Local 4-star cornerback, Ayden Hector released his Top 6 schools last week, and over the weekend he broke that list down and listed what it is he is liking about each school.
Hector, who’s an Eastside Catholic senior now, had over 20 offers to choose from, and narrowing it down to six was not too hard for him — he just had to think about what it was ultimately going to come down to.
“I have been talking to a lot of coaches — but all of the coaches in my top 6 have been in weekly communication with me and they really like my size and physicality to play various positions”, Hector explained, “Also, it wasn’t going to be realistic to visit all the schools so I had to narrow the list down based on what seems to be a good fit for me both athletically and academically”
Hector comes from a football family; his father, grandfather, and uncle all played college ball — so he knew what he had to do to showcase his talent and get that national attention, “I’ve been in national tournaments and camps since I was in the 8th grade and played against some of the best of 2018, 2019, 2020’s”, he said, “The coaches in my top 6 don’t get caught up in rankings but they really do a detailed job of watching film, seeing me in camps, or coming to my high school games. I don’t want to drag this process through my senior season so this is the next step on finishing this process.”
Hector then went on to list out the pros of each school that made his Top 6:
Washington
“Amazing coaching staff in a program that is top 10 both in academics and football. And it’s home. They have been watching me compete at their camps since I was in 8th grade. Every year I competed I won DB MVP. I’ve been able to watch Coach Lake do special things and he is one of the best at what he does.”
Cal
“Cal has recruited me since my sophomore year and I feel they have one of the elite DB coaches around with Gerald Alexander. He talks a lot about football but talks a lot about life also. They have great academics and its located where I have family in the Bay Area. Also, they need 2020 DB’s to come in and play early.”
Alabama
“The opportunity to play with the best and compete in a system of winners. Of the SEC schools, they gave me every detail of how they evaluated me and how I could play in their system and compete. Concerns of getting on the field early are not an issue for me after understanding their process. They have a lot of games where players get quality time to play early. If you compete you will see the field and be coached by one of the best of all time with Coach Saban.”
Oregon
“Good coaches and they have been in constant communication with me since I competed at their Elite Camp last year. There is the potential for early opportunities when the 2020 class arrives.”
Stanford
“The name speaks for itself; academics and a top-level football program set it apart. Also, the coaches are great. I really got to learn more about what Coach Akina does with the DB’s and how I would learn in his style.”
USC
“In transition or not, USC is still is a special place with a ton of football tradition and a lot of family history. After meeting with Coach Burns I had a better understanding of their plan about moving forward.”
So now it’s just a matter of when Hector sits down to make his final decision. He hasn’t taken any official trips yet, but has been on each of the campuses that he’s listed here. While the networks started out thinking he was USC-bound, they’ve come to be more uncertain now. He’s never listed an actual leader, and when Washington offered back in the fall Hector said it was “game-changing.”
