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Alessandro "Alex" Padovani, a 6'2" 195 lb. wide receiver from Hammonton High School in Hammonton, NJ, signed a National Letter of Intent with the Villanova Wildcats football program today, the school announced. Padovani played both defensive back and wide receiver in high school, but is expected to play on the offensive side of the ball when he arrives on the Main Line.
Alex Padovani committed to Villanova in late-June, which made him the second commitment in the 2014 class. With his size, Padovani will likely slot into one of the outside wide receiver positions, rather than the slot receiver position that is prone to taking some handoffs on sweeps and reverses.
| Class | Name | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior | Poppy Livers | 5'7" | 170 lbs. |
| Senior | Clay Horne | 6'6" | 225 lbs. |
| Junior | Kevin Gulyas | 5'11" | 185 lbs. |
| Junior | Mike Burke | 6'2" | 205 lbs. |
| Sophomore | Lincoln Collins | 6'3" | 180 lbs. |
Joe Price's graduation leaves a big hole on the outside, but it's more likely that one of Horne, Burke of Collins (who redshirted last year) steps in to that role and provides Robertson with a big target who can stretch the field some. Livers and Gulyas mostly work the middle of the field, but both really came on late last season and Robertson has shown a lot of trust in them.
As such, immediate playing time looks like it could be hard to come by for Padovani unless he really shines in training camp.
Quotable
"Villanova is a great football program and plays in a great conference, the CAA, and it has my major, which is criminal justice," Padovani said. "Plus it's 45 minutes from my home, and my parents and friends can come see the games." via philly.com
