As Kevin Sullivan filled out, so did his offer sheet.
More colleges came his way after his junior season, including Missouri, one of the 12 programs to offer the Class of 2026 three-star tight end during the NCAA Contact Period in January.
From Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst, Sullivan added the Tigers to his official visit list, planning to wrap up the summer session June 20-22 at Missouri, and what got him on the radar of the staff was what he accomplished at 6-foot-6, 230 pounds.
"If you look back to 2024, 2023, he would still look like that young, wiry kid that you could tell was going to be a good athlete," Jake Owens said, "but he just needed a few years to fill into that frame. Over the past couple of years, he wasn't pushing 210, 215, maybe even 200 pounds, if you look back three years from now."
Owens, a consultant at TopSpeed Sports Performance, watched that development firsthand over the past year. He saw Sullivan morph into a Power Four tight end prospect, one that now ranks as the No. 10 recruit in Missouri.
"He's like a power forward playing tight end," Owens said. "I don't think in any way he's a finished product, as he is just now starting to fill into that frame. I'm really excited for him over the next two years."
As he takes advantage of his already growing size, Sullivan will now turn his focus to his readiness for the next level, either with early enrollment in January or during the summer after finishing his senior year of high school.
"It's going to be accelerated properties," Owens said, "to where we turn this good frame into -- not saying that he's not a good athlete already -- but to the point of where he can step into an SEC role and actually give Mizzou snaps or a school like that."
At a position that requires development, no matter the size and skill one enters a program with, there's sometimes an expectation of not contributing much as a freshman. So when it comes to picking the best fit, prep tight ends look for that opportunity to keep building.
"I would say for a lot of these guys, it's going to be development first," Owens said. "The versatility and then also learning how to use that frame to be that nasty tight end that everybody's looking for. Because, as you probably know, all the tight ends want to be Travis Kelce now, just catch the football."
Owens has seen more Kansas City athletes play premium positions over the past decade. Sullivan, who uses his basketball background to his advantage, plays for Missouri Sports Hall of Famer Kelly Donohoe at Rockhurst.
"For me, that's so important for somebody like Kevin," Owens said, "who has the frame, who has the size, who has the athletic ability, to then learn the damn game of football, so when you step on campus, you're ready to actually play."
Sullivan, who visited Missouri for Junior Days in January and March, will return in June, looking to further a relationship with tight ends coach Derham Cato. The Kansas City product will also officially visit Kansas (May 30), Iowa State (June 6) and Vanderbilt (June 14).
Blossoming tight end prospect Kevin Sullivan sets Mizzou official visit
Class of 2026 three-star tight end Kevin Sullivan saw his recruitment take off, in part to growing into his frame.
