Keith Nichol opens up about his decision

Keith Nichol, the stud quarterback from Lowell High School that's been committed to Michigan State since his junior year, has had it. Had it with the rumors floating around about his supposed departure from the MSU program due to the coaching change, had it various "experts" and radio talk show hosts making conjectures about what he should and shouldn't do. The only person who should know and DOES know is Keith, so I asked him.

As I type this, Nichol is on his way back from an official visit to Oklahoma, the only big-name program of consequence to make a run at Nichol despite his verbal commitment to MSU. A lot has been made about OU's involvement, mainly because State is still trying to pick up the mess left by John L. Smith, and Oklahoma is one of the country's top programs and is led by the highly regarded Bob Stoops.

Lately many State fans have their panties in a bunch over whether Nichol is going to jump ship and head to OU. Seems like a smart football move, but as Keith told me on Tuesday night, it's not a move that he's looking to make.

I managed to catch up with Keith at the Girls Basketball quarterfinals on Tuesday, where he was cheering on the Lowell girls as they beat Lansing Eastern. Since I was working for FOX, I asked if he could chat on camera with me for a couple of minutes, and he graciously agreed.

I expected to hear the same old "I'm happy for the opportunity to visit this school, I'm looking to make my final decision after I've taken all my trips..." recruit speak that I basically get every time I talk to Muskegon's Ronald Johnson (some day I'll get him to say something!). However, something sparked Keith to be candid about his thoughts of the OU visit and his feelings towards his verbal commitment to MSU.

Keith told me that OU has been in contact with him since the beginning, so their interest does not come as a surprise. He was impressed with Bob Stoops, said he made a nice pitch and it was flattering that he made the trip to visit the Nichol household on the first day that the NCAA allows contact with recruits. However, he did not seem overly impressed for a 17-year old kid who had just been visited by a coach who wears a National Championship ring on his finger. He explained that the visit is more of an excursion into Big 12 territory to see how things are done out there. He admitted he really hadn't visited outside of the Big 10, and was going to quote, "re-affirm my decision". He followed that up by saying that MSU fans "don't really have anything to worry about".

I was surprised to hear Nichol lay it out that candidly, but the kid just seems sick of everyone making predictions about what he should/might/will do. At 17 I didn't want anything to do with adults making predictions about my future, and Keith is no different.

Trying to gage his feelings on what has become a bit of a media circus regarding his decision, I asked him if it felt weird to go through the recruitment process again, especially since he's been a verbal for MSU for so long. He admitted that it was a bit weird, but also flattering, and then he finished the interview with this statement: "...you know, I don't think many people have anything to worry about. I'm with Michigan State, and that's where I stand."

For all the reports floating out there about what Keith is going to do...for all the radio show hosts who say their "sources" tell them that he is enamored with Oklahoma...Keith's got one message: I'm with Michigan State.

And as a U of M fan...I couldn't be unhappier.