Cottonwood High linebacker Lynn Katoa arrived in San Antonio on Sunday to begin preparations for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, and one of the first things he did was clear up confusion over where he will be playing college football.

"I'm still committed to Colorado. It's where I am going to go," Katoa told reporters at a press conference at the Westin Riverwalk Hotel. "It was [because of] coaches Brian Cabral and Dan Hawkins. I just want to be part of something that is growing and isn't already there."

Katoa is one of three Utahns who will play in the all-star game on Saturday, joining Bingham products Austin Holt and Justin Sorensen. Those two have committed to play football for BYU.

Responding to a question sent to his cell phone via text message about whether his commitment to Colorado was still valid last week, Katoa responded, "Yeah."

Katoa is rated as the second-best middle linebacker prospect in the country by several recruiting services. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound phenom committed to Colorado a month ago, but caused a stir about two weeks ago when he "re-opened" the process and accepted an in-home recruiting visit from Oklahoma coaches.

He further fueled speculation that the Colorado commitment wasn't solid by saying he was going to take an official visit to Utah.

However, Katoa never visited Utah the weekend before the Utes left to play in the Poinsettia Bowl, and now apparently has dashed the hopes of Ute and Sooner fans that they still have a chance at landing him.

"It's now a firm [commitment]," he said.

It was believed that Katoa was waiting to make his choice known during Saturday's telecast on NBC. It is not certain whether he will take that opportunity to don a Colorado cap in front of national television cameras.

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The latest BYU football recruiting news is that Kahuku (Haw.) safety Shiloah Te'o may be wavering on the commitment he made to the Cougars back in late June. A three-star (Scout.com) recruit, Te'o made an official recruiting visit to UNLV before Christmas.

The 5-foot-11, 190-pounder has also inquired about visiting Utah, according to a source familiar with Kahuku's coaching staff. Another source told the Recruiting Trail that Te'o has been told by Utah coaches that if his commitment to BYU is "solid" he shouldn't visit the Utes.

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 There's also been some consternation over the academic status of Seta Pohahau, a running back from Aragon High in San Mateo, Calif., who committed to BYU a week before Te'o did. Pohahau was recently named MVP of the San Francisco Peninsula area.

Some internet reports have Pohahau now going to Snow College in Ephaim, Utah, a national junior college power.

Pohahau has yet to receive results from his college admission tests (ACT or SAT), but sources at his school say his academic progress appears to be in order.

Louis Garrett watched the path his brother took to big-time college basketball -- derailed temporarily by a big wave off the coast of Maui -- and figures that might be the way he has to go as well.

Garrett, a senior at St. George's Pine View High, figured to be one of the more heavily recruited basketball players in Utah this season, but it just hasn't happened.

The only four-year college that has made a scholarship offer to the 6-foot-6 Garrett is Utah Valley State College. He does have offers from all the junior colleges in the state, along with the College of Southern Idaho.

"I will probably just have to wait until the season is over and see what's out there, what my options are," he said.

Garrett is averaging 14.7 points per game for the Panthers, who are 8-2 with losses to Spanish Fork and Agua Fria (Ariz.). He plays small forward for Pine View, but can also handle the ball well and is used all over the floor.

He said several college scouts have been at his games, so he's confident the interest in him is still there. Along with UVSC, Utah State has expressed some interest, along with UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and Santa Clara..

"I think I can play somewhere, so I'm not real worried about it," he said.

It is similar to what happened to Brad Garrett, Louis' older brother.

Brad had a sensational prep career at Pine View, but was bypassed by four-year schools and went to CSI after an LDS Church mission to Mexico.

Brad averaged 15.8 points and 5.8 rebounds a game his freshman year at CSI and appeared headed to BYU, where his former high school coach, John Wardenburg, is a Cougar assistant coach.

But Oklahoma State swooped in and lured Brad to the Big 12.

A hamstring injury caused him to miss the Cowboys' first three games this season. He played in two games, scoring five points and grabbing three rebounds in 12 minutes of action at the Maui Invitational in Hawaii.

However, just before the team was to leave the islands, Brad dislocated his shoulder while trying to block a wave with his boogie board.

He underwent surgery a few days later and is out for the year. Brad is hoping to get a medical redshirt, but that's up in the air because he used his regular redshirt year before playing for CSI.

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Speaking of prep basketball recruiting, Stanford coaches were in town just before Christmas to get a better look at Lone Peak guard Tyler Haws, the junior who will be the state's most-recruited player next year.

Haws already has scholarship offers from Stanford, Utah and BYU.

Certainly, he didn't hurt his chances while playing on national television in the T-Mobile Invitational in New Mexico last week. Haws scored 26 points in a 75-57 win over Centennial High of Roswell, Ga., and followed that up with a strong game in 53-44 loss to St. Anthony of New Jersey.

Haws is averaging 21.1 points a game, third-most in Utah's Class 5A.

Utah, BYU, Utah State, Weber State and even Dixie State College have sent out news releases in recent weeks letting folks know which players signed with the respective schools' men's basketball programs last month.

That begs the question: What about Utah Valley State College?

Did the Wolverines sign anybody?

Well, UVSC coach Dick Hunsaker is notorious for not publicizing his recruits, so we had to do a little digging for those green and gold fans out there.

We reported last month that Bountiful High center Ben Aird turned down offers from Tulane and other D-I schools to sign with Utah Valley. Aird's having a phenomenal senior year since the decision, by the way, perhaps making some local schools who brushed him off wondering if they made the right call.

We've learned about two other UVSC signees, both from the junior college ranks.

According to a couple of Web site reports, UVSC has signed Jourdain Scoubes, a 6-foot-8 forward from Feather River Community College in Quincy, Calif., and Ian Pinckney, a 6-2 guard from Long Beach City College in California.

Scoubes, a sophomore, is regarded as one of the top forwards in California juco ball. He shot 46 percent from the field last year and averaged six rebounds a game while making honorable mention all-league in his conference.

Pinckney played high school ball in Chicago at Kenwood Academy before moving way west to Long Beach. He scored 14 points last week in an upset win over Ventura Community College.

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Another rumor out there that won't die is that former Viewmont star Sol Jensen (brother of ex-Utah star Alex Jensen) will transfer to UVSC when he returns from his LDS Church mission. Sol Jensen signed with Weber State out of high school, but the Wildcats have changed coaches since then.

Aiona Key, a wide receiver from Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., has orally committed to play football for the University of Utah.

Key, rated as a five-star recruit by the national recruiting service Scout.com, signed with Boise State out of high school but transferred after one season with the Broncos to the junior college. The 6-foot-4 star caught 80 passes for 1,112 yards and 17 touchdowns last season and was offensive MVP of the California junior college state championship game.

He chose Utah over Utah State and Akron. Oregon was also interested in Key, but it is not certain whether the Ducks made a scholarship offer.

We will have more information on Key when he returns a phone call this afternoon.

Despite several weeks of trying, we still haven't reached Benji Kemoeatu, the 6-foot-3, 320-pound offensive lineman from Hawaii's Kahuku High.

However, we were able to reach an assistant coach at Kahuku (who wished to remain nameless) who is familiar with the situation. Here's what he told us about the four-star recruit whose two older brothers played for the Utes and are now in the NFL, Chris Kemoeatu (Steelers) and Ma'ake Kemoeatu (Panthers).

Benji was recently named first-team all-state in Hawaii and played in the Goodwill Senior All-Star Game. He was his team's offensive MVP.

Benji has not taken any official recruiting visits yet, but has one lined up with Oregon State for January. It is not certain whether Benji has a visit scheduled to Utah yet.

However, he has said that Oregon State and Utah are his two leaders. Arizona and Arizona State are also still in the picture, although not as much as the Utes and Beavers.

The big question surrounding Benji is academics. It appeared to many recruiters midway through the high school season that the big prospect would be an academic non-qualifier and would have to take the junior college route to a Division I program.

However, the senior has buckled down the last month or so, with the help of a nightly tutor, and could make a Stanley Havili-like turnaround.

A day or so before BYU football coach Bronco Mendenhall saw his team outlast UCLA 17-16 in the Las Vegas Bowl, he beat another Pac-10 school for a recruit -- without having to offer a scholarship.

Snow College safety Andrew Rich told The Recruiting Trail earlier today that he called Mendenhall last week and told the coach he was accepting a BYU offer to become a "preferred walk-on" at the school.

In doing so, Rich turned down scholarship offers from Cal and Boise State.

It looks crazy, but Rich said it is worth the risk because he believes he will eventually earn a scholarship from the Cougars, just as Snow quarterback Cade Cooper did last year.

Cooper was injured in the spring camp and transferred before playing a down for the Cougars, but he had been awarded a scholarship.

"I called coach Mendenhall and told him last week," Rich said. "He seemed like he was pleased with my decision."

Rich believes he will get all the privileges that scholarship athletes get -- without the scholarship. The University of Utah also offered him preferred walk-on status.

"I just felt like overall BYU is the place where I am supposed to be," he said. "It just felt right."

Rich said the fact that BYU started four former walk-ons in its secondary in its Las Vegas Bowl win over UCLA shows him that he will get a fair shot at playing time and earning a scholarship.

Another Snow College player has signed a letter of intent to play Division I football.

Defensive lineman Stephen Paea, a 6-foot-2, 295-pounder from Tonga who played high school football at Timpview High in Provo, signed with Oregon State last week.

Paea will have three years of eligibility at OSU after redshirting in 2006 and playing for the Badgers in 2007.

Paea said he won't join the program until at least the spring term because the team is at the 85 scholarship limit.

I am putting together a piece for the newspaper about the top sports moments in Utah in 2007, and I came across a candidate for my list: Taylorsville softball star Cyd Allen's unmatched home run prowess in last year's 5A state softball tournament.

It wasn't surprising, then, when I saw the list of players that BYU's softball program signed last month and noticed that T-Ville's Allen was at the top.

If she plays as well in college as she did last spring, the Cougars will have landed a phenomenal talent.

Allen, a catcher, is BYU's only in-state signee. She was the 5A MVP last year after leading the Warriors to the 5A title. Allen hit 12 home runs during the season and posted a .532 batting average.

Other BYU signees:

* Krista Hicks, an infielder from Mesa, Ariz.

* Tiffany Messerschmidt, an outfielder from Thousand Oaks, Calif.

* Jessica Dugas, an outfielder from Belle Flower, Calif.

* Coreen Lopez, a utility player from Riverside, Calif.

* Delaney Willard, a utility player from Camarillo, Calif.

"This is an exceptional recruiting class from top to bottom," said BYU coach Gordon Eakin. "It is one of the strongest classes we have had for our program and I think it is one of the best classes in the country."

Wednesday was the early signing day for junior college recruits moving on to Division I football programs, but Utah State is the only local school that has announced its signings so far.

That's probably because Utah and BYU are busy preparing for bowl games and Southern Utah has been busy searching for a new head coach. The Thunderbirds announced earlier today that Ed Lamb, an assistant at the University of San Diego, is their new head man.

As for the Aggies, they announced four signings, including Casey Davis, a former Riverton High star who just concluded his eligibility at Snow College in Ephraim.

A 6-foot-3, 285-pound defensive lineman, Davis was a first-team all-conference pick for the Badgers. He had 49 tackles (19 for loss) and four sacks.

At Riverton High, Davis earned first-team all-region honors as a junior.

Utah State coach Brent Guy said he expects to sign several more mid-year transfers before classes start in January.

The Aggies also signed Jeremy Mitchell and Sevaro Johnson, teammates at Laney College in Oakland, Calif. Mitchell, from Benicia, Calif., is a 6-foot-5, 250-pound tight end and Johnson, from Oakley, Calif., is a 293-pound defensive tackle.

Johnson is a former high school teammate of current USU player Diondre Borel.

Also signing with the Aggies on Wednesday was Chris Williams, a 190-pound safety from El Camino College in Torrance, Calif.

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The Aggies have also offered a scholarship to Aiona Key, a receiver from Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif. However, it appears Key will sign with either Utah or Oregon (see previous posts).

High school players that Utah State is targeting:

* Chris Awambu, a lineman from Oakland, Calif.

* Zach Brackus, a lineman from Murray High

* Chris Snyder, a lineman from Aurora, Colo.

* Jack Reynoso, a defensive lineman from Loomis, Calif.

* Jamarcus Williams, a lineman from Mountain View, Calif.

* Jordan Gross, a lineman from Long Beach, Calif.

* Ryan Kuehl, a defensive back from Las Vegas

* Sheldon Armstrong, a defensive back from Long Beach, Calif.

University of Utah football coaches could be getting a big ol' bonus right before Christmas: A five-star recruit.

Heck, they might even get receiver Aiono Key from Mt. San Antonio College before they kick off against Navy in Thursday's Poinsettia Bowl, if other schools continue to drag their feet.

"It's looking real, real good for Utah," Key said Wednesday afternoon from his home near Sacramento. "I'm talking to another school, too, but if they keep taking too much more time [before making a scholarship offer], I will go with Utah."

Presumably, that other school is Oregon, although Key would not say for sure. The Ducks haven't offered, but are said to be close. They are communicating with Key through his juco coach because the dead period when coaches cannot have personal contact with recruits began last Sunday.

Key, listed by Scout.com as a five-star junior college recruit, has solid offers from Utah, Akron and Utah State.

"For sure, I want to get this thing done before Christmas," he said. "One way or another, I don't want to hold Utah off any longer."

Although today begins the signing period for junior college recruits, Key can't sign until February because of academic reasons. He says he's on track to get his associates degree in May from Mt. SAC

Key was a three-star recruit before enrolling at Boise State. But he lasted just one year with the Broncos and moved on to Mt. SAC last August.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound star is not rated by the other major recruiting service, Rivals.com, because they have never evaluated him.

Key visited Utah's campus last weekend (Thursday through Saturday) with four other recruits, including tight end Dudley LaPorte of Santa Barbara City College.

"It couldn't have gone any better," he said. "I absolutely loved it."

Key caught 53 passes for 757 yards and 12 touchdowns in the regular season before a 12-catch, 179-yard performance in the California JC Championship game.

Two out of four isn't bad, right?

I set about this morning with the idea to talk to four of the five recruits that the University of Utah's football program hosted on campus last weekend. The fifth recruit was Zach Davila, a lineman from Arizona who committed to Utah in June, so I figured I would talk to him later.

Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa, who told us last Wednesday he was going to visit Utah, apparently didn't make it.

I was able to reach Dudley LaPorte, a tight end from Santa Barbara (Calif.) City College and Gerald Harris, a tight end from Navarro College in Texas. I was not able to connect with Aiona Key, a receiver from Mt. San Antonio College in California, or Devonte Christopher, a senior at Canyon Springs High in Las Vegas.

Well, my conversation with Harris was a short one. He committed tonight to Ole Miss and new coach Houston Nutt, after receiving offers from the Rebels, the Utes, UConn, Florida International and UTEP in the past few weeks.

The early signing period for junior college recruits who will enroll at their chosen schools in January begins tomorrow (Dec. 19), but the other two juco players the Utes had on campus last week were academic non-qualifiers out of high school and won't be able to sign until February.

Harris' commitment is probably welcome news to LaPorte, because he becomes an even higher priority for the Utes, who, judging by their recruiting the past few months, appear to be more serious about incorporating a tight end into their offense.

"I was impressed by what I saw at Utah," said LaPorte, who was preparing to make the cross-country drive from California to his home in Stamford, Conn. "You never know. I might be a Ute some day."

Coincidentally, LaPorte said that his top two choices at this point are Ole Miss and Utah. With Harris siding with Ole Miss (LaPorte didn't know it at the time of our call), LaPorte could be committing to the Utes any day now.

"The percentages [of that] are pretty high," he said.

The 6-foot-4, 258-pounder said UConn, Syracuse and San Diego State have also shown interest, but haven"t offered. His third offer is from Nevada. He plans on making an unofficial visit to nearby Syracuse while he's home for the holiday break.

"Utah didn't press me to commit, but they did say they want to know my plans as soon as possible," he said.

LaPorte caught 30 passes for 500 yards and four touchdowns last season at SBCC. He clicked off the names of the other recruits that were in Salt Lake City with him, but said none of them committed (except for Davila, who re-affirmed his previous commitment).

As for those other two guys, we will keep trying.

Key, the five-star recruit (according to scout.com) enjoyed his visit to Utah and went snowmobiling while he was here, a Mt. SAC assistant coach said. Because he can't sign until February, Key is not in a huge hurry to commit.

As for Christopher, he told Steve Ryan of the Nebraska-based Web site RedReport.com that his two leaders right now are Stanford and Utah, partly because those schools have told him he can play quarterback for them.

The 6-foot quarterback threw for nearly 300 yards a game last season and completed 64 percent of his passes.

Other schools such as Nebraska, Arizona and Colorado are recruiting him as an athlete and haven't made that promise.

While the rest of us are trying to decide between that pink or purple sweater for the significant other, Snow College safety Andrew Rich has a gut-wrenching decision to make in the next few days. Rich, who just just completed his freshman season at the junior college in Ephraim, is a product of Ogden's Bonneville High who delayed his college football plans to go an an LDS Church mission right out of high school to Portland, Ore.

Upon returning, Rich had a spectacular first season for the Badgers, earning some All-America honors, and now some Division I football programs want his services. Rich is eligible to do whatever he wants because he was an academic qualifier coming out of high school.

It's just that back then, nobody wanted the 6-foot-3 multi-sport star who led Class 4A basketball in scoring his senior year.

Several schools want him now.

Boise State and Cal have offered scholarships.

Utah and BYU have offered what they call "preferred walk-on status." That means that Rich would get many of the same privileges that scholarshipped players get, but would have to pay his own tuition in hopes of "earning" a scholarship down the road.

"I got to make a decision soon, and it's agonizing," he said.

The signing period for junior college recruits begins tomorrow (Wednesday), so Cal and Boise State want an answer right away. He visited Cal and got the offer from coach Jeff Tedford last weekend. He hasn't been to Boise State yet, but the Broncos called Sunday with an offer.

He could also choose to return to Snow for his sophomore season and perhaps show BYU and Utah he's good enough to deserve a scholarship now.

"I would like to stay close to home," he said. "I've been away from home for two years, and I know how that feels. I could do it again, if I had to, but . . . ," he said.

Rich said he grew up a BYU fan and has always dreamed of playing for the Cougars.

He acknowledges it would be a risk to go to BYU or Utah as a walk-on, but not as big of one as people think.

"It would set me back financially, but can you put a price on following your dream?" he said.

We will let you know what Rich decides in the next few days.

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Rich isn't the only Snow College star with a decision to make soon.

Snow coach Steve Coburn said that receiver Adam Frandsen has offers from Arkansas State, Troy and Northern Colorado and that Oregon is still expressing some interest. BYU wants the former Box Elder High standout to walk on.

Three other Snow stars -- running back Soni Sotele, offensive lineman Isileli Pau'u and offensive lineman Arron Po'uha -- are being recruited by Division I programs but won't sign until February or later because as academic non-qualifiers coming out of high school they need to graduate from junior college first. Pau'u and Sotele are from Hunter High and Po'uha prepped at Cyprus.

As reported previously, Snow's Andrew Mitchell has committed to Oklahoma State, while Coleby Clawson and Tevita Hola have committed to BYU.

As for Coburn, the coach, he acknowledged that he interviewed for the vacant Southern Utah job a few weeks ago, but has not received any indication that the Thunderbirds are going to offer him the job any time soon.

"It looks like we'll just stay here and try to keep winning," he said.

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Several readers have asked about the four or so recruits that the University of Utah hosted last weekend. We've got calls out all over the place, and as soon as we get some firm responses we will offer up a post. We do know from their respective junior college and high school coaches that none of the three key recruits -- Aiona Key, Devonte Christopher or Dudley LaPorte -- committed while they were on campus. Also, Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa did not end up making a visit.

The other player there, lineman Zach Davila, committed during the summer.

Until a few weeks ago, David Zapata had barely heard about Brigham Young University and its football program.

Now, he's hoping to get a phone call -- or a visit -- from the Cougars when the current "dead period" ends.

"I've done some research on them. I know they're a religious school, but I know they have a big-time program and I hope they're still interested in me," he said Monday night.

Zapata, a diminutive running back -- 5-foot-7, 177 pounds -- just finished his senior season as the No. 6 rusher in the history of New York state with 6,101 yards in his career. He's also a National Honor Society student.

Zapata recently picked up his first offer, from Maine. He plans to visit Navy in January, and expects an offer from the Midshipmen. He said Massachusetts is also interested.

It all started, according to an assistant coach at Hornell High, when BYU receivers coach Patrick Higgins viewed a tape of Zapata in action and called members of the Red Raiders' coaching staff several times to get more information on the game-breaker.

Zapata averaged 7.9 yards per carry and 199 yards per game in his career. He led the state in rushing his sophomore and junior seasons. If he were 5-6 inches taller, he'd be more heavily recruited, obviously.

The Cougars would likely use him as a slot receiver the same way they used Nate Meikle last year. Bryce Mahuika has the position this year, but has been played sparingly because the Cougs have three outstanding tight ends and often employ two at the same time.

The depth of BYU's interest is difficult to gauge because coaches cannot publicly discuss recruits. BYU has not made any face-to-face contact with Zapata, nor tried to set up a campus visit yet, according to the Hornell assistant coach.

However, the coach said that Higgins has had several discussions with Hornell coaches about BYU's Honor Code and uniqueness as an institution sponsored by the Mormon Church just to be sure that Zapata is a candidate.

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Quarterback Kevin Prince of Encino (Calif.) Crespi High has orally committed to Washington, according to the Web site www. Dawgman.com.

Prince, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior, had scholarship offers from both BYU and Utah at one time last spring, but had not been recruited heavily by either school in at least three months.

He chose Washington over his favorite school growing up, UCLA.

Prince will likely go on an LDS Church mission before enrolling at Washington. He is ranked as the No. 27 quarterback in the country by Scout.com.

Utahns who have followed high school basketball in the state the past five years will probably remember Tom Whitehead, a 6-foot-6 star from Dixie High who helped the Flyers put together two or three great seasons in 2001-03.

It has been a long, winding road for the former all-stater, but Whitehead has finally found a place to play Division I college basketball.

Whitehead has signed with Creighton, and will begin playing for the Bluejays in the fall of 2008. He will enroll at the school in January and practice with the team the rest of this season, which will be counted as his redshirt year.

"I'm dang excited," he said.

Whitehead went on an LDS Church mission after graduating from Dixie High in 2003 and then ran into some NCAA Clearinghouse issues when he returned.

Whitehead played for Yavapai Junior College in Arizona last year, and averaged nearly 22 points a game for the Roughridgers, so he will have three years to play three at Creighton.

Weber State and Southern Utah also offered scholarships, along with Miami, Colorado State, Northern Arizona, Boise State and others, but Whitehead chose Creighton in part because he likes coach Dana Altman and also because the Jays have been to the NCAA Basketball Tournament seven of the past nine seasons.

Utah and BYU both showed some interest in him, but both are loaded at the position he plays (small forward/wing) so neither school came through with an offer.

"Creighton is the best fit for me," Whitehead said.

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Speaking of basketball commitments and signings, I talked to a local expert today about the class of 2008 and whether there are any boys basketball players out there that could still land Division I scholarships.

Some 10 players from Utah signed with college programs last month, most notably Brighton's Jace Tavita with Utah, Logan's Charles Abouo with BYU and Lon Peak's Justin Hamilton with Iowa State.

My source believes Woods Cross' Patrick Day, a 6-9 post player, still has a chance to land an offer. Also, Olympus big man Elliott Bullock has a chance, partially due to his strong academic record.

Pine View's Louis Garrett, Snow Canyon's Dalton Groskreutz and Brighton's Ali Langford could also land somewhere.

On the girls side, the best unsigned player is probably Fremont's Mechel Hunt. She has been out with a torn ACL but is due to come back in January and colleges are interested in watching how she has recovered.

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Another St. George area athlete has announced her college plans. Snow Canyon volleyball star Anna Nostrant has signed to play that sport for Salt Lake Community College.

The Intermountain Hoops Fab 40 Showcase for top basketball players is Saturday (Dec. 22) at Salt Lake Lutheran High in Salt Lake City.

The showcase will feature the top 40 seventh-grade and top 40 eighth-grade boys basketball players in the intermountain west.

For more information on the event, go to www.intermountainhoops.com

Good morning, everyone.

I'm sorry I've gone a few days without posting anything about recruiting. I've been at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas the past few days and have had some (computer) connectivity issues.

I hope to have something posted about the football recruits the University of Utah hosted over the weekend up here later today.

In the meantime, I noticed that BYU has released its baseball signings.....

The Cougars signed a pair of junior college pitchers and five high school players, including three from Utah.

We've mentioned the commitments of Bret Lopez, an infielder from Tiimpanogos High in Orem, and Daniel Sechrest, a righthanded pitcher from Lone Peak High in Highland before. Both made it official last month.

The Cougars have also signed Brock Whitney, an infielder/pitcher from Bingham High in South Jordan. Whitney was a second-team all-state performer as a junior. He hit .373 last year with six doubles, four triples and 21 RBIs.

The two other prep stars the Cougars have signed are Nik Turley, a 6-4 lefty from Harvard Westlake High in La Canada, Calif. Turley sounds like a good get for the Cougars because he was also recruited by UCLA, Cal Fullerton and UNLV, among others.

The fifth prep player to sign with BYU is Adam Miller, a pitcher/infielder from Yucaipa, Calif. Miller reportedly has a 94 mph fastball and is also an academic ace with a 3.9 GPA.

The juco signees are Jeremy Toole from Alvin Community College near Houston and David McNight, a pitcher from Salt Lake Community College who played high school baseball at Chaparral High in Parker, Colo.

Also, Provo High's Adam Law, son of BYU baseball coach Vance Law, will attend BYU but won't take up a baseball scholarship. And Jake Murphy, the football star from American Fork High, might try to play baseball in addition to football, according to sources familiar with the baseball program.

"It's messed up."

That was the response of Judge Memorial Catholic High School defensive back Lewis Walker this morning when I called to ask him how his recruitment was coming.

We reported last month that Walker, a member of Judge's second-place 3A football team, had scholarship offers on the table from the University of Utah and Colorado.

Well, the Utah offer has been yanked, Walker said, and the Colorado offer is tenuous, at best, considering the Buffaloes' coaches suddenly won't return his phone calls. He knows they've been in town, too, because he's read that seven of them visited Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa two weeks ago.

"I'm doing fine [mentally]," Walker said. "But my eyes have been opened, that's for sure."

Walker says he called Utah defensive coordinator Gary Andersen a week or so ago to commit to the Utes, but got a totally different response.

"Coach Andersen said, 'Actually there is nothing here for you anymore,' " Walker said.

College coaches cannot comment on specific recruits, per NCAA rules, until they have signed, so we could not get a response from Andersen.

In fairness, however, it is not that uncommon for schools to withdraw scholarship offers. I'm in Las Vegas today to cover the National Finals Rodeo, and there's an article in the Las Vegas Review Journal about a local kid who committed to Hawaii months ago, only to
find out recently the offer was no longer valid.

It's a cruel business.

What Utah did to Walker is certainly not that egregious, but the Utes probably should have given him the heads up weeks ago, rather than wait for him to call them. He's a local kid, after all, and plays for a Utah pipeline school just blocks away from the U. campus.

"He didn't really give me any reasons," Walker said. "Obviously, I wasn't as important to them as I thought I was....I had to get on the internet and do some research. It looks like they were recruiting other [defensive backs], and when they got those guys, I was no longer needed."

I reported a while back that BYU has set deadlines for some of its recruits to commit, and then pulled the offers when the deadline passed. I'm not sure if the Utes do that or not; perhaps they gave Walker a deadline.

At any rate, the all-stater is trying to stay positive, saying he's "not too bummed" and that he guesses "maybe it was not meant to be."

Hawaii has expressed some interest, and he might be taking a trip there before Christmas. Nebraska's new coaching staff has also inquired about him lately.

"I'm qualified academically and I can play," he said. "I'll find a place to play, possibly at a Division II school if that's what it takes. It's messed up, but I'm not."

Southern Utah University has found some golfers for its newly added women's golf team.

Don't laugh.

Finding capable college-ready female golfers is not easy in Utah, as Utah Valley State College found when it added the sport a few years ago.

Southern Utah has signed Tooele senior Sadie Palmer and Rich senior McKayla Williamson.

Palmer was the 2007 UJGA Player of the Year for her age group and was runner-up at last year's Utah Junior Amateur. She competed on Tooele's co-ed team her sophomore and junior seasons, and will play for the school's girls team this spring.

Williamson is currently the 11th-ranked junior female player in the state and is currently finishing up her associate's degree.

Almost anything can happen when a football recruit makes an official campus visit, so Brigham Young coaches are breathing a little easier this week with the news that one of their most coveted prospects -- offensive lineman Hamani Stevens of Hemet, Calif. -- did not make a commitment after visiting Michigan State last weekend.

While the Cougars were entertaining the Spartans in basketball at EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City, the four-star recruit who is listed as one of the top centers in the country was checking out East Lansing.

Stevens told the Web site GoSpartans.net that he enjoyed the trip, despite the frigid cold weather, but did not make a pledge to coach Mark Dantonio.

"I really enjoyed it," he said. "It was my first time [that] close to the East Coast. It was cold, but I mean, I put a jacket on and I was fine."

It was the 6-foot-2, 290-pound lineman's fourth official visit. He's also been to Colorado, Oregon and Arizona State.

"This trip was different than my other ones," he said. "I couldn't even rank it because it was different since it is not on the West Coast."

Stevens is scheduled to visit BYU on Jan. 11. However, he has not promised that he will wait until after that trip before making a commitment.

He is also still keeping an eye on UCLA, but is holding off until the Bruins name a new coach. Stevens said he lives close enough to UCLA that he can make an unofficial visit there anytime.

___________________________

Remember our post about Chris Polk? He is the Southern California running back, a four-star recruit, who orally committed to play for USC way back in March.

Polk de-committed to the Trojans recently, and on Wednesday night he committed to play for Washington.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound athlete will graduate this month and enroll at Washington on Jan. 7, he said.

We wrote about Polk last week because he has a teacher at East Valley High in Redlands, Calif., who lined up a meeting between Polk and BYU coaches. Cougars offensive line coach Mark Weber met with Polk, but talks pretty much ended when Weber brought up BYU's strict Honor Code.

Recruiting is an inexact science at best, so all the talk about "five-star recruits" and "can't miss prospects" has to be taken with a grain of salt.

One never knows for certain how players are going to pan out.

That said, this is shaping up to be one of the best football recruiting classes in University of Utah history.

Utah got a commitment from Alta's Sausan Shakerin last week, and may get another blue-chipper this week.

I just got off the phone with Aiona Key, a receiver at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif.

Key confirmed that he is making an official campus visit to Utah tomorrow and will stay through Saturday night.

Here's the thing: Scout.com says the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Key is a five-star recruit. Rivals.com gives Key no stars.

Going by the fact that the only three schools that have offered scholarships to the sophomore are Utah, Akron and Utah State, he's probably somewhere in between.

Still, he told me that the Utes are his No. 1 choice right now. He said "it might be hard not to commit" if he likes what he sees this weekend.

"I'm definitely serious about them," he said.

From the Sacramento area, Key started his college career at Boise State. The last time he was in Salt Lake City, the Broncos were kicking around the Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium, although he didn't get to play much. His older brother, Sale Key, played for the Arena League's Utah Blaze in 2006, so he's familiar with the town.

Aiona Key struggled academically at BSU, and transferred to Mt. Sac just before the 2007 season started.

Because he got there late, he wasn't able to get all the classes he needs to get his associates degree and will have to wait until late April to leave, he said.

He caught 53 passes for 757 yards and 12 touchdowns in the regular season before a 12-catch, 179-yard performance in the California JC Championship game.

"I had a good enough year that Division I schools kind of found me again," he said.

He thinks Utah discovered him when Ute receivers coach Aaron Roderick was at at Mt. Sac practice to watch someone else.

Having redshirted his first year in Boise, Key will have two years to play two wherever he ends up.

A source familiar with the ins and outs of junior college recruiting told me that a lot of BCS programs like Key's game, but are fearful of his academic situation and future.


---------------------------------------------


Along with Key, at least three other football recruits will visit Utah this weekend, a Ute source confirmed at practice today. I asked about it because I saw a list on the Web site Utezone.com. Gotta give credit where credit is due.

The three others are tight end Dudley LaPorte of Santa Barbara J.C. in California; quarterback/safety Devonte Christopher of Canyon Springs H.S. in Las Vegas and Zach Davila, a 6-4, 300-pound lineman from Cienega High in Vail, Ariz., who has already committed to the Utes.

LaPorte is a four-star recruit, according to Scout.com, who hails from Stamford, Conn. The 6-foot-4, 255-pounder caught 30 passes for 500 yards and four TDs. Nevada and Ole Miss have also offered.

Christopher is a three-star recruit, Scout.com says, and has 4.5 speed. The 6-footer played both quarterback and safety in high school, passing for more than 3,000 yards and 44 touchdowns in his career. He's ranked as the No. 44 safety in the country.

Stanford, Utah and Nebraska are the leaders in his recruitment; UNLV, Arizona and Colorado have reportedly also offered.

Davila committed in June.

---------------------------------

Another recruit may show up at Utah this weekend, although our source could not confirm it.

I texted Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa (see previous posts) this afternoon with the question: R U still tripping to Utah this weekend?

His answer: Yeah

OK, one last post about Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa, and then I have to go to Poinsettia Bowl-bound Utah's football practice and do some work for the printed version of the newspaper.

Turns out, Lynn did return my text message, and we've been texting back and forth the last few hours.

Couple of things:

1) He has not called a press conference and does not know where that rumor came from.

2) He feels like he has talked enough about the college decision and wants to kind of chill on it for a few days.

3) His girlfriend, Cottonwood volleyball star Kaili Aiono, has apparently changed her mind and is now heading to Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyom., rather than Salt Lake Community College. Rock Springs is a 2 1/2-hour drive from Salt Lake City.

4) No, that does not mean that Lynn is considering playing for the Wyoming Cowboys.

5) Dude can text faster than he can chase down quarterbacks. Average time it takes me to type in a question: 3 minutes. Average time for him to type in a reply: 3 seconds.

It's been a crazy morning here at the ol' Trailhead.

When I checked my e-mail this morning, I had dozens of inquiries and comments about yesterday's post regarding Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa and his on-again, off-again college commitment to Colorado.

Katoa told me Tuesday that his commitment to Colorado "was still there," but it was obvious by his tone that the pledge he first made Dec. 2 had turned soft. He reportedly told an Oklahoma-based Web site on Sunday (Dec. 9) that the Sooners were still very much in the picture, saying something to the effect that it was "down to those two" Big 12 schools.

After re-affirming his commitment to Colorado to me, however, he mentioned that he might take Utah coaches up on an offer to make a campus visit there this weekend. The Utes will have another five-star type recruit there this weekend, which we hope to report more on in a couple of hours.

About mid-morning, I got a new wave of inquiries because somewhere in cyberspace someone posted an announcement that Katoa had scheduled a news conference for this afternoon to make his final college decision known.

I called the Cottonwood High front office, and they didn't know anything about it.

I called coach Cecil Thomas, and he didn't know anything about it. He highly doubts it, however, because Katoa told him this morning that he didn't want to talk to anybody about it for the next week or so while he clears his head and concentrates on his schoolwork.

I sent Katoa a text message (which he hasn't returned, and probably won't), thinking it is best not to bother him during school hours.

Hopefully, he's in class with his phone turned off.

So, that's what is going on right now as hundreds (thousands?) of people between here and Norman await the final word from a talented, torn 18-year-old kid.

How was your morning?

Utah State announced today that its men's basketball program has signed four players -- two junior college transfers and two high school seniors -- to national letters of intent.

As reported several times by The Recruiting Trail, one of those signees is Sky View (Smithfield) High senior Jordan Stone However, Stone, a 6-foot-10, 245-pound center, will go on an LDS Church mission after high school and won't compete for the Aggies until the 2010-11 season.

Stone leads Utah's Class 4A in scoring at 24.5 points a game. He's also averaging 14 rebounds a game, which likely leads the state, although that's uncertain because those numbers are not readily available and/or provided by every school in the state.

The other prep star to sign is Deremy Geiger, a 5-10, 165-pound point guard at Canyon Springs High in Las Vegas. Geiger is averaging 18.6 points, five assists and three steals through five games.

From the junior college ranks the Aggies have picked up Rich Sirju, a 6-2 shooting guard at Daytona Beach Community College in California and Bryce Webster, a 6-9 center at Irvine Valley Community College in California.

Sirju currently ranks 24th in the nation in juco scoring at 21.4 points per game.

Webster is averaging 11.0 points and 5.1 rebounds a game. He started his college career at Minnesota before transferring to the junior college.

----------------------------------------

This has a pretty good year for boys prep golf talent in Utah, with the University of Utah picking up Andrew Etzel of Judge and Weber State picking up Fremont's Jordan Herzog and Troy Owen of Woods Cross.

Southern Utah University coach Richard Church announced last week that he has signed Jeff Evans, a two-time first-team all-stater at nearby Cedar City High. Both of Evans' brothers, Mike and Robb, also played golf for the Thunderbirds.

This is an exceptionally good year for swimming talent within the state of Utah, according to several prep coaches who have been around a long time.

Not surprisingly, BYU has signed several of the state's best swimmers, the school announced last week.

Here's a list of BYU's swimming signings and a little about each recruit.

* Candice Smith, American Fork: High School All-American, Olympic Trials Qualifier, Senior National Qualifier and Participant, Recruited by BYU, Utah, Florida and others.

"Candice is a wonderful swimmer and a super young lady. She comes to us from a great swimming family," said BYU coach Stan Crump.

* Erin Pabst, Logan: Five-time Utah State 3A champion, Two-time Female Swimmer of the Year in 3A, Age group and high school state record holder.

"We've been watching Erin for many years.....She is a very good swimmer who has not yet realized her potential as a backstroker," Crump said.

* Marni Knoop, Skyline: High School Swimming All-American, State Record-Holder in several events and relays, 5A state swimming champion, USA Western Sectional Finalist, Junior National Qualifier

"We had to wait a little for Marni to decide because of all the trips she made to schools, and it was very good news for us that she decided to come to BYU," Crump said.

* Jodie Ellis, Hillsboro (Ore.): Multi-time High School Scholastic All-American, Junior National Qualifier, Recruited by BYU, UNLV, Washington State and Oregon State

"We are fortunate to have been able to land Jodie, who had many choices in the schools that were recruiting her," Crump said.

* Madison Gray, Lowry High, Winnemucca (Nev.): Multi-Time High School Scholastic All-American, Academic All-State, 2007 Northern Nevada Swimmer of the Year

"In the place where she lives there is no organized club swimming and so she has driven to Reno once or twice a week to get some training......I am extremely excited to have her with us and can hardly wait to work with her," Crump said.

Oh, the vagaries of college football recruiting.

Back when I was the full-time prep football writer for The Tribune, I got a phone call one January night from Brighton football star Reno Mahe.

"I just committed to BYU," said Mahe, who is now with the Philadelphia Eagles.

About a half-hour later, I got a call from a University of Utah coach.

"We just got a commitment from Reno Mahe," the elated coach said.

I called Mahe back, and he sheepishly acknowledged telling both schools he was going to sign with them because he didn't want to let anyone down.

Mahe ended up at BYU and had two fine careers -- with a stint at Dixie College in between.

I bring this up because I just got off the phone with Cottonwood linebacker Lynn Katoa, the five-star recruit who committed to Colorado and the seven Buff coaches who visited him at his house a week ago Sunday. Yes, seven!

I called Lynn because the Web site SoonerScoop.com (part of the Rivals.com network) reported a few days ago that Katoa had re-opened the recruiting process and was still considering Oklahoma.

"I'm open between the two [Oklahoma and Colorado]," Katoa reportedly told a SoonerScoop.com reporter.

Well, that's not what Katoa told me today.

"I'm still solidly committed to Colorado," he said, acknowledging he had heard about the Web site's report. "There's been a lot of mixed-up communication, back and forth. . . . The commitment to Colorado is still there."

Katoa said Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops and defensive coordinator Brent Venables visited him last Wednesday (Dec. 5), three days after he committed to CU, and Venables returned alone on Sunday for another chat.

"I told them I was still thinking about it," Katoa said today. "Maybe they took that to mean something else."

Katoa also said that he might make a visit to Utah this weekend, but isn't sure if it will be an official or unofficial visit. The school pays for everything on official visits; the recruit pays his own way on unofficial visits. Katoa lives just 10 or so miles away from the Utah campus.

He still has one official visit available because he's been on four of the NCAA-alotted five: Oklahoma, LSU, Oklahoma State and Colorado. He said a trip to Texas last summer was unofficial.

My opinion?

Oral commitments mean less and less with each passing year -- regardless of who they are from, let alone 17- and 18-year-old kids.

This saga won't be over until one school has Katoa's national letter of intent in hand.

_____________________________

A few posts ago I mentioned how some of the best high school football players I have seen in Utah the past 16 years were the aforementioned Mahe, Highland's Haloti Ngata and Alta's Sausan Shakerin.

Jordan receiver Cody Raymond might not be in that group, but he's certainly in my top 15.

I simply can't believe Raymond does not have a Division I scholarship offer yet. Raymond was a rare three-time first-team all-state selection by both major Utah newspapers.

He tied two big state records in 2007, finishing with 41 career touchdown receptions and 86 catches his senior season.

The six or seven times I saw Raymond play in his career, he always managed to get open, despite constant double-teaming. He's not a burner, but he makes up for it with the excellent hands and precise routes.

Raymond's father said he has a full-ride offer from Snow College.

Complicating Raymond's recruitment somewhat is the fact that he turns 19 in September and wants to go on a two-year LDS Church mission before enrolling at a college. He would essentially miss three seasons.

BYU has offered "preferred walk-on status" when Raymond returns. Texas Tech has expressed some interest, partially because head coach Mike Leach and Jordan coach Alex Jacobson are close friends.

However, that interest is in limbo because Leach could be leaving Texas Tech for another job, possibly UCLA.

The Provo Bulldogs opened the 2007 boys basketball season with a stunning win over nationally ranked Lone Peak. The Bulldogs haven't won since.
Part of the reason why is that center/forward Brandon Davies, a 6-foot-6 junior, has been sidelined 4-6 weeks with a broken foot.
Doctors say the injury, which could be a stress fracture, will keep the athletic but raw Davies out until at least mid-January.
Davies scored 16 points against Lone Peak, but just four points in a loss to Pleasant Grove while battling foul trouble.
Davies does not have any scholarship offers yet, but he's certainly on the radar of Utah, BYU, Utah State and several other schools.
Too bad he won't get to show what he can do for a month or so.

We know about the 21 high school and junior college players who have orally committed to play for Brigham Young University's football program, and about the 12 who have pledged to play for the Utes.

But what about Utah State?

Good question.

With help from Aggie football beat writer Steve Luhm, The Recruiting Trail has learned that Utah State has at least two commitments. Obviously, they probably have more, but the Aggies guard their lists more than any program around, at least in Brent Guy era.

Christopher Williams, a 6-foot-3, 195-pound safety from El Camino Community College in Torrance, Calif., has committed to Utah State. He also had offers from Kansas State, Montana State and Portland State.

Williams had 44 tackles and two interceptions and was first-team All-Mission Conference.He will have three years to play two for the Aggies.

Adrian Sawyer, a 6-4 tight end from Laney Junior College in Oakland, Calif., has also picked Utah State.

Several recruiting services have mentioned that the Aggies are searching far and wide for a junior college quarterback to come in and compete for the starting job with junior-to-be Jase McCormick, sophomore-to-be Diondre Borel and Sean Setzer, who will be a senior if he returns to the program.

Medium-sized Tooele High School in Utah has become a prep softball dynasty the past six or seven years. Not surprisingly, local colleges are beginning to tap in to that talent pool for help with their programs.

Last week, we mentioned that former 3A MVP Lindsey Palmer of Tooele had signed with Utah (after a stint at Salt Lake Community College), along with several others.

Saturday, Dixie State College softball coach David Dwyer let us know that he has signed a couple of Tooele seniors -- Lauren Folta and Kelsey Mendenhall -- to national letters of intent, along with Spanish Fork star Whitney Holm.

I'm feeling old today because, waaaay back in high school, I used to work with Mendenhall's mother, Nan, at a certain fast-food restaurant that neither of us likely wants to divulge.

But I digress.

Folta was the 3A MVP last year as a junior after helping Tooele win its second state title in three years. She is also the Wendy's High School Heisman winner for Tooele High.

Mendenhall was a member of the 3A all-tournament team last spring and a second-team all-state selection. Like Folta, she's been a member of two state title teams. She was selected to the adidas Top-100 Futures national camp earlier this year.

Holm has started for the Dons since her freshman season and helped the team take the 5A state title in 2006. She's been a first-team all-stater three straight years and was the Utah Valley Player of the Year last spring.

"With the addition of [Holm, Mendenhall and Folta] we feel like we have gotten three of the top players in Utah this year," Dwyer said.

*******

Utah State coach Candi Letts has also been busy signing players for her softball program.

Last week, the Aggies announced they have signed junior college transfer Rachel Evans, a former Viewmont High star from the College of Southern Idaho.

Also, the Aggies signed two players from Shadow Ridge High in Las Vegas: 3B Rayna Bradshaw and SS Jasmine Harris.

Gina Rawls, an outfielder from Tualatin High in Tigard, Ore., has also signed with USU.

In case you missed the post about Utah's softball signings, they were: Hannah Clements of Poway, Calif; Joni Cook of Eagle, Idaho; Haylee Hoch of Fremont High in Plain City; Jasey Jensen of Layton High and SLCC; Brooke Olson of Riverton High and SLCC; Taylorsville senior Tiare Palauni and Tooele/SLCC's Palmer.

   Brigham Young's football team lost out on one of its targeted recruits over the weekend as Snow College offfensive lineman Andrew Mitchell orally committed to his hometown team, the Oklahoma State Cowboys (see previous post).

    However, sources tell The Recruiting Trail that the Cougars are interested in several other Snow College products.

    BYU has offered "preferred walk-on status" to Snow wide receiver Adam Frandsen, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound sophomore from Brigham City's Box Elder High. That means he will be one of the first walk-ons to get a scholarship when one opens up.

    It's sort of the same deal that Snow College quarterback Cade Cooper got last year. He was eventually given a scholarship, but got injured in spring ball and transferred out of the program.

    It appears that Frandsen's situation depends on what happens with Florida receiver O'Neil Chambers and/or New York slot receiver David Zapata (guys we've mentioned in previous posts).

    A good source also says that Timpview receiver Mark Ercanbrack has been offered preferred walk-on status by the Cougs. Ercanbrack is the Tribune's Class 4A Most Valuable Player after leading the Thunderbirds to an undefeated season and state title.

    The Trib's 2007 All-State Football Team is in today's newspaper (Monday, Dec. 10) in case you missed it. Thankfully, prep footbll writer Andrew Aragon, in one of his final acts as a Trib employee, named Alta's Sausan Shakerin the 5A MVP. Shak committed to Utah last week, you may recall.

    But that's another story.

    Another Snow standout, freshman safety Andrew Rich, could also find himself with a Division I program next fall.

    According to an e-mail from Rich's father, Danny, the former Bonneville High star is making an official visit to Cal this coming weekend. Rich led Snow in tackles, interceptions and pass breakups in 2007.

    I know he's a fabulous athlete because he led 4A basketball in scoring in 2004, averaging 21.7 points a game.

    Andrew Rich also has a meeting scheduled with BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall on Wednesday.

    Meanwhile, the Badgers are watching to see if their coach, Steve Coburn, gets the Southern Utah job. He's a candidate, along with Utah receivers coach Aaron Roderick, Utah State receivers coach Greg Stevens, Cal Poly offensive coordinator Joe DuPaix and others.

After talking to Snow College offensive lineman Andrew Mitchell a few weeks ago, a couple days after he had received a scholarship offer from BYU, I really thought the converted tight end was going to commit to the Cougars some time before the Dec. 19 signing day for juco recruits.

Boy, was I wrong.

Mitchell, the 6-foot-5, 300-pound star who started his career at Dixie State College before serving an LDS Church mission to California, orally committed to Oklahoma State on Sunday, according to the Web site GoPokes.com.

Mitchell visited the campus in Stillwater, Okla., last weekend. It is near his hometown of Midwest City, Okla, and he played high school football at nearby Choctaw High.

He said he will sign with OSU on Dec. 19, ending a heated recruiting battle that included BYU, Troy, Arizona and others.

---------------

Preston Davis, a receiver and linebacker from Shadow Ridge High in Las Vegas, committed to Idaho over the weekend. The 6-foot-2, 195-pounder was offered a scholarship by the University of Utah several months ago.

However, it is uncertain whether the Utes were still interested in Davis, who had 36 catches for 644 yards and seven touchdowns this past season. He said a few weeks ago that the Utes had not been in touch for awhile, perhaps signaling they had lost interest or received a commitment from another receiver type.

-------------------

BYU tennis coach Craig Manning reports that he has landed one of the top female tennis players in the country. McCall Jones, a five-star recruit, has signed with BYU after receiving attention from the likes of No. 1 Georgia Tech, No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 UCLA and No. 10 USC.

Jones is ranked No. 3 among seniors in the state of California and is the younger sister of former BYU player Lauren Jones. She lives in Coto De Caza, Calif.

The Cougars also signed Romina Nedakovic, a senior at Juan Diego Catholic High School in Draper. Nedakovic won four state titles and is ranked No. 2 in the intermountain region.

He's only five basketball games into his junior year, but already Lone Peak guard Tyler Haws is adept at handling the recruiting question. Sounds like he's been asked about it 100 times before.

"I'm keeping my options open," Haws told me Friday after his team crushed Bountiful in a preseason game. "I am not going to make a decision until after this [school] year."

Haws, of course, is the high-scoring 6-foot-4 guard who already has scholarship offers from BYU, Utah and Pepperdine. The list of offers is sure to grow as the season progresses.

Haws has scored 112 points in five games, and almost certainly will lead 5-A in scoring this yeark, despite the fact that he's on a team with four or five other potential Division I players.

Haws told me he is not leaning in any direction right now, but wants to make a commitment next summer, before his senior year begins. His father, Marty, caused a slight stir among those who follow recruiting last week when he paid a surprise visit to a Utah practice.

"He was just up in Salt Lake and just decided to go see how they ran things," Tyler Haws said. "My dad likes [Utah coach Jim] Boylen a lot."

Marty Haws was an All-WAC performer at BYU 17-18 years ago, but his son has said numerous times that doesn't mean he is ticketed to BYU.

"I have grown up a BYU fan , though," he said.

Haws' cousin, Jake Kuresa, was a four-year starting offensive lineman for the BYU football team.

Another junior in the state, Pleasant Grove's C.J. Wilcox, also has offers from BYU and Utah. Haws and Wilcox played on the same club team this past summer and are good friends, but aren't really planning on playing together in college.

If it happens, it happens, Haws said.

"He's got his own goals and stuff," Haws said. "We really don't talk about going to the same college or anything like that."

I wrote a few days ago about Hamani Stevens, an offensive lineman from Hemet, Calif., whom BYU has been recruiting for several months. Stevens told me that BYU line coach Mark Weber was going to pay him a visit this week at his Southern California home and watch a wrestling match involving Stevens at Hemet High School.

According to a Recruiting Trail reader (who has been spot on with other tips for this blog before), Weber also met with another four-star recruit during his trip to the Golden State.

It is an interesting story, so I am passing it along, with one word of caution: I have not been able to verify it with any of the involved.

Weber reportedly met with Chris Polk, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound running back/receiver from East Valley High School in Redlands, Calif., on Friday.

Polk commited to USC last February, but has taken trips to Washington, California and Oregon this fall, according to Scout.com.

Supposedly, Weber got an audience with Polk because the Cougar coach and Polk's high school coach go way back and are good friends.

Alas, it was not to be for the Cougars. When Weber told Polk about BYU's Honor Code, the senior who is ranked as the No. 9 running back in the country by Scout.com said the strict lifestyle is not for him, and declined to consider BYU beyond that.

My source says Polk's mother is the driving force behind his recruitment and that she really wants him to go to Oregon.

We'll keep an eye on him and see if he ends up there.

-----------------------------

In other BYU football recruiting news that has made the rounds on the Web sites and message boards:

* BYU assistant coach Patrick Higgins has been in Florida this week meeting with O'Neil Chambers, the wide receiver who attended the Cougars' camp last summer. Chambers' high school coach, Tyler Anderson, played for BYU.

* We reported a while ago that BYU had withdrawn its scholarship offer to Greg Castillo, a cornerback from St. Joseph's Prep in Philadelphia because Castillo had not committed before a deadline agreed to by both sides. Castillo, whose father is on coach Andy Reid's staff with the Philadelphia Eagles, acknowledged the withdrawal this week.

However, other schools are apparently still very interested in the 5-foot-11 speedster. He told Scout.com that he recently received offers from Stanford, Toledo and Navy, bringing the total to seven.

* The Cougars have apparently shown some interest in David Zapata, a running back from Hornell High School in Hornell, N.Y. Zapata averaged 7.9 yards per carry and 199 yards a game in his prep career, but has not received a Division I offer.

"My coach said that BYU coach Patrick Higgins loved my tape and has called three or four times this week about me," Zapata told Matt Alkire of SuperPrep.com. "Clemson and Boston College have also called this week, so those are the newest schools to really inquire about me."

Basketball, baseball and wrestling coaches weren't the only ones busy during the early signing period, which concluded almost two weeks ago.

University of Utah softball coach Amy Hogue was busy, too. The first-year coach announced the signings of seven players.

Four are high schoolers and three will be junior college transfers.

Here they are:

* Hannah Clements, Poway, Calif.

* Joni Cook, Eagle, Idaho

* Haylee Hoch, Plain City (Fremont High)

* Jasey Jensen, Layton (Layton High/Salt Lake Community College)

* Brooke Olson, Bluffdale (Riverton High/SLCC)

* Tiare Palauni, Taylorsville (Taylorsville High)

* Lindsey Palmer, Tooele (Tooele High/SLCC)

   

As you've probably read on The Salt Lake Tribune's Web site or in the newspaper's sports section today, or on several recruiting-oriented message boards, Alta High running back Sausan Shakerin orally committed to play football for the University of Utah earlier this week.

I finally reached Shak last night after getting a rock-solid tip about the commitment around 2 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. Although Shak wouldn't confirm the commitment, he acknowledged that "maybe" it was true. Based on the earlier tip and some information that my colleague at The Tribune, Lya Wodraska, had gathered, we decided to go with the story.

Lya wrote it and sent it in to the paper because I was away from my computer last night. The only reason I mention that is because someone left a comment under the story accusing me of plagiarizing it from a recruiting Web site and called me "gutless" for not putting my name on it. I helped with it; I did not write it, but I obviously stand by it, as will Lya.

This morning, the commitment was confirmed in an e-mail from a person extremely close to Shak, although the purpose of the e-mail was not to confirm but to chastise us a little bit for making it sound like Shak was rude to Stanford coaches. Certainly, he was not.

I've never heard the young man say a rude or condescending thing in
a dozen or so conversations with him the past two years.

But that's probably more "behind-the-scenes" stuff than you wanted to know.

The big story is that the Utes have landed a bonafide blue-chipper, even if he was injured for a good chunk of the season. At the end of the season, Shak looked like his old self and I have no doubt that he will be a huge contributor for the Utes.

Ute fans are crowing about the get, and rightly so. Schools such as Stanford, LSU, Oregon and BYU wanted the 6-foot-2, 200-pound star, one of the most heavily recruited running backs I can remember in 16 or so years covering Utah high school sports.

However, a little too much is being made over the fact that the Utes beat BYU for Shakerin.

Shakerin was always a real long shot to go to BYU, something at least two Cougar coaches acknowledged to me months ago. Even a Ute coaching source acknowledged that the real battle for Shak was not with BYU, but Stanford and others.

For one, Shakerin is not Mormon. Second, his family has absolutely no ties to BYU, but has several connections to Utah. For instance, former Ute standout Bo Nagahi is Shakerin's cousin.

All that, however, shouldn't take away from the elation of Utah fans. This kid can play.

Former Brighton star Reno Mahe (BYU) and former Highland star Haloti Ngata (Oregon) are still the best high school football players I have ever covered, but I would put Shak in the top 10, no question about it.

One of the junior college stars who committed to the University of Utah football team last spring, Lamar Chapman of El Camino Community College in Torrance, Calif., may be wavering on that commitment a bit.

Chapman visited Kansas State last weekend "to check everything out" and has told several recruiting experts that it is not a done deal that he's headed to Utah.

Chapman, who committed to the Utes last May, has completed his two years of eligibility at a junior college. But because he has not taken his redshirt year, he will have three years to play two at a Division I school.

He's a three-star recruit according to both Scout.com and Rivals.com.

Along with Utah and Kansas State, Chapman has received offers from Arizona and San Diego State. He is scheduled to make his official campus visit to Utah this weekend. He has also said he will visit Arizona State before the signing day in February.

In May, it appeared the Utes needed some immediate help at cornerback. But with the way junior Brice McCain and sophomores Sean Smith, Robert Johnson and R.J. Stanford played in the defensive backfield for the Utes, it appears they no longer need that help.

Two other sophomores, Joe Dale and Justin Jones, also contributed, and safety Steve Tate is the only regular who graduates.

It might be better for the Utes to use the scholarship on a high school senior that they can develop, because unless Chapman is an all-world talent, he might not get on the field for several years.

   The first major winter storm of the season dumped four inches of snow on the ground the day after he arrived in Salt Lake City, but highly recruited California cornerback and quarterback Rashad Evans enjoyed his weekend visit on the University of Utah's campus, he said Monday.

    Evans, a 5-foot-10, 170-pound senior, said he has vaulted Utah to his top three favorites after the visit.

    "It was a lot better than I expected," he said. "It was a cool place. I really like the players and the coaches that I hung out with."

    While here, Evans was hosted by Utah freshman linebacker Mo Neal. Evans, who played for Logan High in Union City, Calif., played against Neal last year when Neal was at San Leandro High.

    "I have no ties whatsoever to Utah," Evans said. "Mo was the only familiar face, besides some of the coaches" who have been recruiting him.

    Evans said the Utes "fed me a lot," took him on ATV rides and to the basketball game against UC Irvine. When it came time to talk about his recruitment, the coaches were "really laid back about it," he said.

    "They just told me to make the right decision for myself," he said.

    Evans said he has eight or nine offers from Division I programs, including nearby Cal, Georgia Tech and Oregon.

    "Cal and Oregon were my favorites, but Utah has moved in there, too," he said.

    Although he rushed for 1,393 yards on 108 carries and threw three touchdown passes as a quarterback, most schools are recruiting Evans as a defensive back. He had 25 tackles for a team that went undefeated during the regular season and is listed as a three-star cornerback by Scout.com.

    "I see myself as a slot receiver and a kick returner, but we will see," he said. "I'm not at all against playing defense."

    Evans, who said he is fully qualified academically, wants to visit Oregon and Cal and perhaps two other schools before making his decision.

How badly does BYU want Hamani Stevens, a 6-foot-3, 295-pound lineman from Hemet High in Southern California (near Riverside)?

Bad enough to also offer Stevens' twin brother, linebacker Samiu Stevens, one of its precious few remaining scholarships?

It very well could come down to that.

Hamani Stevens, who is rated as the fifth-best center in the country by several publications and a four-star recruit by Scout.com, told The Recruiting Trail earlier today that BYU is among his top five schools now. But if the Cougars take Hamani and Samiu "as a package deal," Samani said, "my interest in them would go up more."

San Diego State is the only other school that seems even remotely interested in taking Samiu, Hamani said. Samiu Stevens is nearly 100 pounds lighter than his twin and not nearly as heavily recruited.

Certainly, the subject will be broached on Wednesday when BYU offensive line coach Mark Weber makes an in-home visit. He'll be there to watch Hamani's wrestling match and have dinner with the Stevens family.

"Coach Weber is awesome," Hamani Stevens said. "I can see him helping me get to the next level. He's helped a lot of guys get to the NFL."

Hamani said he will visit BYU on Jan. 11. He returned Sunday from a visit to Oregon and although the Ducks lost their in-state battle to Oregon State, Hamani was impressed with the school's facilities, especially the locker rooms.

He has also visited Colorado and Arizona State and plans on taking a trip to Michigan State this coming weekend. He's made several unofficial visits to nearby UCLA, and at one time committed to the Bruins, then de-committed a few days later. UCLA coach Karl Dorrell was fired Monday.

Count Hamani as one of the few who is looking forward to seeing UCLA and BYU play in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Some Cougar fans who have followed Hamani's recruitment are fearful that the subpar experience his older brother, Chris, had in Provo 10 years ago will adversely affect his decision. Chris Stevens played for coach LaVell Edwards but was stripped of his scholarship for not "working hard enough," Hamani said.

"That will have nothing to do with my choice," Hamani said. "It's a whole new coaching staff. I went [to BYU] in the spring and my brother [Chris] came over and met me there in Provo. He's cool with BYU and me going there."

Another brother, Tevita Stevens, plays for UTEP.

Obviously, the Cougars are trying to sell Hamani, who is LDS, on their missionary program. However, the prospect said that he has told the other schools -- Oregon, ASU, Colorado, Michigan State and UCLA -- about the possibility of him serving a mission "and they are all fine with it."

I just got off the phone with Cottonwood High linebacker Lynn Katoa (8:30 p.m. Sunday night), and the five-star recruit has some rather stunning news.

"I just committed to Colorado," Katoa said.

I had blogged this morning about how the senior who is rated as the second-best inside linebacker in the country was getting close to a decision. But that close?

Credit Colorado's doggedness for getting Katoa. The all-stater said that no fewer than seven Colorado coaching staff members met with him today -- in Cottonwood's pressbox, of all places -- and he went with his heart in giving them a pledge.

Ironically, Katoa had returned only a few hours earlier from his visit to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. At OSU, he was hosted by quarterback Alex Cate, the former Cottonwood star. Cate's father, Scott, provided most of the funding for the luxurious press box (by high school standards) that Katoa met Colorado's coaches in today.

Katoa told me tonight that it basically came down to Colorado or Oklahoma.

He had gotten the hopes of University of Utah football fans up a little the past few weeks by declaring the Utes were in the picture, only to dash them on Sunday.

Another irony for local college football fans is that Katoa will graduate early -- thanks to the help of Brigham Young University -- so he can participate in spring drills at Colorado. He has been taking BYU independent study courses the past few months in order to do that.

Does the University of Utah still have a shot at landing linebacker Lynn Katoa, the consensus four-star (out of five) recruit from Cottonwood High?

Quick answer: More so than a month ago.

Katoa took his third official visit over the Thanksgiving weekend, to LSU, then returned and noted that the Tigers are on his list of favorites, along with Oklahoma, Colorado and......Utah.

Wow.

A month ago, Katoa told The Recruiting Trail that it was a battle between Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and LSU for his services. He said he was definitely heading out of state and that BYU was never in the picture and Utah was on the friinges as sort of a courtesy because he likes Utah's coaches.

After Colorado coach Dan Hawkins visited his school in late October, Katoa seemed to be leaning that way, noting how the Buffs are depleted at linebacker and he could play right away.

Katoa hasn't spoke publicly about this, but some people close to him say he may have had a change of heart because his girlfriend, Cottonwood volleyball star Kaili Aiono, is staying home to play at Salt Lake Community College.

That definitely thrusts Utah into the picture.

Katoa told the Web site buffstampede.com he could announce his decision when he plays in the U.S. Army All-American game in San Antonio on Jan. 5. Sources have told us he could do one of those "choose-a-cap" deals on national television, much like former Cottonwood star Stanley Havili did on local television when he chose Southern Cal over BYU and Iowa.

"I like all the schools pretty much the same, I also like Utah," he said. "I am going to graduate in December, so I have to make a decision pretty soon."

Colorado is scheduled to make a home visit today (Sunday, Nov. 2).

"That program has bright days ahead," said Katoa, who is listed by Rivals.com as the country's second-best inside linebacker in the class of 2008.