Into this alternate reality of Indiana as the defending national champions in college football walks Monshun Sales.
I can’t remember a football recruitment quite like this one in nearly 20 years of covering high school sports for the IndyStar. Sales, the Lawrence North five-star wide receiver, will announce his college decision on Friday at noon on the Pat McAfee Show. He will pick from a final five of Indiana, Alabama, LSU, Ohio State and Texas.
The buildup to Sales’ announcement brings back memories of high-profile basketball recruits like Cody Zeller, Romeo Langford, Yogi Ferrell or Gary Harris. And even then, despite Sales’ five-star status and No. 7 overall national ranking, it feels a little different. There isn’t quite as much on the line as there was with some of those basketball recruits of the past. It is more difficult for one football player to make a massive impact than it is in basketball. But what is at stake here is a big deal, especially if he picks IU over those other blueblood programs.
I have difficulty wrapping my head around Sales’ recruitment because there is not a lot of prior history to compare. A 6-5, 205-pound five-star wide receiver who is also an all-state sprinter? Those guys exist in Texas and Florida. Not here.
Some history: The highest-ranked recruit from Indiana in the 2000s is Jaylon Smith, the former Fort Wayne Bishop Luers standout who won Mr. Football in 2012. Smith was a five-star prospect, ranked in the top-5 in the country by recruiting sites in the 2013 class. He went on to star at Notre Dame at linebacker and play seven years in the NFL.
Sales would slide in at No. 2 behind Smith when ranking the top recruits of the past quarter century. There are not many in-state receivers even in his neighborhood as a prospect. New Haven’s Mylan Graham, a top-35 national recruit in the 2024 class, is at Notre Dame now after two seasons at Ohio State. Selwyn Lymon of Fort Wayne Harding (2005 grad) had a decent start to his career at Purdue before running into trouble. Austin Mack of Fort Wayne Luers (2016 class) was a four-star recruit who went on to be a regular at Ohio State and star in the CFL.
Former Warren Central star David Bell probably comes the closest to Sales as a local receiver prospect. Bell was the best high school receiver I ever covered. But Bell was 6-1 or 6-2, not 6-5. He was a top-100 recruit, not top-10. And even though he was an All-American at Purdue, he wasn’t necessarily a speed burner. But he was tough as nails and a winner at the highest level.
Obviously, time will tell what Sales will be at the next level(s). The confidence and physical tools are there. Sales can catch anything in his radius and run away from defensive backs. He is only going to get better once he gets into a college weight room full-time.
The question, for now, is where he ends up going.
In previous years, a five-star football prospect including IU alongside the likes of Texas, Ohio State, LSU and Alabama would feel a little disingenuous. Maybe just a kid being nice to the home school program. Even that would be a stretch. Those days are over, though, thanks to Curt Cignetti. Having talked with Sales at various points in his recruitment, the relationship with IU has only gotten stronger over time.
“When I first got to Indiana, I really wasn’t too heavy on IU,” said Sales, who moved to Indianapolis from Alabama. “Until Davion (Chandler) went, really.”
Sales is close with Chandler, the former Lawrence North standout receiver who will be a sophomore this season at IU. He watched former LN star Omar Cooper Jr. help the Hoosiers to a national championship and get drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft by the New York Jets. It can only help to see players at his position, from his school, have success. It also certainly helps that IU appears willing and able to believe in Sales financially at a time when it takes a monetary commitment to secure top talent.
It would also be silly to rule out any of the other schools on his list — his nickname was “Bama” after all. Ohio State has made a habit of plucking stars from the state when it gets involved. LSU was a little bit later to the party but clearly made an impression. And Texas made a strong late push and earned an official visit from Sales.
These are four heavyweight competitors.
But in this new world of college football, I feel like Sales will pick IU on Friday. That it does not even feel like it would be an upset is still a little mind boggling.
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649. Get IndyStar’s high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter. And be sure to subscribe to our new IndyStarTV: Preps YouTube channel.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Is it an upset if Monshun Sales picks IU? Not in this new world of college football
Reporting by Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
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By Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
