By Jerry Hill

Tribune-Herald assistant sports editor

Dallas Adamson coach Andy Gutierrez was the first one to hear about Baylor’s scholarship offer to 6-foot-5, 260-pound defensive end Kelvin Palmer.

And one of the last to find out Palmer had already committed to the Bears.

“I started reading the fax when it came in, and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is unbelievable,’ ’’ Gutierrez said of the offer that came by fax on Tuesday. “And then I get a call today, saying Kelvin had committed to Baylor. Well, that’s news to me. Things are going so fast.”

Especially for Palmer, who was strictly a basketball player before transferring from Duncanville High School for his junior season. Less than a year later, he’s committed to Baylor and still getting interest from Nebraska, Kansas State, Colorado, Arkansas and UT-El Paso.

“I really liked the coaches and how they treated me like any other player,” said Palmer, who started all 10 games last season at Adamson. “I knew they were showing me a lot of interest, but I didn’t think (the offer) was going to come so quickly.”

Palmer is Baylor coach Art Briles’ first commitment from a high school player for the 2009 recruiting class, joining offensive lineman Phillip Blake (6-4, 305) from Tyler Junior College.

“In my head, I think I already had it narrowed down to Baylor, because it’s close to home and the coaches are so nice,” Palmer said. “They just told me that they were going to be 100 percent honest with me. They weren’t going to tell me something just because it was what I wanted to hear.”

The offer came on the heels of Palmer’s performance at last Friday’s mini-camp in Waco. But Palmer had already piqued the Baylor coaches’ interest in video evaluation and spring training workouts, when they were first looking at Adamson linebacker Roderick Goodlow.

“We didn’t lie to anybody. I told all the coaches that came by that this kid is very raw, but he’s got a lot of potential,” Gutierrez said. “And I think that’s what a lot of the coaches saw in him. You can make them faster and stronger, but you can’t make them a whole lot bigger. He’s got the size, and I think a lot of people like the fact that he’s played basketball. He’s got good footwork. And he’s just a great kid. He’s one of those ‘Yes, sir,’ ‘No, sir’ kids that never give you a minute of trouble.”

Palmer averaged 11.4 points and 9.2 rebounds for the basketball team, and he also helped the Leopards’ football team end a 31-game losing streak that was tied for the longest in the state.

“One of the things we worked on this spring was to get him out of that four-point stance and get him into a three-point stance with that leg cocked back,” Gutierrez said. “We expect bigger and better things this year, and now he’s really got to produce.”

After the Waco camp on Friday, the Bears hosted two more in Houston on Saturday. They will host one Friday morning in Waco and then another one that night in Tyler.

jhill@wacotrib.com 757-5715