Word is out on 2015 tackle

Christian Gaylord plays his high school football in Kansas - and not at one of the state's larger schools. He initially worried about exposure. He initially wondered if his 275-pound frame would fly under the radar.

Turns out, hat hasn't been much of an issue.

Gaylord, just a junior at Baldwin City (Kan.) High School, already holds six scholarship offers and has unofficially visited plenty of major college campuses. Word on him is out. At this point there's no disputing that. It will only spread from here.

"It took me off guard," Gaylord said. "I worked very hard in the summer for this moment, but it mainly caught me off guard. It just caught fire and kept going."

The 6-foot-6 tackle has already visited Kansas State, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. Needless to say Gaylord has collected first impressions. He's seen plenty of campuses and talked to plenty of coaches. But that doesn't mean there's an early frontrunner.

"It's all overwhelming at this point," Gaylord said. "There's not a favorite."

And as for upcoming offseason visits …

"We haven't really thought about that yet," Gaylord said. "We're focused on right now and the school year. We'll probably go to a couple camps and some unofficial visits, but we don't know where. Like I said, we are thinking about now. Maybe Ohio State or possibly somewhere else."

According to Gaylord, K-State, Ohio State and Missouri are in most frequent contact. Plenty of other schools are in the mix as well. Things on a number of fronts seem to be gaining steam. There's a sense that the whirlwind start to his recruitment is merely a sign of things to come.

"K-State, Missouri and Ohio state might be the most right now, but it's a lot," Gaylord said. "I'd say I hear from a lot of coaches at a lot of schools."

Regardless of how national his recruitment becomes, Gaylord admits that there's a part of him that would like to attend college in the region. He's not ruling anything out at such an early juncture. He's certainly open to pitches from every school in America. In his mind, though, the Midwest has its draw.

"I think (playing close to home) would matter because I'd like to have friends and family come and see me whenever they want," Gaylord said. "But wherever it feels like him is a big part of it. It's about what it feels like."