Castillo Staying Local

Philadelphia native Greg Castillo had six scholarships to choose from and an opportunity to walk on at one of the better football programs in the country, however today he decided to end his recruitment and give a verbal commitment to a local program in Villanova. Castillo should provide the Wildcats with immediate help on the field and could be a steal for Head Coach Andy Talley and staff.

Greg Castillo, a 5-foot-11, 160-pound cornerback from St. Joseph’s Prep School in Philadelphia, Pa., gave a verbal commitment to the Villanova Wildcats today over offers from Ohio, Bowling Green, Delaware, Toledo and Navy. Castillo was flirting with both Iowa and Penn State late in the game, but chose to stay local for now at the Division I-AA power.

“Penn State wanted me to come play as a preferred walk-on, but I wasn’t really feeling that,” Castillo said. “Iowa is also recruiting me and are still trying to figure out if they’ll have a spot for me, but that isn’t something that I’m thinking about at this point.”

“I committed to Villanova because I felt comfortable on my official visit with the players, coaches and students there,” Castillo explained. “I figured that if I didn’t play football there I would still want to attend Villanova, so that is something I really liked about it. It’s also very close to home, so my family can come watch me play and I like the vision that Head Coach Andy Talley has for the future of the program. Obviously the academic stature of the school also played a big part in my decision.”

If the Hawkeyes come knocking in the next few weeks, will Castillo change his mind?

“If Iowa offers I’ll definitely have to site back and think about it because that is a great opportunity that I wouldn’t want to waste,” Castillo stated. “For now I’m not even thinking about that. If it does come up, I’m obviously going to have to though.”

Castillo caught 21 passes for 538 yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior. He also made 55 tackles and intercepted three passes.