While it’s always a tough pull for an SEC program to get a West Coast prospect to jump across the country to play college football, if the recruit truly wants to compete against the best of the best, there is no better option than playing in the Southeast.

Although it may be a tough sell, that’s not going to stop the elite programs in the SEC from pursuing prospects like St. John Bosco product Chris Steele. Rated as a five-star prospect by 247Sports Composite Rankings, the 6-foot-1, 188-pound California native is ranked as the No. 3 cornerback and the No. 29 overall prospect in the nation.

After receiving 44 scholarship offers, Steele narrowed his list down to 14 on Thursday and named Alabama, Florida, LSU, South Carolina, Tennessee & Texas A&M among his top choices. Wherever he signs, Steele plans to enroll early in order to compete in spring football in 2019.

Here’s the note Steele posted to Twitter:

As well as this graphic showing all the programs among the 14 he’s considering at this point:


To get an idea of why Steele is so coveted, check out his HUDL highlight reel from his junior season. It’s clear to see why he’s so regarded, not many high school defensive backs are as polished as he is at this stage of his career.