Will QB recruit enroll early at OSU? Decision comes after Bedlam visit
Published: 11/29/2011 5:26 PM
Last Modified: 11/29/2011 5:29 PM
Wes Lunt, who last week led the Rochester Rockets to their second consecutive Illinois Class 4A state title, is the only quarterback on Oklahoma State’s 2012 commitment list.
Will the 6-foot-5 Lunt, who passed for 506 yards in the title game, graduate early from high school and enroll at OSU for the spring semester? As of Tuesday, Rochester coach Derek Leonard told the Tulsa World, Lunt remained undecided.
If Lunt does enroll early, he would participate in spring practice and challenge returning QBs Clint Chelf and J.W. Walsh for the Cowboys’ starting job.
Lunt and his parents are attending Saturday’s Bedlam game in Stillwater. Lunt toured the stadium during an unofficial summer visit, but he hasn’t yet attended a Cowboy home game.
Next week, Leonard said, Lunt is expected to make his decision on whether to graduate early. Lunt also is an outstanding shooting guard for the Rochester basketball team.
“Honestly, I have no idea what he’ll do,” Leonard said. “I think he kind of wants to stay for the rest of his senior year, but he understands and he’s a competitor. He’s being pulled two ways. It’s a tough decision.
“His parents will support him, either way. They’re going to let him do what he wants.”
What is Leonard’s opinion on the matter?
“I see both sides,” he said. “Usually – 98 percent of the time – I would say that a kid should stay for his senior year. But Wes is special, obviously, and this is a special situation. I think (OSU coaches) would like for him to come early because they have only two scholarship quarterbacks coming back.
“Wes doesn’t have much time to make a decision. Now, all of a sudden, it’s hitting him and hitting him fast.”
After missing Rochester’s first four games because of a foot injury, Lunt wound up with a nine-game total of more than 3,000 passing yards. He is listed at 210 pounds, but, Leonard says, “he’s probably just a little over 200 right now. He’s not skin and bones, you know, but he’s not a middle linebacker either. He’s just now maturing.
“It’s going to be scary when he develops his upper body, because he can throw the dang ball now. He can sling it.”
-- Bill Haisten
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
