The NCAA has announced a few big things this week that will change the current landscape of college football. One is that after June 1, the regular recruiting calendar will be in effect, so unofficial and official visits can begin to take place once again. The other is that a one-time transfer rule has been unanimously approved, so players can transfer schools one time without penalty. So how will these things impact Washington?
First, let’s talk about the transfer portal. Jimmy Lake has done an excellent job grabbing talented players from the transfer portal. So far, he’s gotten commitments from QB Patrick O’Brien, WR’s Ja’Lynn Polk and Giles Jackson, EDGE Jeremiah Martin, and DB Bookie Radley-Hiles. Previously, players would have to apply for a waiver for immediate eligibility, or, like O’Brien and Radley-Hiles, finish their degree and transfer as a graduate.
This would also allow highly rated recruits who were promised certain things will have more freedom to leave a school without penalty. We’re going to see a lot more turnover, and losing recruiting battles might not be as big of a deal now, because players will be able to see through lies that other schools might be feeding them right away, and can leave those situations much faster.
On to visits, this is huge for Jimmy Lake and his staff. Adam Jude wrote an in-depth article for the Seattle Times as to what one official visit weekend looked like for the class of 2019, which included limo rides, dinner at Fogo de Chão, and other luxuries. One thing from that article, and from Chris Petersen’s philosophy before the pandemic was very clear, Washington’s biggest sell is the campus and area itself, and there’s only so much they can do to portray that over a Zoom call.
Jimmy Lake hasn’t gotten an opportunity to truly sell his program to parents of recruits in person just yet, and with visits in place, he’ll have his first chance to do that very soon. Visits for the class of 2022 will be starting very soon, but before that, there’s a much bigger fish to reel in.
The top overall recruit in the country, Washington state’s own J.T. Tuimoloau has announced he’s planning on taking his official visits, so don’t expect him to commit until at least June. Even though the Huskies are in his backyard, it appears he still wants to take an official visit to the school, so Lake and his staff will be able to pull out all the stops to secure a commitment from him. Expect Tuimoloau to attend the spring game on May 1 as well, so they’ll have multiple opportunities to impress arguably the best recruit to ever come out of the state of Washington.
As things begin to return to normal, we should see the Huskies return to normal as well on the recruiting trail. Getting these players (especially out of state recruits) on campus to take in a game day, and a full weekend in the Seattle area is clearly what works best for the staff, so expect the Huskies to be in the mix for a lot of big-time targets in the 2022 and 2023 cycles.
