November 22, 2011

St. Anthony tight end Nate Ortiz has committed to Delaware State University. (Photo: Jason Bernstein)

St. Anthony Friars Photo Gallery

After a season of uncertainty, Nate Ortiz has found his home for the next four years.

The St. Anthony tight end made his commitment to Delaware State University on Sunday, picking the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision team after visiting the campus this weekend.

"As soon as I stepped on campus I loved it," Ortiz said. "The atmosphere and the campus is just beautiful and the coaching staff is terrific. They made me feel like I was already a player for them."

"He liked it. He wanted to get away, but not too far and Delaware State is only an hour and a half away," St. Anthony head coach Sean Fallon said. "It's a good school, I'm sure he'll play right away. They really liked him all along. It's a happy ending thankfully."

Ortiz's future was up in the air for a while as a couple of his early offers from schools such as Temple and Villanova were revoked after the spots were filled by other players.  That lack of an offer combined with the struggles of his Friars team during the season proved to be a source of concern. A myriad of injures forced Ortiz into more of a blocking role instead of displaying the receiving skills he became known for. But the 6-foot-4, 238-pound senior, tried to stay focused during this time.

"I was proud of the way he carried himself this year," Fallon said. "We really only had three seniors who contributed. I was proud of the way Nate kind of carried the team. He handled that with class and that's the kind of kid he is."

"After all I've been through growing up, all the tough neighborhoods I've lived in and the tough life I've lived, I stood strong and I had faith and hope in myself," said Ortiz, calling the past few months stressful. "I always told myself I was going to get a scholarship.

"I think it's a blessing. I talk to my father every day about this. When I lost my Temple offer, I was really, really lost because I worked for that scholarship and I was afraid there wasn't going to be another one. There were times I kind of doubted myself. Now that I committed, today was like a whole different day."

Youngstown State and New Hampshire were also among the schools to show late interest in Ortiz, but Delaware State was the first from the group to offer him.

Ortiz will be the second St. Anthony player to sign a scholarship in as many years. Last year Khadeem Wilson signed to play with Temple.

Ortiz was named an Honorable Mention for HCV's 2010 All-County Football Team in his first season of organized football. Prior to that he was a basketball player.

Now that he will be able to continue his career in college, Ortiz said his motivation has now shifted towards "being ready for college," after spending the past year working towards earning that scholarship.

In addition he hopes to be a role model for other high school athletes in the area and use his story as proof that they can work their way towards a scholarship and a way out of Jersey City.

"All of these kids have the potential to go to the next level, but sometimes they hang their head and now I can tell them I've been in the same spot, you've just got to keep moving," Ortiz said." If they see me do it, they'll know they can do it too."