Kansas State expected to add large crop of recruits on new early signing day
Kansas State will celebrate college football’s new early signing day by adding a large crop of recruits to its 2018 roster.
The Wildcats are expected to sign 14 committed players on Wednesday, which will leave the coaching staff much less recruiting work than usual when traditional signing day approaches in February.
K-State coaches have been busy on the recruiting trail the past few months — even Bill Snyder made a few trips — and that hard work paid off again Tuesday when E.J. Turner, a three-star receiver from Cartersville, Ga., orally committed to the Wildcats.
Blessed.. pic.twitter.com/XIYaSpCgoI
— Ej Turner® (@E3T__) December 19, 2017
A one-time Rutgers pledge, the 6-foot-1, 175-pound playmaker will provide depth and talent for K-State’s offense. Ranked as the 962nd recruit nationally by 247sports, he checks in as the second-highest rated prospect in K-State’s recruiting class.
The top recruit is Wayne Jones, a three-star safety from Owasso, Okla. The Wildcats fought off strong competition to land the 6-foot, 193-pounder. Jones chose K-State over Michigan State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and Arkansas. He had a mock signing at his high school Tuesday and plans to officially sign on Wednesday.
Wayne Jones (Kansas State) #emaw pic.twitter.com/fgBclXQE9u
— Eric Bailey (@EricBaileyTW) December 19, 2017
In previous years, K-State has lost most recruiting battles against big-name schools, but it won a few this cycle.
Lance Robinson also chose the Wildcats over a host of other power-conference teams. On Tuesday alone, he announced on social media that TCU and West Virginia offered him scholarships. The 5-foot-10 safety from New Orleans plans to sign with K-State on Wednesday , choosing it over Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, South Carolina and Washington State.
The Wildcats also recently flipped defensive end Cartez Crook-Jones from KU and picked up a commitment from his Grandview (Mo.) High School teammate Shane Cherry.
As usual, recruiting experts are low on the recruiting class. Rivals ranks K-State’s 2018 class last in the Big 12 and 76th nationally, while 247sports ranks it ninth in the Big 12 and 71st nationally. But K-State has traditionally found success from its early commitments. This season, they will become early signees.
Kellis Robinett: @kellisrobinett
K-State football commitments
Name | Stars | Position | Ht. | Wt. | High School |
Wayne Jones | 3 | Defensive Back | 6-0 | 193 | Owasso (Owasso, Okla.) |
EJ Turner | 3 | Wide Receiver | 6-0 | 179 | Cartersville (Cartersville, Ga.) |
Christian Duffie | 3 | Offensive Lineman | 6-5 | 300 | Summer Creek (Humble, Texas) |
John Holcombe | 3 | Quarterback | 6-4 | 227 | Summer Creek (Humble, Texas) |
Jaquavius Lane | 3 | Wide Receiver | 5-11 | 172 | Grayson (Loganville, Ga.) |
Lance Robinson | 3 | Defensive Back | 5-10 | 181 | De La Salle (New Orleans, La.) |
Spencer Trussell | 3 | Defensive End | 6-3 | 215 | Martin (Arlington, Texas) |
Ekow Boye-Doe | 3 | Defensive Back | 6-1 | 170 | Lawrence (Lawrence) |
E.J. Thomas | 3 | Defensive Back | 6-1 | 170 | Carver (Atlanta, Ga.) |
Jaylen Pickle | 3 | Defensive Tackle | 6-5 | 260 | Cimarron (Cimarron) |
Kaitori Leveston | 3 | Offensive Lineman | 6-5 | 290 | Midway (Waco, Texas) |
Cartez Crook-Jones | 3 | Defensive End | 6-5 | 230 | Grandview (Grandview, Ga.) |
Darreyl Patterson | 3 | Defensive Back | 6-1 | 185 | Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (Miami, Okla.) |
Shane Cherry | NA | Offensive Lineman | 6-5 | 300 | Grandview (Grandview, Ga.) |
Stars based on 247sports rankings.
This story was originally published December 19, 2017 at 4:39 PM with the headline "Kansas State expected to add large crop of recruits on new early signing day."