No 2007 recruit took in more spring practices last month than Coeur d'Alene
(Idaho) Lake City High School standout Carson York. The 6'4.5" offensive
tackle flew into town with his parents and, with fortuitous scheduling, took in
the Cardinal's first three days of spring ball. Already the owner of a
Stanford offer, York was looking to learn about the lone school among his six
offers outside the Pacific Northwest.
"I wanted to answer my curiosity," he says. "I wanted to see what's
going on on campus. Check out the area and see what the surroundings are
like. And assess the program - the team, the coaches and the players - to
gauge the atmosphere around all that."
Running down his checklist, here is what York found on The Farm:
Campus: "I thought I had seen some nice campuses, but Stanford
was by far the most amazing and beautiful campus I have ever seen. I don't
think anything will be able to top it. It's California, so you knew about
the weather. It rained pretty good the first day, but I actually got
sunburn the second day. The buildings are so nice. Everything on
campus is so well kept. And there are no giant dorms or buildings.
On a giant campus, it gives you the feeling that it's smaller."
Area: "Saturday night we had dinner in downtown Palo Alto.
Palo Alto downtown is just like my hometown. I know of like the fact that
San Francisco is not too far, but Menlo Park/Palo Alto doesn't have that
downtown city feeling."
Team: "It was pretty obvious how Coach [Walt] Harris runs his
practices. It's a pretty high intensity level. I like how Coach
[Doug] Sams works with the tackles. I went to meetings, and I was pretty
impressed with how thorough they are in meetings."
Stanford clearly made a big splash with York, but they have not been the only
suitor on his mind in recent weeks. He additionally took an unofficial
trip to see Oregon and Oregon State during their spring practices. The
tackle has also been targeted by more schools, with new offers coming from
Arizona State and Northwestern.
"I get the feeling that Colorado is close to offering," he adds. "Coach
[Chris] Strausser came by my school this week and liked my highlight tape.
He took a game tape with him and said he will watch it when he gets home this
weekend. Then he'll text me."
The offers he is amassing, the unofficial visits that he has taken and the
research he has been conducting all point toward a decision sooner rather than
later for York. While he would prefer to make his college commitment
before the start of his senior season, the Idaho native has to take a step back
each time a new school throws their hat into the ring.
"I think I have a pretty good gauge of what's going on," York says.
"The problem is with each new offer or visit, it gets complicated again."
"I have no idea right now. I did a while back, but then it all
changed," he adds.
At this point, York says that he can envision two different scenarios for
closing out his recruitment. Which path he takes depends upon how soon he
can winnow his list of schools.
"If I can narrow to two this summer, then I will take quick unofficial visits
to both and make my decision," the recruit reveals. "If I can only narrow
to three schools by the fall, then I will take official visits to two or three
schools. Either way, it will be early in the fall or sometime this
summer."
"I need to get to a place where I can say that there is no other place I
would rather be," York describes. "I need to be sure that this is the
place for me."
While the cerebral offensive line recruit is not naming any favorite(s)
today, he does give high marks to the Cardinal after his April visit to the
campus.
"I think just the fact that Stanford is Stanford, with arguably the best
education in the world, sets them apart," York allows. "Stanford provides
me the education, and I still have the chance to play the highest level of
competition. I think Stanford will always be in my top group."
York solidified his place in Stanford's top group of recruits in this 2007
class by receiving his April SAT score. He notched a balanced 1830, with a
600 math, 610 reading and 620 writing.
"Coach [Nate] Nelson was pleased and sent me an application, so that's
something I'll get working on," York states.
Are you fully subscribed to The Bootleg?
If not, then you are missing out on all the top Cardinal coverage we provide
daily on our website, as well as our full-length feature articles in our glossy
magazine. Sign up today for the biggest and best in Stanford sports coverage
with TheBootleg.com (sign-up)
and The Bootleg Magazine (sign-up)!