Recruiting heating up for Winston County’s Kitchens
Recruiting is heating up for massive offensive tackle Grant Kitchens, but the talented blocker from Winston County is taking things slow.
On Thursday afternoon, Kitchens was on his way to Georgia to take in his first visit to Athens thanks to an invite from the Bulldog staff. Prior to that visit, however, Kitchens has been building strong bonds with another Bulldog staff.
The Nanih Waiya 2026 offensive lineman has been a priority for Mississippi State and head coach Jeff Lebby along with line coach Cody Kennedy. MSU brought in Kitchens for a visit in January and it led to his first collegiate offer.
Last Saturday, Kitchens was back on campus for his second visit this year and he followed that up with another visit on Tuesday morning. During that time, Kennedy got a chance to talk to Kitchens further about his game and how he can improve as a lineman.
“It's been great learning how he coaches and what all is required of you if you play for him,” Kitchens said. “He watched every game that I played last year and broke down my film and he told me some things that I need to work on like widening my stance. It means a lot because you don't get to hear that a lot from a coach on that level.”
Kennedy wasn't the only person that spent some time with Kitchens the last few days. The head man Lebby got a chance to talk with the talented prospect and his family and offer some words of encouragement.
Kitchens enjoyed getting a chance to watch how Lebby's offense goes and seeing the coach in action.
“The offense is a little different from what I'm used to,” Kitchens said. “It looks fast for sure, but at the end of the day if it works, it works. You have to adjust to whatever you run.
“I'm looking forward to seeing what they do in the next couple of years and see how he develops players. He's a really good coach that is going to get you where you need to be and push you.”
Along with the coaches, Kitchens got a chance to talk to a current player that had some words of advice.
Just a few months ago, Starkville's Stonka Burnside was in Kitchens' shoes as a recruit. Burnside had all eyes on him in January when he announced his intentions to stay home and play for the Bulldogs, but the bright lights of recruiting have faded and now he's having to put in the work as a freshman wide receiver.
“I talk to Stonka Burnside and he gave me a different kind of outlook on the recruiting process on what to watch for, and how to handle myself,” Kitchens said. “It means a lot because I don't have anybody else to talk to like that because no one else is in my situation at my school. He gave me some really good advice to follow and I'm going to approach my recruitment in a professional way moving forward.”
While the Bulldogs of MSU are the only team to offer to this point, the 6-6, 275-pounder is just getting started. Schools from around the country are beginning to find out that the three-star prospect is on the rise and he's already picked up interest from Penn State, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina State, Clemson and Purdue.
Back during January, Mississippi State was joined by Ole Miss, Purdue, Louisiana and Central Arkansas that made visits to Nanih Waiya to see Kitchens in person. He expects many visits in the next few months and that will only make the process crazier.
One thing that seems certain for him is that the home state Bulldogs will be in the mix. His relationship with Kennedy and the proximity to home is going to keep MSU in it. He reports he'll be back on campus soon.
“I really like what they're building there,” Kitchens said. “I think they're going to do well and I really like this new staff and what they're doing. I've been really impressed so far.”