SRA’s Torres headed to AIC
Dual-threat quarterback ecstatic for opportunity at Northeast-10 school
PAWTUCKET – Courtesy of St. Raphael football coach Mike Sassi, the bug was put in someone’s ear to come check out last November’s Thanksgiving Eve game.
That “someone” happened to have close ties to the SRA program and was now carving out his own football coaching identity at American International College, a Division II school located in Springfield, Mass. Sitting in the stands at McCoy Stadium, Stanley Dunbar undoubtedly had a hard time taking his eyes off senior quarterback Xavier Torres, who capped his substantial high school career with four touchdown passes in a 32-7 wipeout win over Moses Brown.
The next thing Torres knew, he was receiving the full-court press from AIC.
Prior to his final game as an interscholastic competitor, he admitted that the allure of the prep- school route held appeal.
Along came Dunbar – SRA Class of 2008 and graduate assistant/running backs coach. Just like that, Torres’ outlook changed to the point that he completely pivoted away from the idea of an additional year of high school.
“He was the one recruiting me throughout the whole process,” Torres said. “When I told Stanley that coach Sassi said that I was the best punt returner he had ever coached, Stanley thought it was pretty funny because he thought he was the best.”
“Of course Stanley is going to look out for a Saints kid,” Sassi said.
Why wait an additional year before heading off to the college football ranks? If AIC believed in Torres as a future quarterback, wouldn’t that suffice?
Last week, Torres emded his recruiting by committing to the Yellow Jackets. Fittingly, he marked the occasion with a signing ceremony inside the room at St. Raphael’s Alumni Hall where he spent many hours watching game film with his teammates. He proudly wore his No. 10 Saints jersey as he was surrounded by administrators, coaches, family, and friends. A black AIC hat was placed on the table near the National Letter of Intent paperwork that required his signature.
The scholarship package that AIC presented to Torres was a combina- tion of academics and athletics. He visited the campus during February break and immediately took notice of the school’s physical therapy program, a six-year commitment that comes with automatic enrollment into grad school upon fulfilling the undergrad requirements.
“What a great offer he got,” Sassi said.
Football-wise, it was music to Torres’ ears when the Yellow Jackets informed the 6-1, 180pounder that they viewed him as a quarterback. His senior year at St. Raphael saw him throw for 1,132 yards and 19 touchdowns to just seven interceptions. He was just as apt when it came to running the ball (seven scores and 440 yards on 90 carries), taking it away (six intercep- tions), or looking for room to maneuver while on special teams (averaged 17.9 yards on punt returns).
“What stood out to me at AIC … a lot of it was the coaching. The facilities were nice and it just seemed like a place where I would fit in,” Torres said, a 2016 first-team all-division and second-team all-state selection. “I want to play quarterback at the next level but a lot of people told me I couldn’t. (AIC) believe in me.”
Torres also visited New Hampshire’s Saint Anselm College and heard from Salve Regina and U-Mass Dartmouth.
“At first in my recruiting process, I didn’t think [settling on a school close to his Pawtucket address] was important. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I wasn’t in a rush to get out of the area,” Torres said. “Staying close to home so my parents (James and Ashley) can come to my games, that was important.”
The likely scenario is Torres gets redshirted as a true freshman, which will allow him more time to get stronger for the 2018 season for AIC, which is based in the Northeast 10. That suits him just fine since he won’t turn 18 until June.
“Lot of weight off my shoulders,” Torres said with a smile. “I wasn’t sure what I was going to do for next year, let alone whether I would be able to play football. Now I have definite plans.”