With nearly 70 combined offers, Taylor and Mueller close in on decision day

Decision days are upon us.

For the area’s top high school football recruits, it’s nearly time to pick a college home. Not every player with Power 4 offers will be committing to a college in the coming weeks, but many want to be done with the process early.

Between the transfer portal, payments to players and the possible shrinking of college football rosters, the struggle for scholarships has become fierce. Deciding sooner is often better than later.

Among the area players already committed are two offensive linemen from the Class of 2026. Palatine High School’s Tony Balanganayi is headed to Illinois, while Hinsdale Central’s Gene Riordan is Iowa-bound.

(Quick shout out to Riordan’s brother Tommy, a two-way Hinsdale Central sophomore who recently picked up offers from Illinois and Kansas.)

Just about everyone else is up for grabs, including two especially intriguing recruits: Carmel Catholic sophomore quarterback Trae Taylor and South Elgin junior tight end Gavin Mueller.

Taylor, who only seems like he’s been playing varsity football since the Cubs won the World Series, announced he’ll be making his college decision next Thursday. The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder is rated by Rivals.com as the state’s top overall sophomore recruit.

With nearly 40 offers, Taylor made numerous college visits this spring. He went to Illinois, Nebraska, LSU, Notre Dame, Georgia, Auburn, Alabama, Wisconsin, Texas A&M … let’s just say he’s been busy the last several weeks.

His final four is reportedly Illinois, LSU, Texas A&M and Nebraska, where he’s taking one final visit this weekend. But with recruiting so fluid, you never know who might sneak in there.

Believe it or not, Mueller might’ve been even busier than Taylor this spring with his college visits. The 6-6, 255-pound tight end boasts nearly 30 offers.

Mueller’s recruiting stock skyrocketed while playing for St. Francis last year — his first time playing football since eighth grade. After helping the Spartans to the state semifinals, Mueller transferred to South Elgin for his final high school season this fall.

According to Rivals, Mueller is the No. 7 junior recruit in the state in an incredibly strong class of tight ends. Mueller’s plan is to commit May 14, after he takes a few official visits.

Mueller is on an official visit to Wisconsin and has officials set up with Colorado and LSU. He posted on social media that his LSU visit, scheduled for the weekend of May 9, will be his last before committing.

But with Notre Dame and a bunch of SEC schools making late pushes, it’s tough to predict where Mueller will end up. Especially if he’s able to squeeze in another official visit or two.

For a guy who managed to visit double-digit schools between early March and early April, he’ll definitely add another official if necessary.

Mueller recently listed his top eight schools as NC State, Arkansas, Purdue, Wisconsin, Colorado, Ole Miss, Notre Dame and Texas A&M.

After only one season of high school football. Incredible.