King commits to WVU
Akron (Oh.) St. Vincent-St. Mary cornerback DeAmonte King became the latest commitment for West Virginia in the class of 2017 Tuesday when he announced his pledge for the Mountaineers.
King, 5-foot-11, 175-pounds, received his first power five offer from West Virginia when he made a campus visit in mid-March and the Mountaineers quickly rose to the top of his list. That gap only widened over fellow finalists Toledo and Akron after another unofficial visit in early June.
“Growing up I always wanted to play there. I love the coaching staff and the atmosphere. I always wanted to play on a big stage so I like that,” King said.
Cornerbacks coach Blue Adams handled the bulk of the Rivals.com three-star prospect’s recruitment and after the two met during his visit at the Greenbrier for the spring game a bond was built. From there, Adams became a central point in the recruitment of King and made him a priority.
“I talk to coach Adams a lot,” he said.
West Virginia is in need of cornerbacks in the 2017 recruiting class and King sees the opportunity to get on the field early for the Mountaineers while playing on the biggest stage in the Big 12 Conference. Defensive coordinator Tony Gibson and offensive line coach Ron Crook also played a role in recruiting the versatile defensive back.
“This is a really good opportunity to come in and earn a spot,” King said. “They think that I can come in and make some big plays.”
Also a track athlete, King competes in the 4x2, 400, 4x4 and 200 and that speed is evident on the football field as he can cover plenty of ground in the secondary.
King also received offers from programs such as Boston College, Toledo, Western Michigan, Kent State, Buffalo, Akron, Ohio and interest from several other such as Michigan State, Ohio State and Cincinnati. His final three came down to West Virginia, Toledo and Akron with the Mountaineers getting the edge.
The versatile defensive back becomes the eighth commitment for West Virginia in the class of 2017 and is the second cornerback to pick the Mountaineers in this cycle behind Scranton (Pa.) Lackawanna College athlete Alex Woods.
