Chicago Heights (Ill.) Bloom Township junior defensive end prospect Micheal Garner (6-foot-7, 245 pounds) was able to add his first FCS scholarship offer late last week from Western Illinois University. Garner talks about adding his first offer and more in this latest recruiting update.
"The coach from WIU DM'ed me and asked me to call him back," Garner said. "I was in basketball practice and called them back as soon as I can and that's when they offered me a scholarship."
Garner discussed his initial impressions from adding his first FCS level offer from the in-state WIU Leathernecks.
"I knew that my coaches at school had been talking to the WIU coaches about me, but I had no idea that they would reach out and offer me a scholarship. I was definitely surprised with the offer. I really don't know much about WIU and I really had no contact with them until they asked me to call them. I definitely will do some research on WIU soon. I also haven't visited WIU yet but I'm hoping to go out and visit them sometime soon. It's definitely exciting to add my first offer from WIU."
Has Garner seen a spike in recruiting interest since landing his WIU offer?
"It was pretty crazy how much my cell and notifications blew up after I posted the offer from WIU. I got a ton of follows from college coaches after that came out. I've been in touch more lately with the coaches from Eastern Michigan, Holy Cross, New Mexico State along with some of the coaches from Toledo. NIU was the first school to really show interest in me and I talked with them quite a bit."
Next up for Garner is the IHSA state basketball playoffs starting tonight against Rich Township.
"I'm focused on school along with the state basketball playoffs. We play Rich Township on Wednesday night and hopefully we can get on a roll in the state playoffs."
So what factors will Garner look for in a potential school?
"I'm just looking for a school that's the best fit for me. I'm looking for a school that offers a strong academic base along with finding a school where I feel I just fit in."
Micheal Garner has a scholarship offer from Western Illinois University.
