Playoff basketball games and college visits.
These have been busy times for Aliquippa’s Cameron Lindsey, who on top of his athletic talents is an excellent student who carries a 3.3 GPA.
A lot of attention has been coming Lindsey’s way the past few months, and considering he’s only a sophomore, that attention figures to grow considerably the next two years.
Lindsey is in the stretch run of the basketball season right now. He’s a starter for an Aliquippa team that plays Avonworth in Wednesday’s PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals. But Lindsey’s top sport is football, and he already holds offers from Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Toledo and Connecticut. All of those offers have come since December.
“All of the college attention that has come in the last few months has been a lot, but it’s been fun,” Lindsey said.
While helping his basketball team win nine of its past 10 games, Lindsey has also been busy visiting colleges. He has been to Pitt and Penn State, and most recently West Virginia.
Just last week, Rivals released its rankings of the top 250 players in the class of 2024. Lindsey was one of three WPIAL players who made the list. Lindsey, who is 6 feet 2, 190 pounds, is rated the No. 129 player nationally in the sophomore class. He’s also ranked No. 5 in the state and is considered the No. 10 outside linebacker in the country.
“I was super excited when I saw that,” Lindsey said. “I used to look for [the rankings], but I stopped checking because I didn’t know when they were going to come out. When my friend told me I was nationally ranked, I was really excited.”
Last fall, Lindsey helped the Aliquippa football team win WPIAL and PIAA Class 4A titles. An all-conference and all-state pick, Lindsey registered 86 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries and 2 interceptions. Both of those interceptions were pick-6s, one each in the Quips’ PIAA semifinal and championship wins. He also played some running back and fullback, and rushed for two touchdowns.
A day after Aliquippa’s state championship win against Bishop McDevitt on Dec. 9, Lindsey picked up his first offer from Penn State. Three months later, he’s up to six offers, including three from Power Five schools and one from a team that reached the College Football Playoff last season.
“It meant a lot,” Lindsey said of his first offer. “All of the hard work my teammates and I had put in all year, and then to cap it off the next day with an offer — that whole weekend couldn’t have gone any better.”
The Pitt and West Virginia offers both came in January. There’s a family connection between Lindsey and Pitt. His cousin, Brandon, was an all-Big East linebacker for the Panthers a little more than a decade ago.
Martin, Speca make national rankings
Belle Vernon’s Quinton Martin and Central Catholic’s Anthony Speca also made the first Rivals250 for the sophomore class. Martin is No. 12 and Speca No. 184.
Martin’s ranking makes him the highest-ranked recruit from the WPIAL or City League since 2017. Lamont Wade was a senior at Clairton that year and was ranked No. 11 in the nation.
Martin (6-3, 195), whose offer list includes Pitt, Penn State, Notre Dame and Texas, is also the No. 1 player in the state and the No. 1 athlete in the country. Speca (6-3, 225) is No. 9 in the state rankings and is considered the No. 7 inside linebacker in the country. Pitt, Penn State, Notre Dame and Michigan are among the schools that have offered.
Colin Simmons, a defensive end from Duncanville, Texas, is the No. 1 player nationally.
First offer
An athlete receiving his first scholarship offer is usually a pretty big deal. A Pine-Richland football player got his first FBS offer last week. Jake Beam is a 6-foot-4, 275-pound junior lineman who now owns an offer from Marshall. Coincidentally, Beam has a brother who plays Division I ball for a school located in West Virginia. Tommy Beam is a former baseball standout at Pine-Richland who is now a pitcher at West Virginia. Tommy is even taller than Jake — he’s 6-7.
Basketball commitments
Ellwood City’s Kyla Servick (Westminster); West Allegheny’s Scott Bilovus (Waynesburg).
Football commitments
Carlynton’s Elijah Babish (Bethany); Laurel Highlands’ Eric Allen (Wagner); Mt. Lebanon’s Sam Ward (Case Western Reserve).
Softball commitment
Hopewell’s Emily Watts (Westminster).
Brad Everett: beverett@post-gazette.com and Twitter @BREAL412.
First Published: March 15, 2022, 12:45 p.m.
