Talking with Santana Banner on Monday, he dropped a few notable notes about how his recruitment unfolded before he committed to Missouri. Growing up in Georgia, he always wanted to attend Georgia Tech before signing with Northern Illinois, and he came away with the impression the program was unorganized when he visited.
But when he took trips to Cincinnati and Missouri, he felt like both programs offered him what he wanted in the Power Four, and his relationship with defensive coordinator Corey Batoon set the Tigers apart. Some coaches just checked out Banner's PFF page, but Batoon did a deep evaluation of Banner's film, which kickstarted a strong relationship.
"I was supposed to go to Arkansas after that, but Coach Batoon definitely shut that down," Santana chuckled. "He didn't have to worry about me going somewhere else."
The full story will be up at 8 a.m. Tuesday.