First impressions matter.
When Baylor School senior running back Shekai Mills-Knight, a four-star prospect, was making his college football destination choice between a list of finalists that included Alabama, Auburn, Miami, Tennessee and Ole Miss, he kept coming back to the early impression made by the latter program, with head coach Lane Kiffin’s Rebels the first to extend a scholarship offer to him.
“They wanted me from the beginning,” Mills-Knight said. “I really like the way they’ve talked about using me in the offense, and I’ve felt comfortable with the staff and other guys I’ve met there. It’s just been a real comfortable feeling whenever I’ve been on the campus, and I believe that’s where I’ll fit in best.”
Mills-Knight announced his commitment Saturday evening live on Instagram.
Ranked as the state of Tennessee’s No. 7 overall prospect in the class of 2025, as well as the second-highest-rated running back behind Memphis Melrose’s Jamarion Morrow (who has committed to Missouri), the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Mills-Knight has ended a whirlwind recruitment that really picked up steam at the start of this year.
After Ole Miss made its offer last Oct. 23, Mills-Knight received his second offer three days later but didn’t see an uptick in Southeastern Conference offers until late December — from Tennessee, Vanderbilt and South Carolina — after an impressive performance in the TSSAA Division II-AAA BlueCross Bowl state championship game. He then gained 24 new offers from January through April.
Despite being severely limited for the first four games of his junior season by an ankle injury, it didn’t take long for Mills-Knight — whose uncle Glen Mills trains Jamaican national sprinters, including Usain Bolt — to begin gaining attention as he rushed for 1,113 yards and 15 touchdowns last fall.
He capped the impressive season with a 154-yard performance in the state title game against McCallie at Finley Stadium, including a highlight-reel 64-yard scoring sprint in which he stepped through a tackle attempt then turned the corner before outrunning the pursuit down the visitors’ sideline.
Mills-Knight is the fourth Baylor senior who has committed ahead of the start of the Red Raiders’ 2024 season, joining receiver Joakim Dodson (Tennessee), offensive lineman Jimmy Bryson (Georgia Tech) and linebackers Bradley Ilunga-Bisselele (Buffalo) and Joel Lowenberg (Middle Tennessee State). Receiver Cam Sparks is a four-star recruit with multiple offers from SEC programs, and tight end Ben Darnell has multiple offers.
“We’ve got some guys who are getting a lot of interest, but my number one phone call (from college coaches) is about Shekai,” Baylor coach Erik Kimrey said. “I’ve had two coaches tell me he’s the top-rated running back on their board. Everybody loves him because it’s so rare to have the blend of size and speed that he has.
“He’s an impressive-looking dude when he steps on the field, and he proved last year that he’s also got the ability to play at a very high level.”
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com.