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UNH lands Strickland

The University of New Hampshire received some good news last weekend, when 6-foot-3, 230-pound Goffstown High School tight end Peyton Strickland committed to play for the Wildcats. Strickland made his decision during an official visit to the Durham campus.

Strickland also had offers from Holy Cross, Rhode Island, Bryant, Elon, Columbia, Bucknell and Monmouth. In addition, he had an intriguing opportunity to join the South Carolina program as a preferred walk-on.

“There were multiple reasons I chose UNH,” Strickland said. “It’s a full scholarship, so I don’t have to worry about me or my parents paying for college at all. One of the biggest things is Mike Ferzoco, their offensive coordinator, came for an in-home visit about a week ago and restated that their tight end room is kind of short right now and they feel pretty confident that I can come in as a freshman and play. That was a big part of it. Another part is it’s close to home. It’s only an hour away from my house.

“I was pretty confident with UNH going into the weekend for the reasons I mentioned. Once I was on the campus and hung out with some of the players on the team that set my decision in stone. I’d like to say that  I’m super grateful for how my parents (Faith and Joe) supported me during my career.”

Strickland will likely sign his National Letter of Intent next Wednesday. Goffstown coach Nick Hammond said he won’t be surprised if Strickland plays early in his career at UNH.

“He’s as close to college-ready physically as any high schooler I’ve seen,” Hammond said. “I’m really excited for him. It’s a good chance for him to play at a high level close to home. I  think it’s always great to see New Hampshire’s best players stay home and play at the University of New Hampshire.”

UNH was the first program to extend an offer to Strickland.

“I’m awe-struck that if I really wanted to I had my opportunity in the SEC, but I can go to UNH for free and not financially burden myself or my parents,” Strickland said. “Also, at UNH there’s a possibility that I can play for four years as opposed to going to an SEC school and maybe being a practice punching dummy for two or three years and then maybe playing one or two years as a junior and senior.”

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