Four-star Marcus Watson Explains Why He Committed to Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State was the fourth program to extend a scholarship offer to four-star Class of 2019 guard Marcus Watson early in 2017, before his recruitment blew up. In a week’s time in May of that year, he garnered LSU, Iowa, Georgia and OSU offers, all before officially taking off later that summer.

OSU didn’t stop there. The initial offer was part of more than a year’s-long recruitment process that culminated Sunday with a commitment to the Pokes. The stick-to-itiveness of the Cowboy coaching staff — namely Mike Boynton — is the reason he told Rivals why he chose the orange and black.

“I am choosing Oklahoma State because of Coach (Mike) Boynton,” he said. “He was always honest with me and never promised anything. He always told me that if I were to go there and do what I am supposed to do, that I will have a lot of success in their program. He has been there since the beginning and was one of the first coaches to recruit me. I feel like I can trust him.”

Having a familial connection helps, too. Boynton and Watson are cousins, and there’s clearly some next-level trust there on both sides. But props to Boynton for overcoming in-state favorite Georgia Tech along with Oregon, Texas Tech and others to land his biggest recruiting fish to date as the head coach at OSU. It’s a huge deal not only for the 2019 class, which ranks 10th nationally now, but also for OSU moving forward as it raises the program’s profile for other big fish to follow suit.