The Huskies made an offer today to Utah 2022 OLB/DE, Lander Barton. The 6-3 1/2, 211 sophomore spoke to Realdawg.com about what this offer means at this point.
“I have two offers now”, he said, noting that his other offer is from his home-state school, Utah, “My brothers both played for Utah”.
He’s the younger brother of Seahawks LB, Cody Barton and also Kansas City offensive lineman, Jackson Barton.
“My brother (Cody) also plays linebacker so when he’s in town he helps me out and works out with me”, Barton said.
With those bloodlines, you just know this kid is going to be something special at the next level, and Washington was smart to get their foot in the door.
Ikaika Malloe was at Barton’s school today (Wednesday), and Barton gave the coach a call once he was home from school, “I’m pretty happy”, Barton said, “I’m honored, and I’m excited…I was kind of surprised because I’m only a sophomore.”
But when Malloe sees something, he acts on it — and he obviously has seen enough of Barton to know that this kid is worthy of an offer at this point.
The scouting report on Barton is that he’s extremely athletic and is still growing. His instincts and skillset on the edge are solid for his age and he plays with a lot of aggression. Right now he’s just scratching the surface of the type of ferocious defensive player he can be at the collegiate level.
Last season he recorded 118 tackles for Brighton High School in Salt Lake City, and he also is credited for at least two sacks, “I don’t know if that’s right or not”, he said.
Some might assume that he’s a lock to the Utes, but Barton says he’s open at this point, “I’m not dead set on Utah”, he said.
One thing though, he’s been to Seattle to see his brother play and the Huskies could have a bit of an edge because his brother is in the Emerald City already. Obviously, being able to be close to him could be a big selling point for Washington — but it’s still way before early on this one.
“I don’t have any plans yet”, Barton said about any combines in the spring, but he hasn’t ruled any out.
