Marian Catholic’s Austin Alexander commits to Kansas as timing feels right

Austin Alexander didn’t see a point in dragging out his recruitment if he already knew where he wanted to go.

Alexander, a rising senior cornerback from Marian Catholic, heard everything he wanted to hear during his official visit to Kansas this weekend and felt a connection with the coaching staff and players.

So why wait?

He committed to the Jayhawks this weekend, ending the second part of his recruitment.

“I’m super excited,” Alexander said. “Although having the love from so many coaches was fun and cool, it was also a lot of pressure that I didn’t need to have. I’m very excited.”

Alexander committed to Kansas after he reopened his recruitment in January. He originally committed to Wisconsin in October but ultimately decommitted from the Badgers because he felt like he rushed his original decision. Wisconsin changed its coaching staff after firing Paul Chryst and hiring Luke Fickell.

Kansas was one of Alexander’s top five schools even though the Jayhawks were the last program to offer him in April. Illinois, Iowa State, Indiana and Purdue were all pressing for the top cornerback in the state.

“I’m super excited. Although having the love from so many coaches was fun and cool, it was also a lot of pressure that I didn’t need to have. I’m very excited.”

—  Austin Alexander, Marian Catholic cornerback

Alexander had visited the other schools and taken tours to check out their facilities, but he said talking to the players at Kansas really swayed his choice. One transfer told Alexander that he really liked Kansas more than where he previously played because the coaching staff seemed to genuinely care about the players.

Jayhawks defensive backs/defensive pass coordinator Jordan Peterson really impressed Alexander. After talking it through with his family, Alexander decided that he didn’t need to take any more official visits because he knew what each school had to offer. He was set to visit Illinois at the end of the month.

“They’re all genuine,” Alexander said of the Kansas coaching staff. “That was one of the first things my parents said: They were genuine. They weren’t just trying to make me commit on the spot. They weren’t egging me on to commit.”

247Sports and Rivals each list Alexander as a three-star cornerback, with 247Sports ranking him the eighth-best prospect in the state and Rivals listing him as Illinois’ 14th-best.

Alexander earned the CCL/ESCC Purple Defensive Player of the Year award last season after he finished his junior season leading the conference with seven interceptions and had 49 total tackles in six games before breaking his tibia in Week 7. He also scored defensively once and found the end zone three times on offense, finishing with 472 all-purpose yards.

Alexander is at full-go after having his junior season cut short. Now that he’s got his next four years figured out, he’s excited to focus on his senior season and improving his game over the summer.

“It’s great,” Alexander said. “Knowing that I have a home waiting for me in the next year, it feels great.”