Football weeks have rarely ended on Friday nights this fall for Cam Toomey, Saratoga Springs’ 6-foot-4, 240-pound running back/defensive end.
A junior, Toomey is one of the state’s top college football prospects and part of his weekly routine this month has been to board an airplane early Saturday mornings to go see one of the nation’s top Division I football programs play as a recruit. This past weekend, a day after Toomey helped Saratoga Springs beat rival Shenendehowa, the third-year varsity player witnessed Kentucky post a 34-17 Southeastern Conference victory over Vanderbilt in front of 61,842 fans.
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“This has, obviously, been awesome. I have been doing (these kinds of visits) for nearly two years now and, honestly, it is a huge part of my process,” Toomey said. “This fall has been really important regarding where I might end up going. I was closely watching the (coaching) staffs and how they treated me, and how the atmosphere was at all of those schools, more … than I have the past year because it matters a lot more now.”
Among the 27 Division I offers Toomey currently possesses, nine of those programs are ranked this week among the nation’s top 25 teams – and five are in the top 10. Six others have been ranked at some point this season.
Kentucky is one of the programs currently ranked among the top 10, as the Wildcats (7-1) are No. 9 this week.
“I had a great time at Kentucky. Coach (Tony) Washington, their edge-rushing coach, was really the main focus for me there,” Toomey said. “How he carries himself and what he cares about is different from a lot of the other coaches I have talked to. He is huge on relationships and development. He played (at Oregon and in the NFL with the Houston Texans), so he knows all about this process.”
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Each of the past three weeks, Toomey has attended a game involving teams that have both made him a scholarship offer. Before watching Kentucky beat Vanderbilt, Toomey was in attendance at Beaver Stadium on Oct. 10 to witness Penn State drop a 31-23 home decision against USC in front of a record 114,419 fans.
The weekend before that, Toomey was among 110,731 fans at Michigan – which registered its 334th consecutive home game with over 100,000 fans in attendance – to take in a 21-18 triumph over Penn State.
Michigan, now being led by former Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, is the latest school to offer Toomey a scholarship.
“Michigan has been my favorite visit this fall,” Toomey said. “They made me feel good and that was a priority. Their D-Line coaches are unbelievable and they have the evidence and proof with the development of the guys they’ve coached.”
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The visit to Kentucky marked the fifth time Toomey has done a game-day visit this fall. He started out in September with visits to Virginia Tech (Sept. 5) and Ole Miss (Sept. 12).
“Starting out at Virginia Tech, that ‘Enter Sandman’ entrance was one of the craziest things I have ever seen,” Toomey said. “Also being back with (coach) James Franklin, who made me my first offer when he was at Penn State, and (seeing) how our relationship has grown (is) awesome. I have grown so close to him and his staff at Virginia Tech. That is a big reason why they are up there for me.
“Ole Miss, I was really surprised with how great I felt being there. I didn’t know it was going to be that good. It has ended up being one of my top schools. Pete Golding has something good going there. They are doing great.”
Toomey, who is considered one of the nation’s top 100 recruits from the Class of 2028, has maintained a strong relationship with Penn State. Matt Campbell now coaches the program and Toomey has visited eight times. Christian Smith, who now coaches the edge rushers at Penn State, has come to see the junior play.
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“Penn State is somewhere where I visited the new staff for the first time over the spring. I loved them as soon as I met them,” Toomey said. “I have been growing that relationship with them. The one thing that I wanted to see is the development aspect of things. They haven’t been doing too well on the defensive line with pressures and sacks, which is something I have been watching.”
Toomey and the Blue Streaks finish up their regular season Friday night with a game against Guilderland. His future game-day visits to college programs are unclear, and possibly on hold until after Saratoga Springs – the defending Section 2 Class AA champion – concludes its postseason run.
While Toomey has been thrilled to witness the atmospheres at the college games he has attended, his main focus has been elsewhere during his visits.
“I have spent a lot of time trying to really get to know the coaches recruiting me and their character,” Toomey said.
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This article originally published at Saratoga Springs standout Cam Toomey revels in game-day trips to Division I football powers.
