Top 75 national prospect Kiyaunta Goodwin, right, is the most talented player Chris Vaughn has worked with. Goodwin makes his college choice Saturday.
Kiyaunta Goodwin is going to announce Saturday night whether he will play his college football at Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Michigan State, or Kentucky. If he picks Kentucky as many believe the 6-7, 300-pound offensive tackle will do, it will end a long recruiting journey with the Wildcats.
“Kentucky’s offer came when I was in seventh grade,” said Goodwin Thursday. “I was just getting started. I was a guy not even that coordinated back then and yet Kentucky still offered me.”
Goodwin said the interest from Kentucky and others at such an early age made him work harder and Chris Vaughn, CEO of Aspirations Fitness in Louisville, has been there helping/pushing him most of the way. Goodwin will make his college choice at 6 p.m. Saturday at Vaughn’s gym on CBS Sports HQ.
“I met Chris when I was 7 or 8 years old. He’s like a father figure/mentor to me,” Goodwin said. “I look up to him. He’s been there to help me and give me advice in life. He makes sure I get the best for myself. He’s as hard on me as I need him to be. He has pushed me a lot.”
Vaughn, a former football player at Notre Dame and then Louisville, says it has been a “long road” with Goodwin but he knows the best is still to come.
“His mom walked up to me at a Little League football game. She is 6-3 and said she wanted me to work with her son,” Vaughn recalled. “I looked out there and he was a foot taller than anybody on the field. He was maybe 8 or 9 then. Since then I have been mentoring him. I tried to learn more about him as a person before we even worked together. I have spent a lot of years behind the scenes seeing what pushes him and what is important to him.”
Goodwin, a Louisville native, now plays at Charlestown (Ind.) High School about 25 miles north of Louisville. He’s considered a top 75 prospect nationally and one of the nation’s top offensive tackles.
Vaughn knows about special talent. He’s had current UK receiver Wan’Dale Robinson work out with him. Same with Purdue All-American Rondale Moore, potential NFL first-round draft pick in two weeks. Two of his other clients have been Stephen Herron, who plays at Stanford, and J.J. Weaver, who plays at Kentucky.
“He’s the best kid I have worked with and the most talented,” Vaughn said. “He grew up watching these high-level kids and now he’s one of them.”
Goodwin said Thursday he is “very excited” about making his decision public Saturday. He said then coaches at the school he is picking already know his choice.
“I am just at the point I feel very comfortable about my choice. I have done my research to make sure I am making the best decision and that I have a great relationship with the coaches,” Goodwin said.
Vaughn said Goodwin has been recruited for five years and is ready to end recruiting.
“He is comfortable with letting go and finding a college home,” Vaughn said. “He’s not a kid who enjoys all the attention. He also knows there is work to be done still and wants to concentrate on that. He wants to play in the NFL and take care of his mother.”
If you want to feel confident about Kentucky’s chance, Goodwin said he grew up a football fan who watched more NFL games than college games. He knows several players at UK and said he’s developed a strong relationship with the Kentucky program that didn’t change with the passing last season of offensive line coach John Schlarman.
“They have a really good offensive line,” Goodwin said. “I loved coach Schlarman but I am very satisfied with his replacement (Eric Wolford). I have a great relationship with him. Same with Vince Marrow, who has recruited me the most. Sometimes he’s very quiet, sometimes he’s very loud. But he’s always great and there for me.”
