Tracking fly balls or tracking footballs, it’s all the same to Austin Alexander.
The Marian Catholic senior is a four-star prospect committed to Kansas, and he’s the consensus No. 1 defensive back among Illinois seniors.
Alexander credits his baseball background for helping to make him an elite cornerback. He’s No. 34 nationally at the position in the 247Sports rankings.
“He’s a raw talent with a ton of coverage ability,” Rivals recruiting analyst Clint Cosgrove said. “Everybody is looking for the 6-1 corner. Austin has an incredible upside.”
Alexander played baseball through his sophomore year before giving it up. “Game got too fast,” he said. “Game got way too fast.”
Before that happened, though, the game helped him work on skills that are serving him well now.
“I was an outfielder and being able to track the ball in the air — It was great with that,” he said. “I evolved my skill, coordination.”
That was helpful, because the 6-1, 165-pounder didn’t move to defensive back till his sophomore year even though he started playing football as a 5-year-old. He was a quarterback and then a receiver, but it’s clear he’s found his niche at cornerback.
Alexander has offers from eight Big Ten schools, including Illinois, plus Duke and USC among others.
But Kansas felt right as soon as he visited.
“I love how every coach there was genuine,” Alexander said. “They weren’t trying to sell me on anything. I talked to some of the players. ... I hung out with them and they told me it was really a cool place. Some guys came from a big program and transferred to Kansas and they said Kansas was way better.”
Alexander likes the fact that the Jayhawks, after decades of struggling, are trending upward under third-year coach Lance Leipold. Kansas beat Texas in Leipold’s first year. Last year, they cracked the AP Top 25, beat a ranked Oklahoma State team and played in the Liberty Bowl.
“That’s definitely a big reason I committed,” Alexander said. “There [were] other schools that offered me who were already on the top. I like how Kansas is on the rise and I can be a part of that.”
While the Jayhawks like Alexander for his elite defensive skills, he’ll be doing a little bit of everything for Marian this fall.
Through two games, he already has two return touchdowns: a 69-yarder on a punt against Rich in Week 1 and a 90-yarder on the opening kickoff against Homewood-Flossmoor last weekend.
The Spartans also have a wildcat package for Alexander and he scored another TD vs. H-F in that role.
“You’ve got to find a way to utilize him,” Marian coach Nick Lopez said. “I mean, his skills are second to none. And he just has the smarts and the patience to figure things out even though it’s not right in front of him.”
Alexander is hoping to use those uncommon skills to help the Spartans. Marian, which is marking the 30th anniversary of the program’s lone state title this season, has reached the IHSA playoffs just once since 2010 and last advanced to the second round in 2009.
But Alexander believes the Spartans (1-1) have the pieces in place to play into November. Fellow senior Kaleb Isom scored three TDs vs. H-F, two on receptions and one on an interception return, while junior Tyler Lofton is a running back with game-breaking speed.
“Our team was down a little bit,” Alexander said of the H-F game, which the Vikings rallied to win 54-47 behind two late scores. “I mean, who wouldn’t be after that?
“But we realize how good we are [compared to] last year. We’ve seen what every player can do and we’re going to build from that.”
