Northwest colleges stocked up on talent during National Signing Day on Wednesday.
They looked near. Washington, fresh off a College Football Playoff berth, landed one of the state’s best recruits in Salvon Ahmed of Kirkland.
Oregon, under new coach Willie Taggart, lured seven recruits from Florida, where Taggart coached last year.
Washington State is looking to re-arm the Air Raid offense with a highly touted quarterback from Wilsonville, Ore., and five wide receivers.
Oregon State signed a junor college transfer who the Beavers hope makes an instant impact of the defensive line.
And Portland State counted a Clark County recruit among its class that draws heavily from Oregon and Washington.
Washington
Chris Petersen paid a lofty compliment to the recruiting class signed by Washington on Wednesday and in the process perhaps added some additional expectations.
“I feel very similar to these guys as I have the last couple of years the classes we signed. Which I think is saying a whole heck of a lot,” Petersen said.
Coming off a Pac-12 title and appearance in the College Football Playoff, Washington signed 18 players, addressing some needs at skill positions while also landing six of the top 10 players from the Huskies’ home state. The group of homegrown talent is led by running back Salvon Ahmed, tight end Hunter Bryant and offensive lineman Henry Bainivalu.
But Petersen and his staff were calculated in what they went after. They signed three wide receivers — Ty Jones, Terrell Bynum and Alex Cook — all with different styles. The Huskies lost three defensive backs to either graduation or early entry to the NFL, so Washington added three players in the secondary highlighted by cornerback Elijah Molden, the No. 2 player from the state of Oregon and the son of former Oregon standout Alex Molden.
The Huskies did miss out on two big recruits that had originally given a verbal commitment to Washington. Running back Connor Wedington ended up signing with Stanford and defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu signed with USC. But Petersen felt solid in Washington’s recruiting methods.
“I’m a more firm believer in how we do things recruiting-wise around here than I’ve ever been,” he said.
Washington initially announced a class of 17 players and had one addition late in the day: defensive end Jordan Lolohea from Salt Lake City. Lolohea announced he was signing with Washington during a ceremony on Wednesday morning but his letter of intent didn’t become official until late in the day.
Best in class: Salvon Ahmed, RB, Kirkland. The arrival of Ahmed gives the Huskies another multifaceted athlete on the offensive side of the ball to help replace John Ross. Ahmed will get a look at running back to start.
Best of the rest: Hunter Bryant, TE, Issaquah; Elijah Molden, CB, West Linn, Ore.; Henry Bainivalu, OL, Sammamish; Ty Jones, WR, Provo, Utah.
Washington State
With star quarterback Luke Falk choosing to return for his senior season, Washington State went in search of wide receivers, a running back and offensive linemen Wednesday on national letter of intent day.
Of course, coach Mike Leach also signed a quarterback to run his Air Raid offense in the future, landing four-star Connor Neville from Wilsonville, Ore. The Cougars signed five wide receivers, and a bevy of offensive linemen as they seek to qualify for a third consecutive bowl game next season.
Best in class: Connor Neville, who is 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, threw for 2,756 yards with 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions as a senior and was the top-rated QB in Oregon.
Best of the rest: The Cougars signed four-star offensive lineman Robert Valencia, 6-foot-6, 295 pounds, from City College of San Francisco. Receivers Travell Harris, Davontavean Martin, Anthony White Jr. and Easop Winston will try to break into the Air Raid.
Oregon
Oregon’s recruiting class had such a Florida feel under new coach Willie Taggart that it had its own social media hashtag: Floregon.
Oregon has been infused with new energy since Taggart was hired following a disheartening 4-8 season. He has been crisscrossing the country since he was hired away from South Florida.
It’s perhaps unsurprising that he was able to bring in a few recruits — seven, actually — from the Sunshine State. Among them are defensive tackle Jordon Scott from Largo, running back Darrian Felix of Fort Meyers, athlete Bruce Judson of Cocoa, safety Billy Gibson of Miami, athlete Demetri Burch of Apopka, receiver Daewood Davis of Fort Lauderdale and wide receiver Darrian McNeal of Seffner.
“There are a lot of guys down there that really, really like Oregon, they just haven’t been offered before,” Taggart said in announcing the class Wednesday.
Taggart was also able to lure a group of players who had originally settled on Arizona, including four-star quarterback Braxton Burmeister and outside linebacker Cody Shear of Eugene.
Best in class: Braxton Burmeister, QB, La Jolla, California. Although Oregon has a young quarterback in Justin Herbert, who will be a sophomore next season, the Ducks demonstrated the need for developing talent at the position after bringing in graduate transfers for the past two seasons. Burmeister threw for 4,461 yards and 53 touchdowns while rushing for 1,470 yards with 27 touchdowns his senior year at La Jolla Country Day.
Best of the rest: College of San Mateo transfer George Moore, considered the top JC offensive lineman in the country. Among the team’s four-star recruits were cornerbacks Thomas Graham and Jaylon Redd, and linebacker Isaac Slade-Matautia from Honolulu.
Oregon State
A four-star junior college defensive tackle expected to contribute right away is among the highlights of coach Gary Andersen’s third recruiting class at Oregon State.
Craig Evans, a 6-foot-3, 305-pound four-star prospect out of Arizona Western College also had offers from Arkansas, Colorado, Ole Miss and Kentucky but selected the Beavers back in December.
He posted a video on Twitter that proclaimed “Beaver Nation! Stand up!”
Evans was recruited by Andersen when he was coach of Wisconsin, but academic issues got in the way. Andersen stayed in touch when Evans went to Michigan State and then to junior college.
“I think he won’t miss a beat with the kids we have in the program,” Oregon State defensive line coach Chad Kauha’aha’a said.
The Beavers finished 4-8 last season, including a 34-24 victory over Oregon in the final regular-season game that snapped an eight-game losing streak in the Civil War.
Best in class: WR Isaiah Hodgins from Walnut Creek, Cal. Hodgins, who selected the Beavers over Oregon and Nebraska, is already enrolled. Hodgins originally committed to Washington State, but a visit to Corvallis changed his mind. His dad, James, played under Oregon State assistant Dave Baldwin at San Jose State.
Best of the rest: The Beavers were able to nab two running backs out of Texas, BJ Baylor out of Wharton and Calvin Tyler out of Beaumont. Recalling Oregon State history, the Beavers have had luck before with a running back from Texas: Jacquizz Rodgers. Oregon State also got three local in-state recruits: defensive tackle Josh Bowcut and safety David Morris from Sherwood, and outside linebacker Travis Mackay of Portland’s Central Catholic.
Portland State
Portland State focused its recruiting close to home. As a result, 10 of 21 signees hail from Oregon.
“We went after Oregon student-athletes first like we always do,” said Viking coach Bruce Barnum. “This was a good year for Oregon high school football and we are excited about the group we signed.”
The Vikings added 11 players on defense, including junior college transfers Braxton Wintering and Kasun Jackett.
“We needed a couple of guys to come in and compete immediately on defense,” Barnum said.
Winterton, from Snow College in Utah, is a 6-foot-3 defensive back.
Jackett is a middle linebacker from Chaffey College in California.
Barnum praised two additions to the offensive line, including Battle Ground’s Brady Brick.
“Brady Brick and Tyson Pauling were perfect additions to our powerhouse offensive line, which is the foundation of what we do,” Barnum said. “I couldn’t be happier with our offensive line situation.”
