Cornerback from Mississippi commits to CSU football

Malcom Magee Jr., an All-South Mississippi cornerback, said Sunday night that he plans to sign with CSU’s football program on Feb. 7.

Magee, a 6-foot, 177-pounder, said earlier Sunday that he had narrowed his college choices to Colorado State University and Louisiana-Lafayette.

Sunday night, he tweeted that he had chosen the Rams, a program he likened to a Southeastern Conference school in many ways.

“It was like an SEC school, but they just don’t have the name,” Magee told the Sun Herald newspaper of Biloxi, Mississippi.

Magee could not immediately be reached for comment Sunday night, but CSU assistant coach Bryan Applewhite all but confirmed the commitment on twitter, noting the Rams had landed a "big-time get from the SIP!!!," with NOFLYZone and CSURAMS hastags. The 'sip is a slang term often used to describe the state of Mississippi.

NCAA rules prohibit CSU coach Mike Bobo and other school officials from publicly discussing specific recruits until they have signed financial-aid agreements or National Letters of Intent.

Magee visited CSU last weekend and had been pushing other prospects to choose CSU on social media since then.

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Magee was in on 63 tackles, including 42 solo stops, last fall at Ocean Springs High School. He intercepted three passes as a cornerback. As a receiver, he caught 23 passes for 286 yards and one touchdown and also ran 14 times for 86 yards and another TD.

Magee is the second-leading scorer on the Ocean Springs basketball team this winter, averaging 15.6 points a game. He’s the team leader in rebounds, at 8.3 a game, and assists, at 2.8 a game.

Magee also had offers from Texas-San Antonio, Troy, Lousiana-Monroe, Southeastern Louisiana, Alcorn State, Central Arkansas and Jackson State. He told the Sun Herald earlier Sunday that he had canceled recruiting trips to Toledo and Southeastern Louisiana following his visits to Louisiana-Lafayette and CSU.

He was the only athlete to make the Sun Herald’s All-South Mississippi basketball and football teams in 2017, the newspaper reported.

CSU signed 17 players during the NCAA’s early signing period Dec. 20 and has eight scholarships available for the regular signing period that begins Feb. 7. Three of the early signees — cornerback Rashad Ajayi from Fairburn, Georgia; and safeties Quinn Brinnon from Pleasanton, California, and Twyan Francis from New Orleans — also were defensive backs.

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news and listen to him talk CSU sports at 11:35 a.m. Thursdays on KFKA radio (AM 1310) and 10:45 a.m. Saturdays on Denver’s ESPN radio (AM 1600).

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