Okay, let's set the record straight on this kid. I have known this young man for a long time. At one time, I coached him in his younger years. First, he is a young man of character and faith. His faith played a huge role in committing to Wyoming. Second, what the media has been saying about him is true. He really is a good young man and very competitive. His dream has been to eventually end up in the NFL. He has been talking about that since Kindergarten. Yes, I have known that long (I am a close, family friend). Third, his skills have gotten him this far. If you put the ball in his hands, he will make plays. What other schools were after him, you ask? All of the ivy league schools wanted him in addition to Tulsa, Boston College, TCU, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Georgia, Florida State, Florida, New Mexico, Notre Dame, Kansas State, Northwestern, and few others that I cannot remember at this time. The problem he ran into was that his parents, who are both teachers, could not afford to get him to their camps for invites. Therefore, his parents made tough decisions about where he could show what he could do on certain campuses. They mapped out a radius of travel and decided what they could afford and did it. I know that they did travel to Notre Dame and Northwestern during the spring semester of his junior year. They were good trips, but did not amount to much. Kellen's stats I believe would have been just as good in the larger class schools. His parents did take him during the summer to Rivals camps, NUC camps, Blue-Grey, etc. He was invited to one of the NIKE camps, but could not go due to illness. He has competed against many of the young men that have the 4 and 5 stars at these camps. Kellen is not a flashy player. He is a team player and leader amongst his teammates. He has come up short the last two years of the state championship in Missouri. He would tell you in a heartbeat that he would much rather have two more state championships than any of the accolades he received personally. I believe that other schools overlooked him because of his school's class in football. I know he got overlooked for other accolades because of that very issue. Does he have what it takes? We shall see. He is 5'11", 195lbs, runs a 4.5 40, (his game speed our head football coach said was probably even faster and that is on a grass field), benches over 300lbs, squats over 400lbs and cleans just as much.
Lastly, listen to the young man himself with an interview he did just before the semi-final game his school was to play:
http://www.stjoechannel.com/story/d/story/1-on-1-with-hamiltons-kellen-overstreet/33281/vk9-iSEFLEKUAkp75jRmIw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Hopefully, I have set the record straight on this young man and Wyoming is very fortunate to get him. He is truly a diamond in the rough!!
