Two of nation’s top-ranked juco football players commit to Kansas

By Matt Tait     Jan 27, 2014

Kansas University football recruiting.

Two of the top-ranked junior college players in the country chose Monday night as the night to announce their future plans.

Kansas University’s already deep backfield got a little deeper when DeAndre Mann, the top-ranked junior-college running back in the country according to JCGridiron.com, orally committed to KU Monday evening. A couple of hours later, JayhawkSlant.com broke the news that KU also received an oral commitment from the nation’s No. 2-ranked defensive end, Arizona Western’s Anthony Olobia.

Mann, a 5-foot-10, 205-pound Miami native, chose KU over Georgia State. He drew offers from Miami (Fla.) and Purdue and others, and even turned down an invitation to visit the Hurricanes program he grew up watching.

The powerful back who earned first-team All-American honors after rushing for 1,706 yards and 30 touchdowns for Hartnell College during 2013, said the opportunity to be tutored by coaches with NFL ties and test himself in a power conference played big roles in his decision.

“Growing up in Miami, I have played very good football,” Mann told Jon Kirby of JayhawkSlant.com. “I know people talk a lot about the football in Texas and California but the football in Miami (and Florida) might be the best. Playing in the NFL is one of my childhood dreams. So I thought if I want to prove that I am that good then I need to play in a good conference like the Big 12. I want to prove to people what my skills are.”

Olobia, 6-5, 240, chose Kansas over offers from Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Utah. Olobia made an official visit to Auburn in December and later described the experience as “the perfect visit.” Despite Auburn’s interest, the Rivals.com database shows no offer was ever extended, which helped KU land Olobia.

Mann’s commitment bolsters a KU backfield that already includes returners Brandon Bourbon, Taylor Cox and Darrian Miller, as well as incoming freshman Traevohn Wrench, who is expected to sign his national letter of intent with KU on Feb. 5. Olobia’s commitment gives KU six defensive linemen in the current class, including four defensive ends.

Mann and Olobia become the 22nd and 23rd commitments in KU’s Class of 2014. The Jayhawks have the ability to sign up to three more players in the current class but are likely to leave a spot or two open for potential transfers down the road.

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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.