Three-star switches to SEC
Dillon van der Wal said he didn't know what to expect when he visited Vanderbilt this weekend because the Commodores have a new staff but the Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian tight end/defensive end saw enough to switch his pledge from Arizona State.
The 6-foot-7, 230-pound three-star prospect said he was thoroughly impressed with the entire weekend, the coaching staff and the resources Vanderbilt is sinking into its football program.
Advertisement
"I didn't really know what to expect until I got there," van der Wal said. "They really put a great staff together when coach (James) Franklin came in. The other big thing is they have the school behind them 100 percent.
"The chancellor of the school was at our dinner last night and he said that if coach Franklin needs a rocket to recruit then they'll get him a rocket and fly him to the moon. Having the school behind him, that's what coach Franklin stresses, that we're all in. The school is behind him and all in."
The Oaks Christian standout had been committed to Arizona State since November but he took a trip to Arkansas last weekend and then tripped to Vanderbilt this weekend just to explore other options He apparently found everything he was looking for in Nashville.
"The big thing for me was the education, the opportunity to get that degree coming out of Vanderbilt and the family atmosphere they really have going on with the new coaching staff coming in," van der Wal said.
"Coach Franklin does a really good job of keeping everyone on the same page. That was real big for me, being comfortable with the coaching staff who I'm going to be spending the next four or five years of my life with."
Rivals.com rates van der Wal as the No. 23 tight end nationally and No. 47 in the California state rankings.