WOBURN — To no one's real surprise, Woburn High's Mike McLaughlin is already deeply involved in the college football recruiting process. A starter at fullback and linebacker since his freshman year, the 6-2, 240-pound McLaughlin figured to be Woburn High's most hotly recruited football player in over 20 years.

And the still 16-year-old blue-chip athlete has already received a verbal offer of a full scholarship to play his college football at the University of Maryland. The official National Letter of Intent Day is still 11 months away so the swiftness of the interest that McLaughlin has generated has caught him a bit by surprise.

"The recruiting process has been kind of puzzling," he professed. "Everything just kind of came out of nowhere with people calling just the last month and month and a half. I had no idea about how this would go."

McLaughlin said right now the early contact has been with just Recruiting Coordinators from the colleges. Most of it is dealing with getting profiles to get him on a database. Others have moved the process along with mentions of unofficial visits to attend Spring Games and Summer Football Camps.

Maryland may have the edge right now with its early offer. McLaughlin intends to visit the campus and catch its Spring Football Game over the last weekend of April School Vacation. He also indicates he expects to attend their Football Camp for high school players in June.

Also high on his list at the present is Boston College and Syracuse.

Another edge McLaughlin gives Maryland is its interest in having him play fullback. Most of the other schools are looking at him as a linebacker.

"Maryland recruits you as a football player and not by a specific position," he said. "They run a two-back set where they like a big fullback who can catch the ball."

From his sophomore year to his junior year, McLaughlin really advanced athletically. He went from being just a big, tough kid into a big, tough, fast kid. The offseason work he did to improve his running at a six-week program (three days a week) at Muscular Therapy in Marblehead, run by retired Woburn High boys track coach Joe Maltacea's brother Paul, is what has elevated him into a top recruit nationally.

To date, McLaughlin says over 30 schools have contacted him in some manner with the likes of Notre Dame, Michigan, Iowa, Purdue and Mississippi State also among the suitors.

"At the beginning of last year I kind of thought I could maybe play at UMass, UNH or another 1-AA level school," said McLaughlin. "This has been overwhelming."

McLaughlin's improved footspeed has been the biggest elevator in his status as a hot recruit. He led the Tanners in tackling, rushing and scoring a year ago.

"He was real impressive," said Joe Maltacea, who also helps out at his brother's business. "His footwork really improved and his speed increased and it will increase again. He came in running like an ironing board (straight up). We stressed kinetics awareness — know where your body parts are at all times. There were a lot of repetitions and variety of drills.

"Mike put in a lot of work and the intensity he brings to a practice is incredible," continued Maltacea. "We worked on quickness with him, agility, balance, coming off a cut and accelerating with power movements. We did jump drills. He has a helluva vertical lift for a big guy. Oh, it's tough. It's a helluva camp. A nasty camp."

Prior to the past month or so, McLaughlin also indicated he might have considered prep school following his senior year at Woburn High. McLaughlin is young for his grade. He doesn't turn 17 until May 11 so he'd only be 18 for a few months before heading off to college football preseason camp. But, with high interest in him, those plans apparently are shelved.

His father, Mike, and uncle Joe were outstanding football players at Stoneham High in the 1970s and college scholarship athletes themselves who both went to UMass. Mike McLaughlin Sr. went on to play for the Boston Breakers of the old USFL, while Joe McLaughlin saw time with the New York Giants.

McLaughlin just finished off a fine basketball season where he was a starter on a Woburn team that finished third in the Middlesex League and went 16-6 while winning a tournament game over Dracut. He doesn't play a spring sport, but will continue to concentrate on his workouts gearing up for his final football season at Woburn High.

Not since Ron Hobby in 1981 has a Woburn High player generated this kind of Div. 1 interest. Hobby wound up going to Syracuse where he was an All-American safety his senior year, played in the Hula Bowl, and had a tryout with the New England Patriots.

At the present, McLaughlin appears to be on a similar path.