Tulane leading with Kieston Roach, Purdue could make big push

Heading into last weekend’s game against Manvel, three-star cornerback Kieston Roach knew that he had a tough assignment, matched up against 2018 Rivals100 wide receiver Jalen Preston all night.

Roach finished the game with three big pass break-ups and an interception in his own end zone, while Preston only came away with one catch for a loss of a yard.

“Jalen played for the Fresno Gators, I played for the eastside team around here, so I’ve been playing him for a long time,” he said. “I played him in the Youth Super Bowl in sixth grade … I don’t know all of his tendencies, but I don’t worry about him. He’s going to be good though.”

Roach’s performance was all the more impressive as he continues his return to the field this season from a torn labrum. The recovery from his surgery forced him to miss time on the field during the spring, which he thinks led to a slowdown in his recruitment, but if can continue to play as he did last Thursday, it might not take long for things to pick back up again.

“This was my first week of full contact; I got cleared last Tuesday,” he said after the game. “It was just a grind, but playing football, that’s all I’ve been doing since I was four-years-old.

“I love the game, but stuff like that comes with it. I’m not 100-percent right now, but on gameday I’m 110-percent.”

Roach has a variety of offers, including a couple of Big Ten teams in Purdue and Illinois. Hometown Houston had been in the picture early, but Tulane has risen as a team that has worked up a nice mutual interest with Roach.

On Purdue, who has maintained significant interest since offering in late-May

“I’m liking Purdue a lot,” he said. “Because they’re in the Big Ten, I’d get to play against Ohio State, I’d get to play against those other big schools and that’s fine with me.”

“I’ve talked to a lot of the coaches out there,” he said. “I’ve had that offer for a while, so I am pretty comfortable with them.”

On Tulane who he reports having the best relationship with at the moment

“I really like Coach (Willie) Fritz at Tulane,” he said. “He wins wherever he goes and Tulane, that’s a good school, they put cornerbacks in the league, so that’s who I’m in most contact with right now.”

“I would say that they’re my leader right now,” he said. “Just because they’ve got to know me the most and I’ve become the most comfortable with that program.”

On Houston, who has laid off of Roach since offering him early on

“I don’t really talk to U of H anymore,” he said. “They don’t really contact me. I was hurt when they tried to come out and see me in the spring and I wasn’t able to participate. I think that’s when the disconnect started, but if they contact me, I love the city of Houston, so I would be interested.”

Roach was the beneficiary of Manvel looking to get the ball out of the quarterback’s hands quickly and a good pass-rush from his North Shore teammates. That said, he still did well to keep step-for-step with Preston and didn’t allow him much of an opportunity to make plays on the ball. Shoulder surgery recovery is an arduous process, but he showed no real ill-effects while playing last week.

He might feel compelled to make a decision sooner than later with teams leary of his status post-procedure, but if he continues on with performances like the one he had Week 2, some of those teams he hasn’t heard from in a while might try to re-open communication with him.