BYU football picks up a commitment from New Jersey cornerback
May 3, 2026, 9:57 AM | Updated: May 4, 2026, 11:05 am
PROVO – BYU football goes out East and lands a commitment from a player in the Garden State for the class of 2027
Ryan Wooten, out of Jersey City, New Jersey, announced on Sunday that he has committed to BYU.
“1000% Committed,” Wooten wrote on X.
1000% Comitted!! @BYUfootball #gocougs🐾 @kalanifsitake @lew_walk7 @Coach_Popp @Bbradley_BYU @BYU_CoachJustin @BYUFBRecruiting @anniebarham_ @KinslerLatish @CoachTyusMoe @247Sports @On3 @SPPFootball @CoachRichHansen pic.twitter.com/Y9umzCO3Zu
— Ryan Wooten, Jr. (@RyanWooten_27) May 3, 2026
Ryan Wooten Jr. commits to BYU football
The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Wooten is rated as the 598th prospect overall and 61st overall cornerback in the 247Sports Composite rankings. He picked BYU over double-digit offers from Power Four programs.
The state of New Jersey hasn’t typically been a place where you see BYU get into the mix for recruits. The last BYU football player from the Garden State was offensive lineman Ford Poston, a teammate of current BYU head coach Kalani Sitake. Poston was from Bloomfield, New Jersey.
However, the recent hiring of BYU cornerbacks coach Lewis Walker gives the Cougars a connection in Jersey. Walker was a defensive coordinator at Monmouth University for the past two seasons. Monmouth University is located in West Long Branch, New Jersey.
BYU’s first four commitments are players from four different states: Utah (Tytan Dejong), Nevada (Ezra Sanelivi), California (Jeremiah Williams), and now New Jersey.
Wooten shared a photo of himself and his family in Kalani Sitake’s office in Provo. He’s scheduled to take an official visit to BYU on June 19.
The cornerback spot is an area of focus for BYU in the 2027 recruiting cycle. Wooten gives them their first commitment. He’s the first cornerback to commit since Lewis Walker was hired as the cornerbacks coach earlier this year.
Last season, at St. Peter’s Prep in New Jersey, Wooten had 46 tackles, two tackles for loss, and one interception.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.
Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.
