When director of player personnel Courtney Morgan first arrived at Washington with head coach Kalen DeBoer, Morgan took an approach that Husky fans hadn’t seen in a long time. Morgan and his recruiting staff started sending out offers to players all over the country.

While the majority of offers haven’t seemed to garner much interest, Morgan’s ability to build relationships appears to be paying off. As of June 1st, there are currently eight players who have either taken an official visit, or are scheduled to take an official to Washington by the end of the month. Those players are from Illinois, Minnesota, Texas, South Dakota, Kansas, and Nebraska, and seem to be drawn in by the relationships and momentum this staff has been able to build.

One of those players, who’s scheduled to visit from June 24th-26th, four-star Mansfield Timberview (Texas) safety Jordan Sanford, released his top nine on Wednesday afternoon and included the Huskies in his top nine.

The most encouraging thing about the decision to try to expand Washington’s footprint is they’re getting looks from blue-chip players. Four-star defensive back Jyaire Hill from Kankakee (Illinois) was a last-minute addition to the group who took their visit from May 13th-15th, and on Wednesday, four-star quarterback Avery Johnson from Maize (Kansas) announced he’ll be taking an official visit from June 3rd-5th. And then, of course, there’s the headliner coming from June 24th-26th, former Texas A&M commit, four-star defensive end Anthony James from Wylie East (Texas).

Now, does any of this mean that this is a sustainable model and Washington should move away from its traditional footprint of the west coast and Pacific Islands to push harder in the midwest? Absolutely not. But it’s an exciting thought to be able to go into the midwest for a few players every year and continue to add talent to a roster that will desperately need it in a year or two.

Building a class from outside typical pipeline states rarely ends well for a west coast school, but adding players like James, Sanford, and three-star DT Elinneus Davis from Moorhead (Minn.) to a class whose core is players from Washington, California, Arizona, and Hawaii would feel like icing on the cake. And if the staff is able to secure a few of the eight official visitors, especially James, that would be a huge signal that the staff’s message is working.