5-star recruit Jeremiah Robinson-Earl down to Kansas and Villanova

By Matt Tait     Oct 25, 2018

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Kansas basketball recruits, from left to right, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Cassius Stanley and James Wiseman, take in the scene at Late Night in the Phog on Friday, Sept. 28, 2018.

According to a Thursday text message sent from Jeremiah Robinson-Earl’s mother, Katie Robinson, to KUsports.com recruiting insider Matt Scott, the No. 10-ranked player in the 2019 recruiting class is down to two programs — Kansas and Villanova.

Robinson-Earl has long been at the top of KU’s wish list in the 2019 class and he remains there as his recruitment nears an end.

Earlier this month, Katie Robinson told Scott that her son would make a decision in the next few weeks and many have speculated that it could come on or before his birthday, Nov. 3.

The IMG Academy forward who hails from Kansas City and played his first three years of high school ball at nearby Bishop Miege High eliminated Arizona, North Carolina and Notre Dame from his list of finalists.

In doing so, the race to the finish is down to two programs that have crossed paths a lot during recent years. KU and Villanova met deep in the NCAA Tournament in both 2016 and 2018 and the two will square off on Dec. 15 at Allen FIeldhouse this season in the first installment of a home-and-home clash that will end up being part of the recently announced Big 12-Big East series slated to begin next season.

Beyond that, Jay Wright and Bill Self have led their programs to the most success of just about any program in the country during the past five years, constantly factoring into the national championship picture and winning a lot of games along the way.

While KU has always been a big player in Robinson-Earl’s recruitment, Villanova has made its move late.

Kansas assistant Norm Roberts was at IMG earlier this week to check in on Robinson-Earl, who, at 6-foot-9, 235 pounds, is the definition of a five-star prospect who can do just about whatever he wants on the basketball floor.

Rivals.com recruiting analyst Eric Bossi recently wrote, “Kansas has been considered the team to beat for some time, but Villanova has made a strong case to get this deep into the recruitment. It’s a closer call than many figured it would be.”

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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.