Good rebounders will always be coveted at any level of basketball. When good rebounders are 6-foot-10, muscular, active and just a sophomore, elite college basketball programs take notice. The story of Spain Park (AL) center Austin Wiley is starting to come together.

The five-star big man was the overall MVP from the Lake City Classic last month at Allatoona High School. He helped his Birmingham based team win the Superior Plumbing bracket of the event.

Wiley was outstanding. He was the event's leading rebounder and is one of the best overall big men in the country. Right now, just as a sophomore.

Just a sophomore, Wiley is quickly becoming one of the biggest priority recruits in the South regardless of class.

"I don't know if it's DNA or what it is but he's got a knack for knowing where to be and knowing how to go get them," Spain Park head coach Neal Barker said. "Rebounding is just something that you have. You can't just teach that. He knows where to go when he sees the shot. He knows what side to go and get on. He times his jump real well and he has good hands. He's strong. You'd think a 6-foot-9, 6-foot-10 sophomore would be kind of weak and frail but he's not."

What does Wiley say is his secret to owning the glass?

"I think it is just about effort," Wiley said. "If you don't rebound well, you don't win the game. That's just how I was taught. To me, it comes naturally. My parents have always taught me that if you do one thing in the game it is go rebound. Even if you have an off night, you can still make an impact on the game if you rebound."

Wiley's mother, Vickie Orr, is one of the best players in school history and played for the U.S. Olympic women's team in 1992. She's considered one of the best rebounders in Auburn history, pulling down 1,006 boards over her career at the school. His father, Aubrey Wiley, led the SEC in rebounding and has coached collegiately.

Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Kansas State, Mississippi State, Murray State, Ole Miss and Texas A&M have all offered, Wiley said, while the blue bloods of college basketball are involved, too. Duke, Kansas and North Carolina are all interested, Wiley added.

There's no denying the chatter that the Tigers are going to be tough to beat in the recruiting race for the five-star sophomore.

"With me, it affects me because my parents went there. My cousin - Chuck Person - is there and coaching," Wiley said. "My parents and I make sure that we tell the coaches that are recruiting me that it's an open field. It's not like I'm leaning to one school or another."