by Bill Seals
Iowa State’s unofficial visitors over the past month have not come away disappointed with the coaching staff’s detailed approach on selling them on the program during their time on campus.
One Class of 2017 recruit especially impressed by the detail was St. Louis Park (Minn.) Benilde St. Margaret’s offensive lineman Eric Wilson.
“I went into a room with Coach (Tom) Manning and Coach (Matt) Campbell and they broke down some film about previous players they’ve had and compared it to some of my clips from my game film,” said Wilson.
“That really impressed me, because it showed they went deeper into my game film and not just my highlights to find out the type of player I am. They compared me to other players they’ve had in the past on the offensive line. That was probably my favorite part of the trip.”
Recruited to play either guard or center, Wilson said the coaches gave him high marks for his play on the field.
“They really like my road-grader mentality,” he said. “I try not to stop on a play without putting my man on the ground. That’s my goal and how I know that I’ve done my job – I’ve made sure my guy won’t tackle the quarterback or running back. Another part is they think I’m going to be good on the interior O-line.”
In addition to the Xs and Os portion of his trip, the 6-foot-4, 280-pound Wilson came away impressed with the coaches and everyone surrounding the program.
“It’s always a place I’ve heard good things about. I went down there knowing it was a great place and great coaches have come in and taken over. One of the best things about the visit was the great coaches and spending time with them. I toured the facilities and they are spectacular.
“The fans were super nice wherever you went. The people of Ames were really fun to be around. They were genuinely nice people. Everybody seems really excited about Iowa State football and from all the great facilities that they have it’s easy to see why.”
The third-ranked player in the state of Minnesota for the Class of 2017, Wilson already has several FBS offers with ISU as the lone Power-5 offer to date.
The offensive lineman said he’s at the beginning stages of his recruitment and in no hurry to make a commitment.
“I have a lot of options right now,” Wilson said. “I’m going to take everything in slowly, since it’s still my junior year. I’m going to take some trips. I don’t want to turn something down without seeing what it has to offer. Right now I’m undecided and everything is kind of equal.”
Wilson said he would like to return to Ames in the coming weeks for a spring practice, and said he expects to see Cyclone coaches during the upcoming evaluation period.
Iowa State’s unofficial visitors over the past month have not come away disappointed with the coaching staff’s detailed approach on selling them on the program during their time on campus.
One Class of 2017 recruit especially impressed by the detail was St. Louis Park (Minn.) Benilde St. Margaret’s offensive lineman Eric Wilson.
“I went into a room with Coach (Tom) Manning and Coach (Matt) Campbell and they broke down some film about previous players they’ve had and compared it to some of my clips from my game film,” said Wilson.
“That really impressed me, because it showed they went deeper into my game film and not just my highlights to find out the type of player I am. They compared me to other players they’ve had in the past on the offensive line. That was probably my favorite part of the trip.”
Recruited to play either guard or center, Wilson said the coaches gave him high marks for his play on the field.
“They really like my road-grader mentality,” he said. “I try not to stop on a play without putting my man on the ground. That’s my goal and how I know that I’ve done my job – I’ve made sure my guy won’t tackle the quarterback or running back. Another part is they think I’m going to be good on the interior O-line.”
In addition to the Xs and Os portion of his trip, the 6-foot-4, 280-pound Wilson came away impressed with the coaches and everyone surrounding the program.
“It’s always a place I’ve heard good things about. I went down there knowing it was a great place and great coaches have come in and taken over. One of the best things about the visit was the great coaches and spending time with them. I toured the facilities and they are spectacular.
“The fans were super nice wherever you went. The people of Ames were really fun to be around. They were genuinely nice people. Everybody seems really excited about Iowa State football and from all the great facilities that they have it’s easy to see why.”
The third-ranked player in the state of Minnesota for the Class of 2017, Wilson already has several FBS offers with ISU as the lone Power-5 offer to date.
The offensive lineman said he’s at the beginning stages of his recruitment and in no hurry to make a commitment.
“I have a lot of options right now,” Wilson said. “I’m going to take everything in slowly, since it’s still my junior year. I’m going to take some trips. I don’t want to turn something down without seeing what it has to offer. Right now I’m undecided and everything is kind of equal.”
Wilson said he would like to return to Ames in the coming weeks for a spring practice, and said he expects to see Cyclone coaches during the upcoming evaluation period.
