Buchanan maps out summer tour

If all goes as planned, rising senior quarterback Ryan Buchanan of Jackson Prep (Miss.) will pick a college by the middle of the summer. But before he makes the call, he has some visits to take.

Several of them, in fact.

"I'm going to Ole Miss to their top prospect thing, and then I'll throw for everyone there the next day," Buchanan said. "I'm going to Florida two days, June 8 and June 9. Then I think I'll be at Auburn the next day. The last place I'm going to is Mississippi State. I'll be throwing for the coaches at all of them."

Those are just the four trips Buchanan, who holds nine offers, has planned. Other schools might also get visits.

One of them is Alabama, which landed a commitment from four-star quarterback Cooper Bateman of Salt Lake City (Utah) Cottonwood Senior on Wednesday. Despite that verbal, Buchanan said he still "might" camp in Tuscaloosa.

"I also might look at Oklahoma State," Buchanan said. "I could commit there right now if I wanted to. I talked to [Cowboys coach] Mike Gundy a few days ago and I might go out there."

North Carolina and Tennessee also are worth watching. Neither has offered yet, but Buchanan said interest from each is strong.

The 6-feet-3, 210-pound Buchanan isn't ready to name any leaders yet. Auburn, Florida, Mississippi State and Ole Miss are among those showing the most interest, he noted. Buchanan spoke with the Gators on Wednesday.

"I could have committed to Florida before Bateman committed to Alabama, but I'm getting more interest [from Florida] now that he's with Alabama," Buchanan said. "I talked to UF [Wednesday]. I talked to Coach [Will] Muschamp and Coach [Brent] Pease [the offensive coordinator]. I had good conversations with both of them. I told them when I was coming to Florida. Pease was at my school a couple weeks ago."

According to Buchanan, he hasn't spoken with Auburn in a couple weeks. But the Tigers visited Jackson Prep this spring, and he plans to be at the program's upcoming Big Cat Weekend with many of the Tigers' top targets.

"I have a high interest [in Auburn]," Buchanan said. "I'm really looking into them. Auburn has been on me for awhile."

Ditto for Mississippi State and Ole Miss, both of whom also are squarely in the mix.

According to Buchanan, these upcoming visits will be significant.

"I'll know more after I go to these camps and work with these coaches," Buchanan said. "Hopefully, I'll be ready to pick a school by the beginning of July or mid-July."

Keith Niebuhr can be reached at Keithrivals@yahoo.com. You can follow him on Twitter @KeithRIVALS.