New Jersey defensive end picks KU football

By Matt Tait     Sep 19, 2013

Austin Stevens, a 6-4, 245-pound defensive end from Montclair (N.J.) High orally committed to KU on Thursday, according to JayhawkSlant.com.

Stevens, a two-star prospect, chose KU over offers from Boston College, Buffalo, UMass, Rutgers and Temple.

Stevens and Montclair teammate Darius Slade — a 6-5, 237-pound three-star defensive end — have said throughout the recruiting process that they like the idea of playing college ball together, so this could be a good development for the Jayhawks. Slade currently has a top five of Kansas, Michigan State, Pitt, Rutgers, and West Virginia. There is no known timetable for his decision.

Stevens becomes the eighth player in the Class of 2014 to commit to Kansas, joining offensive linemen Jacob Bragg and Apa Visinia, Free State High safety Joe Dineen, defensive back Andre Maloney, wide receiver Tyler Patrick, linebacker Kyron Watson and running back Traevohn Wrench.

PREV POST

Opurum released, McDougald added for practice squad

NEXT POST

43116New Jersey defensive end picks KU football

Author Photo

Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.