Jacksonville (Ill.) senior quarterback recruit Elijah Owens (6-foot-2, 213 pounds) was able to wrap up his recruiting process over the Memorial Day weekend and gave Indiana State his verbal commitment. Owens checks in and discusses his pledge to the Indiana State Sycamore in this latest recruiting update.

"It just felt right to me at Indiana State," Owens said. "I made a recent visit to Indiana State with my family and we loved it there. It just felt like the place I need to be and I'm happy and excited about my decision."

Owens, who was offered and recruited by the Indiana State staff as a quarterback recruit pointed towards a few key factors in his college decision.

"Indiana State has a great group of coaches, and I get along really well with them including new offensive coordinator Mike Bath and head coach Curt Mallory. They play in a great conference (Missouri Valley) and it's also close enough so that my family can come see my games. A lot of the rival schools for Indiana State are even closer to home so it works out great for my family and friends. I was also the first quarterback offer from Coach Bath since he's been at Indiana State and that meant a lot to me and shows that he believes in me."

So why did Owens make his decision now before the start of the summer camp season?

"I just didn't want to miss out on a great opportunity at Indiana State. I can just focus now on my team and my senior season without having to deal with or worry about recruiting. The visit I made to Indiana State really was also a big factor. I was able to see everything, experience everything along with just getting a much better feel for the coaches and the entire program at Indiana State. I was ready to make my decision so why wait, so I committed and I feel great about my decision."

So which other schools did Owens consider before committing to Indiana State?

"Illinois State was a school I looked at pretty hard along with Army, WIU, Western Michigan and Yale. Illinois State recruited me as a wide receiver/safety recruit for them, but in the end I just feel that I'm a quarterback."

Owens is now excited and preparing for his upcoming senior season.

"I'm excited for my senior year to get here. We should be pretty good this coming season. We bring back a lot of kids on offense and the younger guys have been working hard. I think everyone will see me more willing to stay in the pocket and throw the football more. I'm much more patience in the pocket now and my goal is to always complete 70 percent or higher along with passing for 20 touchdowns and running for 10 more touchdowns. The main goal is always winning games and leading my team and I want to get us back into the state playoffs and make a deep playoff run."

Elijah Owens is verbally committed to Indiana State University.