"They wouldn’t recruit me if they didn’t think I could play": Jaden Nickens on his commitment to both the football and basketball programs at Kansas

By Maliha

Modified Nov 15, 2024 10:46 GMT

Four-star wide receiver Jaden Nickens committed to Kansas' 2025 class on Thursday. He is a dual-sport star and plans to compete both on the football field and the basketball court for the Jayhawks.

Speaking with On3, Nickens revealed Kansas football coach Lance Leipold and basketball coach Bill Self's recruitment pitch for him, saying:

“Both staffs told me they wouldn’t recruit me if they didn’t think I could play. They want me to come in, adjust and adapt to college and be the face of both programs. The coaches have high hopes for me.”

Kansas offered to Nickens in late September, and its recruitment initially began with basketball, with assistant basketball coach Kurtis Townsend and wide receivers coach Terrence Samuel taking the lead. Both Leipold and Self communicated with his family early on to reassure them about his opportunity to play both sports.

"They were really happy that they were able to get me on both," Nickens told Phog. "They both told me they were excited for me to play both. That was really big to me. Basketball was just as excited as football and football was just as excited about basketball. So that showed a lot."

Nickens was previously committed to Oklahoma before decommitting in March. Until this season, he played for Douglass High School in Oklahoma but has since transferred to Sierra Canyon High School in California for his senior year.

Jaden Nickens is a three-time state champion in basketball and is a mighty football star as well, ranking the No. 55 wide receiver in the 2025 class, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He is also placed as the No. 372 overall prospect in the nation and the No. 33 recruit in California.

Kansas 2025 class update following Jaden Nickens' commitment

Jaden Nickens chose Kansas' 2025 class over Georgia, Oklahoma State, Cal and Texas A&M. The cycle has 16 committed prospects and one transfer player, ranking No. 56 in the nation and No. 11 in the Big 12.

Nickens is now the highest-rated commit in the 2025 class, joining other promising players like quarterback David McComb, cornerback Chris McCorkle, linebacker Malachi Curvey, running back John Kelly, tight end Joeseph Skipworth and edge rusher Josiah Hammond.

Jaden Nickens’ arrival in Kansas is also timely, as its top three wide receivers, Luke Grimm, Lawrence Arnold and Quentin Skinner, are set to depart after this season.