Indiana St. made Sager feel at home

It was merely by chance that Indiana State University defensive line coach Jeff Mills heard about Jake Sager. But the more he got to know the Sidney High School senior, the more he wanted him to play football for the Sycamores.

After a process that lasted less than a month, Sager signed last Thursday to play football and study at Indiana State in Terre Haute. Sager is expected to compete at either defensive end or tackle.

"It was a pretty exciting process," said Jake's father Ken Sager, who played tight end at Western Washington University. "Coach Mills was under Don James at the University of Washington and Pete Carroll was one of his biggest influences. It's going to be a good staff so we're excited to have that kind of coaching talent around him at the next level."

While Sager was considering schools such as the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Fort Hays (Kan.) State and South Dakota State, the Sycamores didn't become part of the process until Ken Sager recalled his old college teammate at Western Washington.

"We remembered that Coach Mills was out there somewhere," Ken said.

Once the Sagers learned of Mills' whereabouts, Jake's mother Becky sent off an email simply to inquire about the recruiting process. Shortly after their first contact, Mills began doing his homework on Sager. It didn't take long before Mills developed a serious interest in bringing Sager to Terre Haute.

"I'm really looking forward to it," Jake said. "The school is really pretty with a lot of tall brick buildings. All the facilities are either brand new or being renovated. The locker rooms were really nice and they have great amenities."

While Sager is excited to play football at the alma mater of NBA legend Larry Bird, the factor that finally sealed the deal was the strong criminal justice program at ISU. During his recent visit to the campus, Sager not only met with coaches, he met with a criminal justice professor that would become an advisor to Sager.

"He wants to go and work for the government," Becky said. "Secret agent Sager," quipped Ken.

While the Sager family was in Sidney during Jake's early elementary school years, the family moved to Medford, Ore. The Sager's returned to Sidney in time for Jake's junior year at Sidney High. Medford's loss turned out to be a huge gain for the Red Raiders' football program.

"Jake had no trouble fitting in," said Raiders head football coach Todd Ekart. "After his first year here, he was selected as a team captain. So it just goes to show how much of an impact he had in a relatively short time."

During his two seasons with the Raiders, Sager played on both the offensive and defensive lines. Though he played as a down lineman, he was second on the team in tackles on the 2013 team with 52 in 10 games. He led all down lineman with 47 tackles during the past season. He also played on a talent-rich Raiders' basketball team last season.

He was also a key blocker for a team that produced a 2,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard rusher in 2013. This past season the Raiders ran for nearly 3,000 yards in just 10 games.

"The first thing we look for in recruiting is to find young men with great character," wrote ISU head football coach Mike Sanford in a letter to the Sun-Telegraph. "Everyone we talked to gave their full endorsement of Jake. We also had a goal this season to recruit more size to our defensive front. He fits the bill as he checks in at 6-4, 255 pounds."

Mills began his research with a 45-minute phone conversation with Ekart. He then came to Sidney to meet with Jake, his family and Ekart. He also watched Jake work out. It was important to Mills that Sager is an honor roll student.

"(Mills) even talked to the secretaries and to the administration," Becky said. "And true to small-town Sidney, the secretaries talked up Jake and how well he fit in and what a leader he was among the kids."

Before leaving town on a Wednesday, Mills told the Sagers he would be in touch on Sunday. Instead, he called at 6:30 a.m. the following morning and asked them to fly out to Terre Haute the following day. While the Sycamores have two returning players at his position, Sager will be ready to compete from day one.

"Coach said just be ready to compete and you never know what's going to happen," Jake said.