By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
St. Joseph Central High School running back Gabe Fields is continuing his football career at Vanderbilt.
It's been quite a turnaround for the Vanderbilt Commodores, who for the first time since 2018 became bowl eligible this year. Next year Fields, a standout at Central, will be a part of that turnaround.
Fields says he's excited to get to Nashville and help build the culture
"You know I've had some experience of trying to build something, here at Central we were 1-9 at one point, so I'm just ready to get up there and put the work in and try to win a National Championship is the end goal," Fields tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post
Fields, who received several division one offers, says it was the Commodores coaching staff he fell in love with
"I knew one of the coaches really well, Ghaali Muhammad, so I really loved how he was doing things and where he was," Fields explains. "And I also loved how they also focus on academics, the other side of life, because one day football is going to stop and I know that, but with a Vanderbilt degree you can do anything you want."
Muhammed-Lankford was a standout himself at Central, graduating from Wyoming after playing football on both offense and defense.
Fields had offers from multiple Division 1 programs, Iowa State, Baylor, Navy, Air Force, Harvard, Cornell, Penn, Yale, UNLV, Toledo, and Kent State were just some of the schools that wanted Fields.
While he doesn't know if he'll play right away, Fields has some lofty goals.
"My goal personally is to be a Freshman All American, but we'll see how everything shakes out," Fields says.
Fields, ranked as the number 22 prospect from Missouri in the 2025 class by 247 Sports, says being a division one commit from St. Joseph is a great feeling, and says it shows that you can accomplish your dreams from wherever
"And that you don't have to leave your hometown just to go chase a different dream, you can do it all where you're at," Fields says. "I mean you've got everything you need, you've got your family around you, you've got your teammates, people you've grown up with, and you can also show the youth that it don't matter where you start, it's just all about how you finish quite honestly."
Fields in his senior season at Central compiled 1,806 all-purpose yards with 20 total touchdowns.
Fields says he will major in business management.
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