Big, big day for K-State recruiting today. The final piecing of this 2017 class will truly take shape after 10:30 this morning. Here's where things stand:
- K-State's eight and a half month pursuit of Evan Fields ends today. Offered back in mid-May, he has been at the center of K-State's recruiting board from the beginning and the Wildcat coaching staff has made that abundantly clear. Credit Blake Seiler and Taylor Braet for truly spearheading this recruitment, while Tom Hayes has certainly pitched in big here at the end of things too (which was sorely needed considering Fields' position). Looking back, I'm not sure there's anything K-State didn't do to get Fields (which is honestly something you can't always say about major recruiting targets) so this one all comes down to what Evan wants.
Speaking of Evan, I did all I could overnight to try and get any sort of response out of people close to him on where he may be leaning. A close friend and teammate of Evan who was also recruited over the summer by K-State told me last night, "Evan is a really good friend of mine but your guess is as good as mine". Midwest City High staff member Jason Sexton, who has become a central figure in this recruitment and has regularly provided information in the past, was also brief when reached last night, saying only, "I talked to him and told him to call coaches he isn't going to so they can plan! I also told him I didn't wanna know (who he was choosing)." To my knowledge, K-State had not received a phone call as of last night but that's not to say they will be chosen either because Evan may not make those calls until this morning.
I also was able to connect with Evan directly at around 9 p.m. When asked if he at least knew where he was going or if he was still trying to decide overnight, Evan told me he already knew but would not reveal anything further. Nevertheless, as of last night, a decision had been made. Do I have a hunch where he's going? Absolutely not. As predicted long ago, I still think this is race led by Arizona State and K-State. That hasn't changed this morning.
- Before we move on from Fields, fans should know that his commitment or non-commitment will have a domino effect on at least one other 2017 target. After visiting over the weekend, fellow Oklahoma prospect Gervarrius Owens is back in the picture. Should K-State land Fields, Owens will probably have to find another school before Signing Day. However, if Fields goes elsewhere, expect Owens to emerge as a prime candidate to replace him.
I wrote about Owens last April as an early recruit K-State was after. In July, he committed to Memphis with a handful of other Oklahoma players before many of them backed away and re-opened their recruitments at the end of October. Memphis remains in the picture still, but it's hard to think if the opening is there Owens won't take a chance at K-State.
- Now, I know what some of you are thinking - We still need a safety in this class that bad? Yes, K-State has Josh Brown in the fold and picked up a commitment from Isaiah Stewart over the weekend as well. That being said, Stewart was not added solely as a safety. Like Antonio Oliver, it's believed the staff will try his hand at nickel as well and make him a jack-of-all-trades type of defensive back.
- So what about that other safety K-State has sought so heavily - Elijah Walker? Well, the Cerritos safety told me yesterday that he remains undecided but has set a decision date. Walker plans to announce on Wednesday, signing his commitment in ink on a national letter of intent. This time when his choice is made public, it will be final.
- Caleb Sampson visited over the weekend and is one of the last remaining options available for K-State. The talented defender is down to the Wildcats and Missouri. It's believed he had a solid visit to Manhattan over the weekend but this will be a tight race to the finish. Sampson says he will make a Signing Day announcement.
- The final recruit still on the market with K-State's sincere interest is of course Daniel Green. The linebacker was at Ole Miss over the weekend on an official visit and, much like his other visits, we haven't heard much. We don't expect to hear anything from Green until Signing Day, when his Madison High Senators host a Signing Day event at 1:45 PST (3:45 CST). My guess is K-State or Utah but it'd be foolish to completely count out Oregon State seeing that they're the local power still involved. If we are able to find out more before then, it will be shared here on GoPowercat.
