by Bill Seals
An Alabama high school three-star recruit with ties to the state of Iowa is approaching 30 scholarship offers, so it might be hard for a new Iowa State staff to stick out in the pack. But that hasn’t stopped Matt Campbell and his fearless group of recruiters from trying.
Killen Brooks junior Colin Anderson has several Power-5 offers to his name, including both Iowa State and Iowa, and is planning on unofficial visits to both schools in the coming weeks.
“Iowa State is still in constant contact with me,” said Anderson, who has offers from the likes of Arkansas, California, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Wake Forest.
“At least every other day, someone from the coaching staff sends a text to me. I talked to Coach (Matt) Campbell the other night. They’re persistent with their recruiting. They’re probably one of the schools that’s recruiting me the hardest and that’s definitely something I’ve noticed.”
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Anderson’s mother was raised in State Center. Anderson himself was born in Iowa City, and the family moved to Gurnee, Illinois, shortly thereafter where he lived until entering elementary school. The Andersons then moved to central Iowa, where Anderson attended St. Pius for a few years before enrolling at Crossroads in the West Des Moines school district. The family ultimately moved again, this time to Alabama, when Anderson was in seventh grade. Such is life when as his father has been in the pharmaceutical sales industry, Anderson said.
Assistant coach Tyson Veidt has spearheaded Anderson’s recruitment, with Campbell also playing a heavy role. During their recruiting efforts, the Cyclone coaches have certainly focused on Anderson’s history in the state of Iowa and the fact he still has family there.
“They’re pretty aware of the fact I’m from Iowa,” Anderson said. “They know that I have a lot of family that are Iowa State fans. I know all about that Hilton Magic and stuff like that. Last summer, my cousin Paige married Drake Ferch, who just played for and graduated from Iowa State, and I was at the wedding. My mom is one of seven children and five of which are still in Iowa. So I have a lot of cousins up there.”
Anderson has also drawn comparisons to current linebacker commit Jake Hummel, of West Des Moines Dowling Catholic.
“They like my athleticism and physicality,” Anderson said. “They think I’m very similar to Jake Hummel, a commit that they already have that I played against in youth football. They’d really like me to play on the outside, since I’m still kind of growing. My dad is 6-foot-5 and his dad is 6-foot-8, so I have a little more room to grow.”
I-State will get its first opportunity to make an impression on Anderson in the next few weeks, as he and his family are planning on visiting family in Iowa.
“My mom loves to come up there to see her family, so we’ll be back up in Iowa for two weeks,” Anderson said. “We plan on visiting both Iowa and Iowa State around the Fourth of July."
An Alabama high school three-star recruit with ties to the state of Iowa is approaching 30 scholarship offers, so it might be hard for a new Iowa State staff to stick out in the pack. But that hasn’t stopped Matt Campbell and his fearless group of recruiters from trying.
Killen Brooks junior Colin Anderson has several Power-5 offers to his name, including both Iowa State and Iowa, and is planning on unofficial visits to both schools in the coming weeks.
“Iowa State is still in constant contact with me,” said Anderson, who has offers from the likes of Arkansas, California, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Wake Forest.
“At least every other day, someone from the coaching staff sends a text to me. I talked to Coach (Matt) Campbell the other night. They’re persistent with their recruiting. They’re probably one of the schools that’s recruiting me the hardest and that’s definitely something I’ve noticed.”
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Anderson’s mother was raised in State Center. Anderson himself was born in Iowa City, and the family moved to Gurnee, Illinois, shortly thereafter where he lived until entering elementary school. The Andersons then moved to central Iowa, where Anderson attended St. Pius for a few years before enrolling at Crossroads in the West Des Moines school district. The family ultimately moved again, this time to Alabama, when Anderson was in seventh grade. Such is life when as his father has been in the pharmaceutical sales industry, Anderson said.
Assistant coach Tyson Veidt has spearheaded Anderson’s recruitment, with Campbell also playing a heavy role. During their recruiting efforts, the Cyclone coaches have certainly focused on Anderson’s history in the state of Iowa and the fact he still has family there.
“They’re pretty aware of the fact I’m from Iowa,” Anderson said. “They know that I have a lot of family that are Iowa State fans. I know all about that Hilton Magic and stuff like that. Last summer, my cousin Paige married Drake Ferch, who just played for and graduated from Iowa State, and I was at the wedding. My mom is one of seven children and five of which are still in Iowa. So I have a lot of cousins up there.”
Anderson has also drawn comparisons to current linebacker commit Jake Hummel, of West Des Moines Dowling Catholic.
“They like my athleticism and physicality,” Anderson said. “They think I’m very similar to Jake Hummel, a commit that they already have that I played against in youth football. They’d really like me to play on the outside, since I’m still kind of growing. My dad is 6-foot-5 and his dad is 6-foot-8, so I have a little more room to grow.”
I-State will get its first opportunity to make an impression on Anderson in the next few weeks, as he and his family are planning on visiting family in Iowa.
“My mom loves to come up there to see her family, so we’ll be back up in Iowa for two weeks,” Anderson said. “We plan on visiting both Iowa and Iowa State around the Fourth of July."
