by @Alec_Busse
Former Colorado wide receiver commit Wesley Watson took an official visit to Kansas State and saw the Wildcats thrash previously No. 9 Oklahoma State on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Watson’s recruitment has faced a bit of a whirlwind with Colorado head coach Carl Dorrell being fired during the season. Shortly after Dorrell was fired, Kansas State wide receiver coach Thad Ward extended Watson a scholarship offer.
On Monday, Watson announced on Twitter that he had decommitted from Colorado.
https://twitter.com/Wesleyy_8/status/1587095310710579200?s=20&t=WbLt-_8dUHmy6Fk58uER-Q
“Understanding that the CU program is as a whole is in a challenging and delicate position of transition, it is after much prayer and conversation with my family, close friends and trusted advisors in the industry that I have come to the incredibly difficult decision that it is in both my best interest and in the best interest of the Buffalo football program to decommit from the University of Colorado and pursue other scholarship opportunities,” Watson wrote.
Because of Dorrell’s dismissal, Watson decided it was in his best interest to continue to take visits and go through the recruiting process all while remaining committed to Colorado. Part of that process included taking his first visit to Kansas State since receiving the scholarship offer from the Wildcats.
“It was awesome,” Watson said. “The fans really support football and you can tell it’s a big part of the community. The sell-out game, I mean, that was huge. Then, storming the field after, that was pretty cool to see, so I’m glad I got to be part of it.”
Watson recently suffered a broken fibula, so he was on crutches while Kansas State students and fans rushed the field to celebrate the Wildcats’ 48-0 trouncing of the Cowboys. The top-ranked 2023 Kansas State commit, quarterback Avery Johnson, helped push people away from Watson, so they wouldn’t bump into him.
“It was cool,” Watson said of being able to spend time with Johnson during the weekend. “His mom came up and introduced herself to me and make it clear that he wants to throw me the ball. So that was cool just to be around him, and just kind of see what kind of player he is. He has the same goals in mind, and that’s just to win games.”
Johnson was excited to get to show Watson what K-State was like, “it was great. He’s a great guy and I can already tell he’s going to be a great wideout at the next level. Hopefully, he decides he wants to be a part of the class we have put together!”
The three-star College Station, Texas, native also spent time visiting with the Kansas State coaching staff, riding on a golf cart through tailgating lots on Saturday before the game and dinner and bowling.
Kansas State wide receiver coach Thad Ward is leading the Wildcats’ recruitment for Watson.
“It’s been very short,” Watson said of his relationship with Ward. “I mean, they offered me a couple of weeks ago, but over the short period of time, we’ve built a great relationship. He’s made it clear that he wants me to be in the program and that he wants to coach me.
“He hits me up every day just calling and checking up on me, asking how everything’s been. That shows how he cares about his players. He’s going to coach you hard, but he’s going to love you hard.”
Wesley’s timeline for finding a new place to play college football isn’t entirely clear at this point, but the three-star prospect does want to make a decision before the early signing period.
