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Star Community Newspapers

After months of courtship and speculation, McKinney Boyd senior and blue-chip receiving prospect Jeff Fuller has verbally committed to play collegiate football at the University of Oklahoma.

Fuller, who estimates receiving close to 35 scholarship offers, maintained since the spring he would use the maximum allotted official recruiting visits before making a final decision. That plan changed after the 6-foot, 5-inch, 210-pound standout made a trip to Oklahoma’s campus where he witnessed first-hand the Sooners dismantling of the University of Miami, 51-13, for his first official visit.

“My family and I talked about it on the car ride home and I decided I was going to make the call when I got home,” Fuller said. “I called [Oklahoma head football coach Bob Stoops] that night.”

With the commitment, Fuller says he will not use the four remaining visits the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) will allow him to take.

“I know it would be great to [take those visits], but I know for a fact that being at Oklahoma is going to be perfect for me,” Fuller said. “Of course, if I went down to Florida or went up to Ohio I would have gotten excited about them, but after looking at the big picture I know that being in Oklahoma is going to be right for me.”

Oklahoma’s proximity to McKinney was one of the main reasons Fuller selected the Sooners over traditional powerhouses Texas A&M, Ohio State and Florida. “It’s only a two-and-a-half-hour drive to get there,” Fuller said. “Being close to home is a big deal for me so I can go see my family, and they can come see me play.”

Family was one reason Texas A&M was considered by many to be the front-runner for Fuller’s collegiate services. His father, Jeff Fuller Sr., was an Aggie before joining the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League.

While his father admits he was hoping Jeff would choose his alma mater, he was still pleased with the final decision.

“I always pull for A&M,” Jeff Fuller Sr. said. “In the beginning we always said we were going to do what was best for him. A&M has been great for me, but as far as his future was concerned, he had to figure out what was the best place for him.”

The elder Fuller was happy to point out Oklahoma’s membership in the Big XII conference will allow the Fuller family a chance to travel to many of the Sooners’ road games.

Fuller plans on graduating in December and enrolling at Oklahoma in January. That decision means he will not be joining Boyd’s basketball team at the conclusion of football season.