 6-foot-4, 217-pound Pennsylvanian put together a stellar freshman season after choosing Rutgers over Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Penn State, Georgia and Florida State, among other programs.
He started in 10 of 12 games in 2009, throwing for 2,211 yards, 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions, while boasting a 128.75 quarterback rating and 52.3 completion percentage. Savage fell out of favor in 2010 as he played in only six games.
After Savage made it clear he wanted to transfer, Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano wouldn’t grant the quarterback permission to transfer to Miami, who reportedly had heavy interest in Savage. Shiano finally allowed Savage to talk to Miami, among other schools, in late January. But the newest member of the Wildcats visited only one school (the UA) and wasted no time in choosing Arizona.
