Katoa to re-Buff the Buffs?
When it comes to recruiting, it is always important to remember that these are 17- and 18-year-old kids. They change their minds, say things they wish they hadn't and tell different people different things.
Nothing really matters until signing day -- Feb. 6, for football.
The latest reminder is the case of Cottonwood High linebacker Lynn Katoa.
The five-star recruit on Monday told reporters in San Antonio -- where he's preparing to play in Saturday's U.S. Army All-American All-Star Game -- that his commitment to Colorado is firm.
However, news out of San Antonio today (Wednesday) is that Oklahoma won't give up its recruitment of Katoa and that Katoa is now saying he is not totally sure where he's going. He says he will make the announcement official during NBC's national telecast.
Of course, the Sooners play in the Fiesta Bowl tonight, against West Virginia, but they apparently have more than just that on their minds.
I've heard that TV people pressure recruits in these type of games to hold off on their announcements until game time to get more exposure for their telecasts. Katoa hasn't returned my calls or text messages recently, so I can't say for sure whether that is happening to him or not.
Who's to blame him, though? If I had a chance to make my college decision known on national television, I would probably take it, too.
My guess is that he will walk out with Oklahoma and Colorado baseball caps and pull on the Buffs cap. If he has three or four caps, the other ones will be LSU, Texas and Oklahoma State caps, I am guessing, although he did express some interest in Utah later in the recruiting game.
It would be cool for the Utes to have a national-caliber recruit from their own backyard mention on national television that he was at least considering them.
One of my contacts in the recruiting business sent me an e-mail last night about how impressive Katoa has been in practices with the West team in San Antonio.
"Speed, size, strength, instincts......He's the real deal. No doubt about that now," my friend wrote.
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Speaking of impact recruits, the Utes landed one last night when highly touted Las Vegas quarterback Devonte Christopher orally committed to Utah assistant coach Jay Hill. An article about Christopher's recruitment is on the Tribune's Web site, in case you missed it and jumped directly to the Recruiting Trail.
I talked to Christopher this morning and he sounds excited to follow in the footsteps of athletic Utah quarterbacks Brian Johnson and Alex Smith. He's also very aware of a player by the name of Corbin Louks, and how he's not going to just be given the starting job because he was a big-time recruit. Utah coaches are also high on Chad Manis as a possible replacement for Johnson, who will be a senior next year.
The Utes beat Stanford for Christopher, a three-star recruit according to Scout.com. That's noteworthy because he's the third or fourth guy that the Utes have lured away from the Cardinal and coach Jim Harbaugh.
Alta's Sausan Shakerin, Bingham's Derek Tuimauga and receiver Luke Matthews of Phoenix, Ariz., were also courted by Harbaugh before choosing Utah.
__________________________
One quick side note: My wife was working on a jigsaw puzzle Monday night (during our exciting New Year's Eve party) while I was watching the Chick-fil-A Bowl pitting Clemson and Auburn on ESPN. When one of the announcers mentioned that Clemson coaches had been out on the recruiting trail last month, my wife turned to me and said, "Hey, they just mentioned your blog."
Well, not exactly, I had to explain.
Nothing really matters until signing day -- Feb. 6, for football.
The latest reminder is the case of Cottonwood High linebacker Lynn Katoa.
The five-star recruit on Monday told reporters in San Antonio -- where he's preparing to play in Saturday's U.S. Army All-American All-Star Game -- that his commitment to Colorado is firm.
However, news out of San Antonio today (Wednesday) is that Oklahoma won't give up its recruitment of Katoa and that Katoa is now saying he is not totally sure where he's going. He says he will make the announcement official during NBC's national telecast.
Of course, the Sooners play in the Fiesta Bowl tonight, against West Virginia, but they apparently have more than just that on their minds.
I've heard that TV people pressure recruits in these type of games to hold off on their announcements until game time to get more exposure for their telecasts. Katoa hasn't returned my calls or text messages recently, so I can't say for sure whether that is happening to him or not.
Who's to blame him, though? If I had a chance to make my college decision known on national television, I would probably take it, too.
My guess is that he will walk out with Oklahoma and Colorado baseball caps and pull on the Buffs cap. If he has three or four caps, the other ones will be LSU, Texas and Oklahoma State caps, I am guessing, although he did express some interest in Utah later in the recruiting game.
It would be cool for the Utes to have a national-caliber recruit from their own backyard mention on national television that he was at least considering them.
One of my contacts in the recruiting business sent me an e-mail last night about how impressive Katoa has been in practices with the West team in San Antonio.
"Speed, size, strength, instincts......He's the real deal. No doubt about that now," my friend wrote.
__________________________
Speaking of impact recruits, the Utes landed one last night when highly touted Las Vegas quarterback Devonte Christopher orally committed to Utah assistant coach Jay Hill. An article about Christopher's recruitment is on the Tribune's Web site, in case you missed it and jumped directly to the Recruiting Trail.
I talked to Christopher this morning and he sounds excited to follow in the footsteps of athletic Utah quarterbacks Brian Johnson and Alex Smith. He's also very aware of a player by the name of Corbin Louks, and how he's not going to just be given the starting job because he was a big-time recruit. Utah coaches are also high on Chad Manis as a possible replacement for Johnson, who will be a senior next year.
The Utes beat Stanford for Christopher, a three-star recruit according to Scout.com. That's noteworthy because he's the third or fourth guy that the Utes have lured away from the Cardinal and coach Jim Harbaugh.
Alta's Sausan Shakerin, Bingham's Derek Tuimauga and receiver Luke Matthews of Phoenix, Ariz., were also courted by Harbaugh before choosing Utah.
__________________________
One quick side note: My wife was working on a jigsaw puzzle Monday night (during our exciting New Year's Eve party) while I was watching the Chick-fil-A Bowl pitting Clemson and Auburn on ESPN. When one of the announcers mentioned that Clemson coaches had been out on the recruiting trail last month, my wife turned to me and said, "Hey, they just mentioned your blog."
Well, not exactly, I had to explain.
2 Comments:
This Christopher kid could be a nice addition for the Utes. But in all fairness, he is only a 3 star recruit as a Safety on the Scout.com service and isn't even listed as a QB at all. He wants to be a QB and narrowed his choice to schools who would let him pursue that position. That said, his high school QB stats are impressive and he could be an excellent fit for the Utah system.
Fantastic recruit for the Utes. Christopher was named the Gatorade player of the year in Nevada as well as being listed as one of the top athletes in the country by rivals.com.
This marks the second year in a row that the Utes have taken one of the best players out of Nevada. Last year the Utes landed the Nevada gatorade player of the year as well when Eddie Wide became a Ute.
Coach Whittingham and his staff are doing a fantastic job recruiting. I cant wait to see who they get next.
Thanks for the good work on the recruiting trail Jay.
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