Growing up in Washington, Ashton Cozart has always had a soft spot in his heart for the Huskies. “I feel like it’s the dream of every kid growing up in Washington to play for the Huskies,” Cozart told Realdawg.com in April of 2021. When the offer from Washington finally came in for Cozart, he called it an “amazing feeling” and thanked the Husky fans who hyped him up on Twitter after he announced it.

“The outpour of love from Husky fans was a relief, and an awesome feeling to know how much they love me,” Cozart said. The love and show of support went a long way with the four-star receiver who grew up in Puyallup before moving back to Texas to challenge himself to grow as a football player and be closer to his family.

Cozart was offered by offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, and he said that he’s already developed a great relationship with Washington’s new staff. “He hit me up late at night and we had an awesome conversation,” said Cozart. “We talked a lot about Coach DeBoer, Coach Shephard, and it’s an amazing coaching staff for sure.”

After his hire was officially announced on Tuesday, it appears new wide receivers coach Jamarcus Shephard wasted no time getting to work on the 6’3, 190-pound receiver. “Even just one phone call with Coach Shephard surpassed a lot of other schools I’ve been talking to for a while,” Cozart said. “He demonstrated a lot of love for me as both a person and a football player, and that’s something that means a lot to me.”

Washington is going to be in the mix for Cozart until the very end of his recruitment. He said that he’s planning on taking one of his five official visits to Washington, and that he doesn’t plan on making his decision until he’s finished taking official visits. While he mentioned that he’s unsure if he’ll be taking all five visits, he said that he only plans on using them on out of state schools, which he followed with, “Washington is the only out of state school that I haven’t been to yet that I’m really interested in.”

Cozart has set lofty expectations for himself before his senior season, and if he achieves all of them, he’s sure to rise in the national recruiting rankings, and be an instant impact player at whatever school he chooses. “I want to finish my senior year with 1200 yards and 15 touchdowns,” he said. “I’d also like to consistently run a 4.4 laser timed 40-yard dash, my fastest time so far is a 4.41.”

So at the end of the day, what will it come down to for Cozart when he’s making his decision? “There are a few key things I’m looking for in a school,” he said. “First and foremost, it’s that school’s vision and plan for me as a wide receiver, and how they’re going to help develop me to reach my ultimate goal, playing in the NFL. Second, it’s my relationship with the coaching staff. The relationship we build is going to be very important to me, and last, I want to be around my family and friends.”

With an offer list that includes Alabama, Florida, Oklahoma, and Texas among his 28 offers, it’s not going to be easy to reel in the four-star receiver, but the Huskies seem to have a great opportunity to entice him to come back to the Pacific Northwest.