Cyclone coaches liked what they saw of a central Iowa tight end this week during an in-school visit and head coach Matt Campbell called with an offer on Friday morning.

Urbandale Class of 2021 prospect Max Llewellyn, who took unofficial visits to Iowa State for games against Texas and Louisiana-Monroe, said he saw Derek Hoodjer this week.

“Their recruiting coordinator came to see me lift a few times,” said Llewellyn. “Coach Campbell called and said he’d seen my tape and I was really aggressive, which is what he’s all about. He said I’d seen Jack Trice Stadium a few times and know what we’re all about, so he wanted to offer me a scholarship.

“I was kind of shocked. This is my first Power-5 offer, so I’m extremely happy. Afterwards, we started talking about family and what’s going on at home. We planned my next visit and I’m coming up tomorrow instead of March 7th.”

Already having earned MAC offers from Miami (Ohio), Northern Illinois and Western Michigan, along with FCS power Illinois State, Llewellyn said he was left speechless by Campbell’s news.

“I’ve told my parents about him calling me,” he said. “It’s been my dream to be a D1 player, let alone a Power-5 player. Then when he made the offer, my heart kind of dropped. I wanted to say thanks, but couldn’t really get the words out. It’s just awesome.”

Saturday’s visit to Ames will be Llewellyn’s third since the start of his recruiting process. He says the two game day visits make a great impression on him.

“The atmosphere is just insane,” he said. “I’ve never been to anything as crazy as Jack Trice Stadium is when they’re playing. The facilities are really organized and they’re ready to go. It’s great seeing them in pre-game, they’re all about business and aren’t there to mess around. It’s great. I love the feel that I got. I’m all about what they do.”

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Llewellyn actually put up bigger numbers as a defensive end during the 2019 season, recording 25 tackles, 11.5 tackles-for-loss and four sacks. He caught five passes for 78 yards.

I-State looked beyond those numbers, offering the Urbandale junior an offensive role.

“It was our personnel and our offense,” Llewellyn said. “We don’t really run a tight end set as much. Every time we ran it, it was like a highlight. I had a great year at defensive end, but the fullback and tight end highlights combined to give me that look at the tight end spot.”

Getting an in-person look twice at ISU twice this season, Llewellyn said he likes the way offense incorporates the position he’s being recruited to play.

“Their tight ends are a lot more involved in passing than I thought,” he said. “Those guys get tons of yards every game. I’m all about that. I love blocking, too. Their tight ends are shifting around, blocking and catching balls. I love how they use those guys and it’s a great offense.”

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