Jalen Haralson was bumped up into the top 10 of the recent Rivals rankings for the 2025 class last week, and for good reason. At 6-foot-7, he’s a big guard that can do a lot of things on the floor and is just oozing with upside.
Haralson spoke with Rivals about his early recruitment.
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2023 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2024 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team
2025 Rankings: Top 80
Transfer Portal: Latest news
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Indiana: “I like the coaching staff and the players. I’m really close to the players and I talk to them every once in awhile, I reach out. It’s just close to home, so I can always go up there for games. They’re kind of like family, they’ve been recruiting me ever since I was 14, so we’ve built a relationship and stay in touch a lot.”
Purdue: “Kind of the same thing, they’ve been recruiting me since I was 14. It’s kind of different because they don’t really get a lot of big time players, so it’s kind of different talking to players and getting their point of view on things. They’re still number one in the country the last two years, so whatever they’re doing is working.”
Auburn: “The first time they saw me, they didn’t come for me, they came for Xavier Booker when I played him in the summer. I had 27 points and almost had a triple double that game. That’s when my recruitment started to blow up, there was a lot of coaches there. Ever since then, we’ve been talking and they’ve been telling me that I’m the highest priority in their class. It’s in Alabama, so it’s hard to get down there and I haven’t gotten down there yet, but I plan to get down there soon.”
Michigan: “Coach Juwan (Howard), that’s my guy. I’ve been talking to him ever since the EYBL session in Kansas City, and Phil Martelli was recruiting me before he was. I’ve been up there once, I reach out and just try to build a relationship, and hope I can get to a game soon. They consider me a big guard and compare how they’d use me to Franz Wagner, who’s with the Magic now.”
Michigan State: “Tom Izzo, he’s a hard-nosed coach and I love playing for a coach that can get under my skin, challenge me everyday, and get me ready for the next level. I’ve been down there once. I’ve talked to the current players and I’ve talked to Jeremy (Fears), (Xavier) Booker and Coen (Carr), their commits, and they’ve been recruiting me a little bit too. It’s a good school and a good program.”
Gonzaga: “I’ve been talking to them for a long time. They recruit a small pool of players. Coach (Stephen) Gentry is the one who has been recruiting me the most. He’s shown me the ball screen offense and I think I work best in ball screens. They let their guards make quick decisions and show their high IQ. It’s in Washington, so it’s hard to get down there and they’re the only school I’ve seriously talked to that I don’t have an offer from. We’re building a relationship and I hope I can get down there soon.”
Iowa: “It’s been cool, I reached out to them in the summer. They were recruiting me and Trent (Sisley) kind of at the same time during EYBL. We’ve talked to them a couple of times and are still trying to get down there for a visit, too. Coach (Fran) McCaffrey is at the top in scoring every year and he lets his players play, and I love that. Coach (Sherman) Dillard is the main guy I reach out to.”
Florida State: “That’s kind of new, I started that during the summer. The first phone call was an offer, so they saw a lot in me. They saw me play in an EYBL session, and you know with Florida State, everyone on the floor is at least 6-foot-7. I feel like I would fit in that offense, and I’m a good defender, and they kind of compared me to Scottie Barnes a little bit with how active he is on the floor.
