WEST DEPTFORD — West Deptford High School graduate and football star Jamil Pollard has had a lot of decisions to make as far as where he would play college football next season.

After verbally committing to Penn State last year as a junior, the Nittany Lions pulled the scholarship.

In his senior season this past year, Pollard picked up his grades and the Nittany Lions came calling again. When he was offered a scholarship this time, he decided to sign his National Letter of Intent saying he would be joining the defensive line in Happy Valley.

But since the NCAA has handed down its sanctions against the University, Pollard has had to decide whether or not he wanted to stay at PSU.

Well this time, his decision went against the Nittany Lions.

"He's going to go to Rutgers," said Pollard's high school coach at West Deptford, Clyde Folsom. "He's leaving Penn State and going to Rutgers."

The Scarlet Knights, as well as Boston College, were the other two schools originally on Pollard’s wish list. When the Eagles didn’t come calling again this time around, it made his decision a little easier.

“We spoke last week when the penalties became public at Penn State,” said Folsom. “He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do, he wasn’t in the right state of mind at the time to really make a decision. But over a 48-hour period there were six or seven Division I schools that were interested in bringing him in on scholarship.

“But the only school he would have left for is Rutgers, he made that point very clear. From the very beginning of it, he said, ‘The only school I’ll leave for is Rutgers.’ They were able to offer him (a scholarship) and he accepted.”

The Scarlet Knights have not discussed with Pollard how they plan on using him, as with the special circumstances they are facing they just wanted to make sure the defensive tackle will be on campus as soon as possible.

“It’s just a matter of getting all the paperwork done in the final hour to get him on campus,” Folsom said.

But before he makes his way to Piscataway, he has some loose ends to tie up in State College, Pa.

“Right now he has to finish summer school,” said Folsom. “He’ll be done next Tuesday at Penn State and off to Rutgers he’s going.”

All along it seemed like Pollard wanted to play at Penn State, and if the sanctions levied against them weren’t so harsh he might have. But paying for someone else’s mistakes wasn’t on his list of things to do in college.

“Right from the beginning of last week when all this happened up at Penn State he made it very clear that Rutgers was the only school he was going to leave for,” Folsom said.

North Hunterdon Regional High School graduate Kevin Haplea has left Penn State University for Florida State University, his father, Gene, confirmed this morning



The junior tight end played in all of the Nittany Lions' games in 2011 and started once. He was No. 2 on the depth chart this fall for the blocking tight end position.



Penn State announced Tuesday that Haplea had left the school.

Contact Wes Szafran at 856-845-9478 or wszafran@southjerseymedia.com