TE Palella commits to Central Michigan
Bartlett (Ill.) senior tight end recruit Alec Palella (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) had decided to give Central Michigan his verbal commitment. Palella discusses his college decision and much more here.
"Central Michigan was my first offer and they have been with me for a long time," Palella said. "I have been able to build a strong relationship with all of the coaches at Central Michigan and that bond really made all the difference. I'm excited to commit to Central Michigan."
Palella pointed towards a few key factors in pledging to the CMU Chippewas.
"Getting a chance to drive out and see the campus at Central Michigan was important to me. I really enjoyed just walking around campus and getting a good feel for what the school has to offer. The coaches at CMU couldn't meet me or have any sort of contact when I was visiting, but they really made sure I was able to see everything I wanted to see. Besides the relationship with the coaches at CMU, I was able to also talked to a few current players and they just seem like good guys and friendly people. CMU also has a strong business program and they also have newer dorms, and overall I just liked everything that CMU has to offer."
Palella also considered a few other schools before deciding on the CMU Chippewas.
"I looked hard into Ball State and I was still in regular contact with Cincinnati. Toledo also came into the picture later but in the end that early loyalty from CMU really stood out. Once I made the visit to CMU that also really sold me on the program and the school."
So how big of a factor was the COVID pandemic in Palella's recruiting process?
"Not bring able to make college visits because of COVID played a big role. I didn't go on any real college tours at all except one to NIU very early on. The biggest impact I thought was that I couldn't go to any college camps. I was planning on showing the bigger schools what I can do this summer and I had a lot of recruiting interest from those schools. They all wanted to see me in person and it just never happened. In the end it all worked out and I'm really happy and excited about Central Michigan."
Alec Palella is verbally committed to Central Michigan.