Think of it as the biggest recruit USF could get for 2009: All-American defensive end George Selvie said Wednesday that he will return for his senior year and not make an early entry to the NFL Draft.

Selvie, who had been projected in mock drafts as a first-round draft pick, submitted his name to the NFL's advisory board for underclassmen and was told he was unlikely to be selected in the draft's first three rounds.

"It wasn't as high as I thought I might go, so I'd rather just wait another year, work on getting bigger and stronger and see what happens," Selvie said. "It's definitely going to be some motivation for me. I thought I had a good year, getting injured, getting triple-teamed and still getting five sacks."

Selvie said USF coach Jim Leavitt had encouraged him to enter the draft if he were projected as a first-round pick, and to strongly consider doing so if projected a second-rounder. Selvie said he wants to add 10 pounds to his 240-pound frame this offseason and show that he can play through the double-teams he often faced from opposing offenses.

"(A first-round projection) probably would have done it," Selvie said. "Going in the first round, I could take care of my family for the rest of my life. Coming back, I feel like we can go out and win. We lost a lot of experience on offense and defense, but the seniors like me and Matt (Grothe), this is our time to lead now."

Selvie said he will take out an insurance policy through the NCAA to guard against a career-ending injury, as he did before the 2008 season. He's on course to graduate this summer with a degree in communications.