The senior running back pledged Wednesday to play football at South Dakota State, starting in the fall of 2011.

Although other schools such as Northern Iowa, Nebraska and Iowa State expressed interest, Gentile said the positive atmosphere and the chance to play against some big-name competition immediately factored into his decision.

“They offered the day before our Nishnabotna game (in substate baseball), and they gave me two weeks to think about it,” Gentile said. “But I knew right away that was where I wanted to go.

“Having the chance to play big schools like Nebraska and Illinois over the next couple years, I knew that was something I couldn't pass up.”

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