Oregon warming on Benoit

Kani Benoit's decision to cancel his Dec. 1 trip to Colorado State shouldn't be seen as a slight to the Rams. In fact, it's quite the opposite. He didn't go into the reasons why he rescheduled his official visit to Ft. Collins, but his words were still enough to put Rams fans at ease.

First, the Phoenix (Ariz.) Thunderbird running back says he's still planning on touring the campus. He'll do that over the weekend of Dec. 8th. He's cancelled a scheduled trip to Wyoming to make time. What he said next, however, holds more meaning.

"Right now, Colorado State is my frontrunner," Benoit said

Things are well between Benoit and CSU … for now, anyway. You see, his declaration carries a big "unless." Oregon, Vanderbilt and Illinois are still recruiting Benoit. And should one of those still-budding relationships yield a scholarship offer, things could change.

In a hurry.

"If Oregon or Vanderbilt or Illinois pull the trigger, one of them will probably become my frontrunner," Benoit said.

Ask Benoit, and he'll tell you Oregon is the closest to making an offer. He's in contact with Ducks running backs coach Gary Campbell once a week. An in-home visit is slated to take in a few days. The situation with Vanderbilt, on the other hand, is less serious and seems contingent on his performance in the classroom.

"They're waiting to see my ACT score and we're going from there." Benoit said.

A possible visit to Vanderbilt could take place in the near future, but dates for his travel itinerary are still being finalized. Everything about Benoit's recruitment, as things stand now, is fluid.

"I might take a trip to Vanderbilt in mid December and I might take one to Utah State on in January," he said.

Toledo, UNLV and Utah State are the most recent schools to offer Benoit, who help lead his Thunderbird team to a 8-4 record this season. He is yet to set a timetable for a decision.

"I'm probably going to wait to see my options. I don't want to commit somewhere and lose a big-time offer. I'm just going to take it in for a while and make my choice."