By Mark Pszonak
Some schools have the advantage of playing in talent rich states like Florida, Texas, California and Georgia, while many others must branch out to find players. For these schools it is more important to keep their top in-state players home, which is what Louisville continued to do earlier this week with the commitment of top running back Evan Hampton.
https://twitter.com/Evanhampton34/status/1901780142021591282
Hampton, 6-foot-0 and 210-pounds, plays his high school football at Owensboro (KY), where he rushed for 1,549 yards and 20 touchdowns during his junior season. He committed to the Cardinals over Michigan, Indiana and NC State.
Hampton is already the third important Class of 2026 in-state commitment for the Cardinals, following wide receiver Marlon Harbin and linebacker Karsten Busch, who both play for St. Xavier in Louisville. Another local talent, offensive lineman David Pellman, is also seriously considering the Cardinals after receiving an offer almost a year ago.
This does not bode well for Kentucky, who is in the same boat as the Cardinals with needing to keep the limited top-level talent in the state home. One rival is accomplishing this, while the other is striking out. A great deal of recruiting has to deal with positive buzz, which is currently lacking in Lexington and that is showing.
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Overall, both schools have done an adequate job in recent years keeping in-state talent home, but a number of top players have also gotten away. Just a few that signed with out-of-state schools in the last ten years include TE Michael Mayer (Notre Dame), OT Walker Parks (Clemson), WR Wan’dale Robinson (Nebraska), DE Stephen Herron (Stanford), WR Rondale Moore (Purdue) and OT Jedrick Wills (Alabama).
For now, Louisville is taking advantage of its rivals shortcomings. Another bad season in Lexington will only make it easier for the Cardinals to lockdown its state. One schools shortcomings are another schools bounty.
