The Hotline is delighted to provide college football fans with a regular dive into the recruiting process through the eyes and ears of Brandon Huffman, the Seattle-based national recruiting editor for 247Sports. He submitted the following report on Oct. 24 …
Trojans do the flipping
Much has been made of USC losing players to other schools — the former commits flipping elsewhere.
But now, the Trojans are fighting back.
After they flipped one-time Mississippi State safety commit Steve Miller, they struck their biggest blow late last week when they snagged Aaron Dunn from Utah.
The Utes had landed a commitment from the No. 2 prospect in the Beehive State, a four-star offensive tackle who picked Utah over Brigham Young.
But USC, which had already landed the No. 1 player in Utah last month (five-star receiver Jerome Myles), made it one-two punch by flipping Dunn from the Utes. The move weakened Utah’s recruiting class and haul of in-state prospects — thus reversing a recent trend that favored the Utes.
Beavers get their QB
When Oregon State lost Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele to Cal back in July, the Beavers didn’t panic and immediately pivot to another quarterback just for depth’s sake.
Instead, offensive coordinator Ryan Gunderson and head coach Trent Bray held off, choosing to let the senior seasons of several prospects play out before hastily throwing out an offer.
It paid off this week when the Beavers snagged a commitment from dual-threat quarterback Tristan Ti’a, a high three-star talent from Amador Valley High School in Pleasanton, Calif.
Ti’a had been on the Beavers’ radar. They watched him throw during the spring, saw him work out at the Sacramento State Mega Camp, examined the first half of his senior-year film and saw what he was doing both as a passer and as a runner.
Oregon State brought Ti’a in for an official visit last weekend but hadn’t offered him a scholarship prior to that point. Bray wanted to get to know him and watch him interact with the staff.
The day he returned home, the Beavers extended the offer — Utah did the same last weekend — and Ti’a announced his commitment to Oregon State on Monday.
His commitment makes him the third highest-rated recruit in Oregon State’s class.
Speaking of Sagapolutele …
We hinted previously that Cal’s hold on four-star quarterback Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele, the No. 1 recruit in Hawaii and an Elite 11 Finalist, was tenuous once his senior season started.
Sagapolutele’s monster campaign — his Campbell High School team is No. 1 in the state — led to an offer by Utah in early September.
But an Oregon offer later in the month resonated. Sagapolutele grew up an Oregon fan, and his favorite quarterback is Ducks starter Dillon Gabriel who, like Sagapolutele, is a lefthander from the 50th state.
Now, the Ducks will get Sagapolutele on campus this weekend for an official visit when they host Illinois.
Of course, Oregon already has a 2025 quarterback commit: Akili Smith Jr., the son of former Duck star Akili Smith, the No. 3 pick in the 1999 NFL Draft and the 1998 Pac-10 Co-Offensive Player of the Year.
But it’s clear the Ducks want more depth and are pushing for Sagapolutele.
Yet, they’re not the only ones. The team right behind Oregon in the college football polls, Georgia, offered Sagapolutele a scholarship this week.
And the Bulldogs will get an official visit. Sagapolutele has scheduled his trip to Athens for November 16, when the Bulldogs host Tennessee.
Boise State goes abroad by staying domestic
The Broncos pulled in a pledge from one of the most intriguing players in the Pacific Northwest, edge rusher Bol Bol.
Bol is originally from Alberta, Can., but moved to Yelm (Wash.) as a foreign exchange student.
The Broncos already had a commitment from his teammate, offensive tackle Jacob Tracy, but while watching Tracy, they saw Bol, a 6-foot-4 edge rusher, and became the first ones to offer a scholarship.
Cal offered Bol shortly thereafter, but the Broncos made the first move and have one of his teammates already on board. As a result, they convinced Bol to commit over the weekend and add to the secondary depth for coach Spencer Danielson.
With two players in their 2025 class from Europe, Dutch native Arthur de Boachie and German lineman Daniil Starykh, the Broncos clearly have zero geographical limitations when building their roster.
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