Timber Creek (Erial, N.J.) linebacker Neal Nelson, the No. 33 recruit in the NJ.com Top 50, committed to the University of Central Florida Tuesday over finalists Pitt and Syracuse.

“It felt like home -- the coaching staff, the facilities, the campus, everything. It felt great,” said Nelson, a 6-1, 220-pound junior linebacker, who visited the school Saturday. “I knew after my visit. I was always curious because I heard UCF was a beautiful school, but when I got there, I saw it for myself.”

Nelson made up his mind to play for the Knights this past weekend but held off until Tuesday to reveal his intentions to the world.

“I made my announcement, today,” said Nelson. “I was gonna make my decision on Sunday, but I had set the date for Tuesday because I knew I was visiting UCF before Tuesday, and I would have a good idea which school I was interested in going to by now.”

Although happy to put his recruitment behind him, Nelson says he enjoyed the process.

“If feels good, but it was fun,” he said. “I enjoyed the process because it only happens once. It was a good experience for me.”

Nelson, who plans to study business in college, had long been identified as a BCS-level talent, but academic concerns slowed his recruitment, initially. However, a resurgence in the classroom has afforded Nelson opportunities for his future, and he intends to take advantage of them.

“They want me to play all three positions, but they see me as an outside linebacker,” said Nelson. “They like how I hit and how I get to the ball.”

Nelson accumulated 51 tackles, 15 for loss and four sacks as a junior at Buena Regional (N.J.), before transferring to Timber Creek this past spring. And he insists he’s willing to do whatever it takes to contribute to his new team.

“I just want to benefit the team any way I can, and just help them out so we can get to the championship game and win it,” he said.

Nelson also had a message for the UCF fans.

“I can’t wait to get down there,” he said. “Class of 2015, I’m ready to make history.”

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