BY ALEJANDRO LOPEZ & SAM LANCE
Class of 2026 guard Kayden Allen announced the remaining schools in his recruitment on Monday. The list consists of UCF, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Cal, Florida State, Mississippi State and Cincinnati.
His announcement comes in fresh off a standout performance in his final season of summer hoops for Team Thad. The 6-foot-5 guard put up buckets at Peach Jam, averaging 20.8 points, 2.2 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game.
Now that the EYBL Circuit is behind him, Allen’s focus will shift towards the high school season, with his college decision looming, especially after narrowing his list down to seven. He plans to take official visits to Cal, Georgia Tech, Mississippi State and Cincinatti soon.
Here is what he told ZAGSBLOG about each of his remaining schools:
Cal: “Coach (Mark Madsen) has been very locked in with me this past summer. Ever since I transferred to Zephyrhills, he’s been coming to a lot of games and Coach Matt (Scherbenske) has been in touch a lot, one of the assistant coaches, we talk almost every week, or really every other day. And they’ve just been like active, and I know that if I go to that school, the system is good for me. And I’ll be able to play my game as a freshman and help him win.”
Georgia Tech: “ACC Conference, similar situation to Cal, but just closer to home. 25 minutes away from my house, and it’s like I know if I wanted to stay home, that’s an ideal place.”
Ole Miss: “Chris Beard is a really good coach, and I know I want to be coached by really good coaches, and I know if I get coached by him that it’ll take my game to another level. Just like different stuff like off the court and some stuff on the court, like motor and stuff like that, and Coach (Wes) Flanigan is probably one of the best relationships I’ve got with any coaches right now. He’s been at, like all my stuff. We talk before and after everything, we are very close.”
Mississippi State: “Similar situation to Mississippi. Me and Coach (Patrice) Days and are super close and then Coach Chris Jans is probably one of the coolest head coaches that I’m cool with right now. I speak to him a lot, way more than I speak to any other head coach. But yeah, and it’s another place where, the SEC, I can go play my game and help contribute as a freshman.”
Cincinatti: “I took an unofficial last year. But I guess they were focused on like, you know, winning, like the season, but ever since l’ve been playing good this summer, they’re back on track, and I’m going to start like that’s going to be a serious option for me. I’m going to schedule an official visit and go from there with them. But me and Coach Wes Miller have a really good relationship, and Coach Chad Dollar.“
Kayden Allen is the No. 48. player in the 2026 recruiting class, according to 247Sports. He hopes to make a commitment by December and expects his decision to come down to the program’s system and his relationship with their coach.
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