Mason Brotherton felt comfortable with Kansas staff

Mason Brotherton planned to take his time and get his recruiting back on track, once recruits are allowed to start visiting schools again. But on Monday after talking with his parents and analyzing his recruiting picture he decided to make a college choice.

After phone conversations with Les Miles, Brent Dearmon, and Josh Eargle, Brotherton was officially on the board as a Kansas commit.

“I sat down with my parents and obviously, a lot of thought and prayer went into it,” Brotherton said. “I just kept asking myself if I'm going to have to come in every day and look coaches in the face for the next four years, would I be comfortable doing that?”

The tight end from Arkansas planned to visit Kansas last weekend for the spring game. But that didn’t happen with colleges currently shut down. In the end it came down to the relationships he built with the Kansas coaches.

“My thought was I would be comfortable in coming in and learning from Coach Dearmon and Coach Eargle every day,” he said. “I think they're great people outside of football as well. That's what was most important for me. Talking to them, developing a relationship over these last few months, it's been awesome, and they've been extremely welcoming. They've always believed in me the most.”

Brotherton said the coaches were excited to hear about his decision. He also dialed up Les Miles to tell him the news.

“It was awesome,” Brotherton said of talking with Miles. “Growing up as a kid, I watched him at LSU win a national championship. And I never ever thought I would be playing it for him. It's just surreal. He said if he was in the office that him and the staff would be going crazy.”

The three-star tight end from Mena High said the coaches told him they like how versatile he is.

“They said they wanted a tight end that can come in and stay on the field when they run the hurry-up,” he said. “They said whether they put him down on the line or split them out wide, they don't have to take him out of the game and put another one in.”

Brotherton said he has been lifting at his father’s shop to stay in shape. When the players return to their high school teams, he wants to be ready to go.

He can go into his senior season without the burden of worrying about recruiting. The Kansas coaches offered Brotherton in December and he was one of their first targets.

“It feels great,” he said. “These last few years have been the most exciting times of my life, and also the most stressful with recruiting. Making a lifetime decision can be hard. But luckily, I have great parents that taught me great lessons and guided me in the right direction. So, I made the right choice and I'm 100% committed. I'm ready to go to work.”