CLINTON, Ct. - The opportunity to participate in the Future Games twice helped Ryan Egan land a Division I scholarship.

“Fordham reached out to Dallas (DeFrancesco) at PBR after the Future Games,” explained the Taft School junior in reference to the Director of Operations for the New England Area. “It was fast moving from there with (assistant) coach (Pat) Porter, just a couple weeks. They made an offer that was too good to pass up. It was an easy decision.”

The 51st-rated 2022 in New England caught the attention of Fordham a year prior.

“They said they saw me the last time I went to the Future Games in Georgia,” noted Egan with regard to the 2019 PBR event at LakePoint. “They’ve been watching me ever since. They saw me at every PBR event.”

The Future Games was an experience like no other according to the 6-2 205-pound right-handed pitcher.

“It was amazing being with kids playing at that level,” Egan said. “Being able to compete with them opened up doors. A lot of kids don’t get to play at that high of a level, but being there proved I can play at that level.”

Fordham saw a lot to like about Egan.

“They loved my athleticism … the way I’m able to move my body quickly,” Egan pointed out. “They liked my secondary pitches and that I had great control. They also liked my baseball IQ, how I can hold runners on and everything like that.”

William & Mary, Pittsburgh, Boston College, Fairfield, Marist, Stetson and Northeastern were other schools being considered by Egan before deciding on the Atlantic 10 Conference school.

“They have such high-level academics,” Egan noted. “There’s life after baseball and I’ll be able to use my education there in the future. It also has one of the best campuses I’ve been on. Most importantly, every coach there cared about me as a person and player. That’s important to me.”

Staying near home was also paramount to Egan.

“I’m a family man and wanted to make sure I saw them in the stands,” explained Egan, who lives 90 minutes from the Fordham campus in New York City. “It’s important that my parents have access to my games.”

An improved game proved vital in gaining attention from Division I programs.

“I’ve done a lot of work with different people,” noted Egan. “Trevor (Brown, PBR Connecticut Director of Scouting) has helped me a ton. I started working with him three years ago and a lot of credit goes to him. Throwing bullpens, stretching, whatever I could do to improve. I worked four hours a day and it paid off.”

But the hard work is far from over.

“I want to improve my ability to pitch from the stretch,” Egan related. “I have a lot of control and composure when nobody is on base, but I need to do that when guys are on base.”

The desire to play at the next level began at a young age for Egan.

“Since I started playing ball at two-years-old … for as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to play college baseball,” Egan said. “After my first PBR event going into my freshman year, that’s when attention began and I started getting emails from coaches. That’s when my parents and I realized I had the potential to play Division I.”

Potential has turned into reality for Egan, a 3.7 student undecided on a college major.

“Trevor was a big influence on me and definitely the coaching staff at Clubhouse when it comes to exposure and development of me as a player,” Egan said in listing who has been important in helping him get where he is today in the game of baseball. “My dad is another. He’s worked with me since I was little, not because he wanted this. He saw my goals and what I wanted and helped me attain them. That’s where it all started.”

Admittedly, the recruiting process did not go as planned.

“It was more time consuming than I thought it would be,” Egan noted. “I imagined they’d reach out, there’d be one phone call and I’d be done. But there was a lot of reaching out and a lot of phone calls. I was talking to some schools for months before I got an offer.”

Thankfully, in the eyes of Egan, it has all worked out.

“There’s a little sense of relief now that I don’t have to worry about phone calls,” Egan concluded. “I’m just excited to get on campus at Fordham and get to work with all the coaches. I’m really excited to get going.

“I think I’ll bring an energy to the program,” Egan added. “I’ll bring a holsum environment to the team that will translate onto the field.”