"I'm always making somebody smile," he said.

Owens said he's able to put smiles on faces just by "being me." But that doesn't keep him from occasionally being someone else.

Muskogee coach Matt Hennesy said Owens does impressions of Bill Cosby and Shaquille O'Neal. Sometimes, while warming up for punting duties last season, Owens pretended he was from Jamaica. Hennesy isn't sure if the Jamaican character had a name, but when Owens was Jamaican it fun for everyone else.

"I've told him that if he doesn't make it in the league (NFL) that he can always make it in Hollywood," Hennesy said.

"He's got one of the best personalities and has as good a sense of humor as I've ever seen on a kid."

Owens has a big performance scheduled Feb. 8, 2008, and he's going to unveil a new trick. With the aid of a simple prop (an ink pen), he will make an entire fan base smile. How? He will sign a national letter of intent and some college -- maybe one near you -- will enlist a player who is either 1 or 1A among the state's top football prospects.

Owens is the state's No. 1 player and Guthrie's Kye Staley (committed to Oklahoma State) is No. 2, according to Rivals.com. Staley is No. 1 and Owens is No. 2, according to Scout.com. Both services agree that Muskogee defensive lineman Stacey McGee is the state's No. 3 prospect.

Owens will probably wait until the last possible minute to choose a school. He doesn't want to rush into a wrong decision, so he'll weigh pros and cons with his mother and a longtime father figure.

"You can't go to a school because your friends like it," Owens said. "This is the one time that you have to be selfish and choose for yourself."

Owens' finalists are -- in no particular order -- Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Tennessee and Florida. He has visited OSU and Texas Tech and intends to tour OU this weekend. Other visits are scheduled, but one will get canceled if he decides to promote Missouri to his list of trip-worthy schools.

Because Owens is a funny guy, perhaps he is eminently qualified to deal with the funny business in recruiting.

"Since I've been doing this, I know what's recruiting talk and what's true," he said. "I listen to what the coaches have to say. If it's just recruiting talk, I just keep it to myself. You can pretty much tell which teams want you and which teams need you."

To hear Owens tell it, there is a difference between want and need. "A team that needs you is going to try to whatever they can -- within the NCAA rules -- to get you to their program," he said. "And a team that wants you is going to write you and call and not try as hard. The teams that I have narrowed it down to have done all that they can to get me interested in their program."

What if Owens was recruiting himself? "I would tell the truth. I wouldn't lie."

Too bad this won't show up on a transcript, but Owens is getting an after-school life lesson. People will tell you anything to get what they want.

Owens immediately views with suspicion any recruiter whose sales pitch includes the words "start right away." It makes him wonder if other recruits (or last year's recruits) got the same spiel. Plus, Owens should be keen enough to know any player given a starting position won't be respected by teammates. He prefers to be told he will have a chance to compete for a job.

Owens admits he is getting a little tired of the recruiting process. But he's not complaining because it's flattering to be courted and he knows plenty of others would like to be in his position.

Speaking of position, Owens' cell phone sometimes is in the "off" position. Otherwise, the darned thing tends to ring at all hours and even the nation's sixth-best receiver (according to Rivals.com) needs to sleep at night.

Of course, Owens could have a little fun when he answers the phone and impersonate Cosby or Shaq or even a Jamaican. But Hollywood -- and those who want his signature -- can wait.

"He's a can't-miss player," Hennesy said. "He's got a good work ethic. He's got unbelievable skills, obviously, and he's a good team player. He's everything you want in a player."

Maybe that explains why Owens is so wanted.