Perkins was close to commitment
Jordan Perkins was so close to committing to Stanford at its junior day but the Lodi, Calif., running back decided to hold off and consider other options. The Cardinal is still No. 1 on his list as new programs get involved.
"I did (want to commit to Stanford)," Perkins said at Saturday's Rivals.com Five-Star Academy at Cal.
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"When I went to the junior day of course they sold the school really well, talking to coach (Jim) Harbaugh and all the offensive coaches, it was great what they were saying about me and I wanted to say, 'Yeah, I'm here,' but I held it off.
"I let them know they're my No. 1 choice. I already promised the UTEP coach I would get out there this summer so I don't want to commit and have him be like I'm not truthful. I told them after that visit then that's when I'll start thinking about what I want to do."
Stanford already has verbal pledges from two running backs - Sunnyvale (Calif.) Kings Academy standout Amir Carlisle and Norco, Calif., prospect Kelsey Young but Perkins said there's still a good chance the Cardinal would take him if he wanted to commit.
Playing the waiting game, though, seems to be the idea for the time being.
"It plays a key role, that's why I haven't committed anywhere yet," Perkins said. "My parents tell me to be smart, see what you have because you shouldn't like one school without comparing it to another so hopefully I'll be able to take some visits but you never know what will happen.
"It would have been way easier if Stanford was later and not so early. You can't plan that out. I talk to my parents a lot about it. My dad is the one who's telling me to wait it out a little bit to see what everybody else is saying."
Perkins, who rushed for 1,377 yards and 14 touchdowns last season and is also a receiving threat out of the backfield, said Washington, South Florida and Washington State could be close to offering.
The Huskies and Bulls seem to stand out among that group. Michigan, Northwestern and UCLA are three other programs mentioned by Perkins, who said Cal is looking at him as either a running back or defensive back. Every other team likes him solely for running back.
"Washington was the first school I started talking to on the phone," Perkins said. "Coach (Jeff) Mills and I talk regularly, once a week, he's a cool guy and I like him. I like how his energy is and I'm definitely going up there for a camp.
"South Florida, I like their coach, coach (Steve) Bird. I definitely like him so I'm going to try to make it out there if I can. But I'm definitely going to go up to Washington."