Iowa State potentially added another quickness and speed component to its future offensive mix on Monday as Allen (Tex.) receiver Carson Schleker announced his verbal commitment to the Cyclones.
Schleker is a 5-foot-9, 180-pounder from traditional Texas football powerhouse Allen High School. He visited ISU in May and chose the Cyclones from over 20 total scholarship offers, including ten from Power 5 schools.
For Schleker, the decision centered on making a connection with coaches.
“It came down to the coaching staff for me,” Schleker said. “Coach Gasser, Coach Campbell, Coach Hofher. I’ve gotten to know them and I got to know them even better when I visited. That’s who I will be working with as a player and that was really the main thing for me.”
Other things about Iowa State impressed Schleker as well. He said the Cyclones football facilities impressed him greatly on his visit to Ames last month. Schleker also said his conversations with current ISU players weighed heavily in his decision because “they love it there.”
According to Schleker, the I-State offensive coaching staff sees him as a versatile weapon to have at their disposal.
“They’re going to play me everywhere,” Schleker said. “That’s what they said: everywhere. That is pretty exciting as a player.”
Arizona, Illinois, Kansas, Louisville Minnesota, Utah, Washington State, West Virginia and Wisconsin were the other P5 schools to offer Schleker up to this point. He also said he’s been in contact with Oklahoma. Schleker indicated Arizona, Illinois and West Virginia were the other schools of most interest to him, ultimately ranking behind Iowa State.
Schleker, who is a friend of incoming Cyclone wide receiver Josh Johnson via their mutual participation in 7-on-7 tournaments, said he plans to take his official visit to Iowa State during the season so he can attend a Cyclone home game in Ames.
Schleker is currently the 12th verbal commitment in Iowa State’s 2018 class that ranks 43rd nationally as of today, according to Rivals.com. He’s the second receiver in the class along with fellow Texan Sterling Galban.
