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Kansas State

3-star tight end Garrett Oakley flips to Kansas State

Wg0vf-nP_400x400by:Keegan Pope•09/21/21•

bykeeganpope

Chris Klieman 2021
(Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Third-year head coach Chris Klieman has No. 25 Kansas State rolling on the field, and there’s no shortage of good news on the recruiting trail either.

The Wildcats flipped Northern Illinois tight end commit Garrett Oakley after a weekend visit to Manhattan, giving Klieman his 12th pledge in the 2022 class. Oakley, a 6-foot-5, 210-pounder from Columbus (Neb.) Scotus Central Catholic, had been committed to the Huskies since he received an offer in early April. The Wildcats, though, brought him to campus last weekend for their 38-17 win over Nevada and offered him.

He announced his plans to decommit from Northern Illinois in a tweet late Sunday night saying, “I want to thank everyone at Northern Illinois University for their belief in me and for the opportunity to play football in a great place with great people. At this time it is best that I decommit from NIU.”

And less than 48 hours later, the consensus three-star tweeted his commitment to the Wildcats.

Oakley, who also plays baseball for Scotus Catholic, stars as a pass-catching tight end and defensive back, but projects to play on the offensive side of the ball at the college level. The Wildcats offense isn’t known for throwing the ball around the yard—the three players who have attempted passes this season have only thrown 48 times combined in three games. But with Oakley’s athletic ability and size, he could be the kind of receiving threat that opens things up.