More Schools Talking to Martens

Michael Martens will graduate in 2008 with the rest of his classmates at St. Mary’s College, however he will have to take a year off after that as he is facing surgery to his jaw that will make him unable to participate in any contact sports for several months. There has been some confusion in his recruiting because of that, however with it figured out now he is hearing from new schools.

Michael Martens tests exceptionally well and while he may not have ideal size for college football at 5-foot-9, 165-pounds, that athleticism has been intriguing college coaches from all over the nation in regard to the Canadian athlete. Martens has yet to pick up any offers and hasn’t taken a visit yet, however he is hearing from some of the top programs in the nation, all of which have requested film.

“I was in contact with coaches from LSU and BYU this week by email and have had three new schools start to contact me in Texas, Florida State and North Carolina,” Martens explained. “I also still hear from Georgia, Notre Dame, Northwestern, North Carolina State, Syracuse, Rice and New Mexico.”

“I think I will drive down to the States and visit Notre Dame and Michigan as they are closest to me during the season here,” Martens said. “I always liked Notre Dame a lot because I got to watch them growing up and I also really think highly of both Texas and Florida State from a football standpoint.”

Martens plays wide receiver, cornerback and safety for St. Mary’s College and also is an excellent kick and punt return specialist. He played in five games as a junior and caught nine passes for 275 yards and four touchdowns, averaging a gaudy 30.5 yards per catch with a long of 60 yards. On special teams, he returned four punts for touchdown with a long of 76 yards, had a long kickoff return of 90 yards and broke 200 all-purpose yards in one of the five games he played in. His team went undefeated and were league, city, regional and provincial champions, cruising to a 12-0 record. Martens was voted first-team All-Area as a punt and kick returner and was giving the Offensive Player of the Year Award by the Coaching Association. He was third overall in his league for touchdowns, second in receiving yardage and first in all return categories. Again, this was all in five games of playing time. They do not have an equivalent to All-State honors in Canada.

The St. Mary’s College athlete has been timed at 4.39 in the 40-yard dash, 4.07 in the short shuttle, 6.82 in the three-cone drill and has a 37-inch vertical leap.