{"id":236098,"date":"2025-10-19T10:33:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T10:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/236098\/"},"modified":"2025-10-19T10:33:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T10:33:09","slug":"im-a-winner-meet-colben-landrew-the-newest-uconn-mens-basketball-commit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/236098\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I’m a winner:’ Meet Colben Landrew, the newest UConn men’s basketball commit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Colben Landrew<\/a> received a football scholarship offer from Alabama when he was a high school sophomore and he didn\u2019t bat an eye.<\/p>\n

He was so focused on basketball, his first love, that he gave up his wide receiver gloves, moved out of Alabaster, Ala., and relocated to the Atlanta area, where hoops was more of a priority. He left a football factory at Thompson High to join a basketball power at Wheeler, where he\u2019d develop under six-time Georgia state champion coach Larry Thompson<\/a> and see his recruiting stock shoot up.<\/p>\n

Narrowing down a long list of college offers, the 6-foot-5 wing wanted to make a similar move: Find a school up north that loves its basketball.<\/p>\n

So when\u00a0UConn called and offered him a scholarship in late July, he lit up.<\/p>\n

\"ColbenColben Landrew, a four-star prospect, became the second UConn men’s basketball commit in the 2026 class. (Courtesy of Stacey Landrew)<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted that offer a lot,\u201d Landrew told The Courant by phone after putting on a red Huskies hat to make his decision official on Wednesday<\/a>. \u201cOnce I got the offer, I just knew. I had a gut feeling like I love this school. And then when I took my visit it was just perfect, man. I just seen how Coach (Dan Hurley) pushes his players and I just felt like I need that.\u201d<\/p>\n

His mother, Stacey, a former college basketball player herself at Southwest Mississippi Community College, was smitten when she first walked in the doors of the basketball facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m like, this is really like the Basketball Capital of the World, it really is,\u201d she said. \u201cTo get to see all the different layouts, the trophies and how the fans are really big on the sport there. I don\u2019t even have a favorite part, I loved everything about it from the time we arrived until the time we left.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thompson 2026 6-foot-5 wide receiver, Colben Landrew @colben_landrew<\/a> fights to bring in the TD reception.<\/p>\n

He holds multiple basketball offers, including offers from Alabama, Auburn and Ole Miss. pic.twitter.com\/EBfQJoEvfD<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Touchdown Alabama Recruiting (@TDARecruiting) September 29, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n

Building toughness on the gridiron<\/p>\n

Landrew started playing football his sophomore year because he could.<\/p>\n

Playing for a nationally ranked program at Thompson, he was a natural, big-bodied receiver. By the end of his first and only football season, he caught 24 passes for 492 yards and 10 touchdowns, was named first team all-county by the Shelby County Reporter<\/a> and collected offers from SEC powers like Alabama, Auburn and Ole Miss.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like football, but I love basketball,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

And football was taking away from his time on the hardwood.<\/p>\n

But his time in pads, high-pointing passes and hurdling defenders translated as he made basketball his sole focus. And the toughness, evident in any of his highlight clips, was certainly a trait that attracted Hurley and his staff.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like football gave me the ability to be tougher in basketball, so I transferred that and then just put it all into one,\u201d he said. \u201cNow I pretty much can kind of do everything, score at three levels, rebound, defend, me being tough just gives me an advantage for a lot of things on the court.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like most UConn commits, including four-star guard Junior County,<\/a> who was first to make his pledge in the 2026 class, Landrew pointed to the practice he was able to watch during his visit in the first weekend of October as what swayed him. He could see himself fitting right in, taking to the demanding coaching and getting better.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just high-energy, electric in there,\u201d he said. \u201cCoach Hurley, he was on 10 the whole practice, he didn\u2019t let up not one time. It was just crazy, and I felt like he didn\u2019t sugarcoat anything because I was on the visit, he was acting the same, how he usually acts every day. The players were telling me, \u2018This is what you\u2019re gonna get if you come here.’\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is someone your child will be around, so you want to make sure that he\u2019ll be getting what is needed,\u201d Stacey said. \u201cI love how the coaches discipline their players, they hold them accountable and at the same time they love them and they\u2019re just good people. That\u2019s something that you want your child to be a part of.\u201d<\/p>\n

pic.twitter.com\/l0wuSHJBfi<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Colben Landrew (@colben_landrew) July 16, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Rapid rise onto UConn\u2019s radar<\/p>\n

Landrew scored the final 10 points to seal Wheeler\u2019s 61-56 win over Newton \u2013 Stephon Castle\u2019s alma mater \u2013 in the Class 6A Georgia state championship game<\/a> in March. At that point, he had heard from a few high-major schools and received offers, but he was still flying under the radar from a ranking standpoint.<\/p>\n

Nicknamed \u201cBaby Melo,\u201d Landrew felt his recruitment really start to take off in June once his plane landed from Treviso, Italy, where he was invited to take part in the Adidas Eurocamp<\/a>. His 3SSB Select team, made up of other high-profile prospects, won all three of its games and he averaged 16.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists, shooting 53.3% both from the field (16-for-30) and from beyond the arc (8-for-15).<\/p>\n

He continued to have success on the Adidas 3SSB grassroots circuit with Game Elite \u2013 on a roster that included players like Caleb Holt<\/a>, a top-five 2026 recruit, top-100 Georgia Tech commit Moustapha Diop<\/a> and his Wheeler point guard, Kevin Savage III<\/a>, who is a top-50 junior. Landrew averaged 15.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game for Game Elite while shooting 56% from the field, 85.9% from the foul line and 34.4% from beyond the arc \u2013 an area where he is continuing to improve.<\/p>\n

His team-high 16 points<\/a> helped win that championship, too.<\/p>\n

Suddenly he was a top-20 player in his class and a proven winner. And winners are attracted to winners.<\/p>\n

\"ColbenColben Landrew, a four-star prospect, became the second UConn men’s basketball commit in the 2026 class. (Courtesy of Stacey Landrew)<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore I got up (to UConn) I knew (Hurley) won the back-to-back national championships so that stood out,\u201d Landrew said, \u201cand then me, I\u2019m a winner, so I just wanted to play for a winning coach and a winning program.\u201d<\/p>\n

Landrew cut his list down to five schools: UConn, Louisville, Purdue, Texas A&M and Mississippi State before his announcement in front of a large crowd inside the Wheeler gym on Wednesday. But after the trip to Storrs, meeting Hurley and his staff and watching their whole operation, there was a strong sense of where he would end up.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce you really get to know Coach Hurley, I mean he\u2019s a great person,\u201d Stacey said. \u201cI love him, I love his personality, everything about him. And he\u2019s genuine. I love the fact that he don\u2019t sugarcoat, he tells you what you need to hear and I love the honesty about him. \u2026 Colben, I feel like he can help the team and do what\u2019s needed, but I also know what he needs and I think the staff will be able to give him what he needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

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