Mister ready to show he is ready

What's with the name, kid?

"It's a respect thing," the 6-4, 190-pound safety said.

"It's Mr. for mentally ready," said his father, who named him.

Aldine (Texas) Eisenhower safety Mister Alexander has both respect and the mental preparedness for the recruiting process and his senior season. All jokes aside about the name, Alexander is a major Division I prospect from a school that puts out talent every season.

Paul Freeney (Texas A&M), Andrew Johnson (Texas Tech) and Arthur Stubblefield (North Texas) headlined the 2005 class for Ike. Alexander will be the headliner in 2006.

But while those players all stayed within the Lone Star State for college, Alexander has his eyes set on going out-of-state.The second-team all-district selection is receiving interest from the likes of Iowa, Colorado and Northwestern to name a few. His personal favorites are Southern Cal, Florida State, Florida, Iowa and Colorado.

"I'd really rather play out of state," he said. "My brother (Wyman) is going to Coffeyville (Kansas) Community College and we want to hook up two years from now and play together."

While his school is going through a coaching change, Alexander is flexible in regards to his senior year and what position he may play.

"I liked receiver as a freshman, but under coach (Richard) Carson, we never threw the ball," he said. "So I moved to safety and I started liking it. Coach (Larry) Haynes wanted to try me out at quarterback this year, but now he's gone. Either safety or receiver is what I would like to play."

Alexander gave up basketball to concentrate on this year's football offseason, but still competes in the triple jump and long jump for his school's track team. He will be attending the University of Houston's combine, Nike Camp, Rice University's combine and other one-day summer camps.

With his size, range and athletic ability, Alexander patrols the secondary like no one else in Houston as a junior.

"I like to cover and hitting," he said. "My dad says that some hit softly and some hit hard. You've got to hit hard if you want to set the tempo and change a game. That is what I try to do."