The word is out about Cole Christiansen.

The Nansemond-Suffolk Academy rising senior linebacker has experienced a snowball effect in the realm of college recruitment recently. The offers have begun to pile up.

“He started with one or two and — boom — all of a sudden it’s up to seven or eight,” Saints coach Lew Johnston said.

Christiansen currently has offers from Old Dominion University, College of William & Mary, University of Richmond, Towson University, Davidson College, the United States Military Academy and Ivy League schools Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania.

The stress on high school football players to generate interest from colleges is tremendous.

“They think about it all the time, and of course, that turns into worrying about it,” he said.

Christiansen now has eight offers on the table, and that eases his mind.

“It’s such a relief,” he said. “I always thought that it would come eventually, but I didn’t know it would take this long, and now that it’s starting to roll, it’s just nice to have that weight off my shoulders.”

Recently, Christiansen has been participating in showcase camps.

“That’s where these coaches really, really encourage (players) to come and participate so they can see them,” Johnston said.

He noted how Christiansen showcased his skills for a camp at Wake Forest University, and coaches from other schools were present there, as well.

One coach called his brother, who was a coach at the University of Richmond, and when Christiansen went to Richmond’s camp the next week, coaches from the school were waiting, Johnston said.

Johnston said he heard the verdict on Christiansen from Richmond coaches: “He’s fabulous. He’s the best linebacker in the state. He’s the one we want.”

Helping to raise his reputation was a strong, award-winning junior season in which he recorded 129 total tackles, 90 of which were solo stops and 30 of which were tackles for a loss. He also led the Saints with nine sacks.

Lately, he has been running the 40-yard dash in the 4.6-second range and has put on 15 pounds of muscle since last year, Johnston said.

He has done the work to get noticed. Now comes the next challenge for Christiansen.

“You’ve got eight offers, you can only take one,” Johnston said. “It’s not going to be easy for him.”

Christiansen likes all eight options and said, “It’s apples, grapes and oranges.”

He has been toured about half of the schools. Coming up, he plans to go to the U.S. Military Academy, Cornell, Towson and visit the University of Pennsylvania again.

“I think I’m going to head to Richmond this coming Tuesday,” he said. “By the end of the summer, hopefully I’ll have my decision made.”

He said he would not mind committing later on, but “I’m scared that some of the schools might pull their offers if I wait too long.”

As he visits the different schools, he said, he focuses on three priorities. First, he examines a school’s educational offerings, as he plans to be a business major. Second, he considers what level of play the school affords. Third, he evaluates the staff, players and overall atmosphere.

He usually gets a tour of the campus and meets with the school’s head football coach for a half hour.

“It’s a day trip, usually, but it’s fun, I like it a lot,” he said. “Hopefully, I can get all the information I need and make an educated decision on where to go.”