The University of Washington football team’s Class of 2011 was known for its in-state products that coach Steve Sarkisian was able to keep within borders.
It appears that the opposite could be said for this year’s crop.
Two days before National Signing Day, another star recruit from Washington turned his back on the Huskies and made a public verbal commitment to another school. Lakes High School offensive lineman Zach Banner chose USC over UW and Oklahoma in a Monday afternoon press conference at his high school.
“There’s a lot of good things you can say about all the schools. This just had the most opportunity for me,” Banner told The Tacoma News Tribune on Monday afternoon.
Banner, who is ranked 16th in the nation by Rivals.com, is the fourth of the state’s consensus top five recruits who will apparently play out of state. Puyallup offensive lineman Joshua Garnett (No. 33 in the Rivals national rankings) recently announced he will attend Stanford, Mariner running back KeiVarae Russell (ranked third in the state by Rivals) is on his way to Notre Dame, and Lakes receiver Cedric Dozier (ranked fourth in the state by Rivals) made a verbal commitment to Cal.
Quarterback Jeff Lindquist of Mercer Island, the state’s No. 5 prospect, is the only one headed to UW.
If the recruiting services are right, it’s been a rather tough week for UW on the recruiting front. The Huskies were said to be a finalist for one of the nation’s top defensive lineman, Arik Armstead of Sacramento, but he chose Oregon over the weekend. One-time UW recruit Jason Thompson of Kennedy High in Renton has also reportedly reversed field and decided to go to Wyoming, where he can play quarterback instead of defensive back.
Some recent coaching changes could have UW making an 11th-hour push for players like Dozier and Sacramento safety Shaq Thompson, both Cal recruits, but the current projected class is short on four- and five-star prospects. Rivals only ranks two players among the 19 reported verbal commitments at UW as four-star recruits: quarterbacks Lindquist and Cyler Miles of Denver.
The list of UW verbal commitments includes just six players from the state of Washington.
Only seven players from The News Tribune’s Western 100, which ranks the top 100 recruits on the West Coast, have made verbal commitments to UW.
A big push could come at the wire, as Dozier is said to be wavering after two Cal assistant coaches decided to join the UW staff, and Thompson is still shopping around despite making two verbal commitments to the Bears. According to a Monday story in the Sacramento Bee, Thompson made a weekend visit to UW and is deciding between the Huskies, Cal, Oregon and UCLA. Dozier is expected to make an announcement today as to whether he’ll honor his original commitment to Cal or sign with the Huskies.
Recruits can’t officially sign with a school until Wednesday, which is National Signing Day. The Huskies have had back-to-back classes ranked among the nation’s top 30, and last year’s group was led by in-state products Kasen Williams, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Danny Shelton.
Banner had a shot to be an immediate contributor on a UW offensive line that lost left tackle Senio Kelemete to graduation and could be without starting guard Colin Tanigawa until well into fall camp following knee surgery.
Banner, who is the estranged son of former UW All-America lineman Lincoln Kennedy, opted instead to join a USC team that many believe will be a national championship contender next season. The 6-foot-9 offensive lineman also intends to play basketball for the Trojans.
“One of the things that I fell for, instead of staying local to play, I’m going to turn my name into a national name,” Banner told The News Tribune on Monday. “Whether that’s me dominating on the field, dunking on someone on the court, or just being goofy off and doing something, I’m going to be there.”
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