The Kent State football coaching staff was able to take advantage of the bye week and catch up on some recruiting this weekend. Kenni Burns and his staff hit the road and connected with members of their current class of 2025 verbal commits and also looked at future talent.
I was at Avon, covering the Avon vs. Berea-Midpark game, which meant I had a chance to watch quarterback recruit Nolan Good. Burns and offensive coordinator Mark Carney were there for the first half and they had to be impressed with Good. He was able to flash his dual threat ability and improved arm strength.
Two other Northeast Ohio receivers in the class of 2026 received offers from KSU as Avon Lake’s Aidan Stewart and St. Edward’s Zach Hackleman are two of the top receivers in the state.
Burns was asked about the weekend trips around the state and his current class of 2025.
“This is a very talented recruiting class we’re bringing in and we’ve got to hang on to them for sure,” Burns said. “But when you put that class with the class we just signed, my first class, its a talented back to back recruiting class. I think you guys can see the class we just brought in, how talented it is with the freshmen that are playing right now. They’re all impacting the game in a positive way, with this group you just saw it’s probably just as good if not better than the class we just signed so, we gotta keep hanging onto these guys, building relationships and re-selling our brand, we were out there doing that this week.”
Kent State has seen positive contributions from their current freshman class with Ayden Harris, Jaire Rawlison, Jayden Studio, Elijah Williams and Da’Shawn Martin among others, who have made a significant impact.
Burns and staff are trying to take advantage of the trends and changes in college football. With the transfer portal and NIL, recruiting seems more transactional than ever. KSU looks to provide a great experience and be more transformational in their approach.
“I think recruiting is the number one thing, when you talk about cultural rebuilds, and that’s what we’re doing here, getting guys to buy into what we’re selling, and what we’re selling is this idea of investing,” Burns said at his Monday press conference. “Investing in you, which I think is not very common right now in college football, four-year investment into your life and making sure you obtain a meaningful degree and a championship on the football field, and I think parents are gravitating to that. It was exciting to get back around those guys and watch them play in their element, which is what our coaching staff did, and we were not disappointed in it at all.”
Kent State hosts Ball State this Saturday at noon at Dix Stadium.