Huskies pick up a couple of committments
by John Berkowitz on Dec 21, 2008 9:49 AM PST
Email
PrintSteve Sarkisian picked up the first two committments of his tenure this past week when he reached into Southern California to get verbals from DE Talia Chrichton and QB/Athlete Josh Moten.
Chrichton has decent size at 6'4 240 pounds. He had 92 tackles and 18 sacks to lead his Lakewood HS team in 2008. Talia came on the radar late and had offers from UW, Utah, Idaho, and possibly Oregon. He says he has a good first step and resembles current Husky DE Everette Thompson with his tool set.
Click on the link above for some good film on Talia Chrichton.
Moten is a 6'1 180 lb athlete from Narbonne HS in Harbor City, California. He had offers from UW, Colorado, and San Jose State. He put up impressive numbers as a QB. He threw for 2,396 yards and 25 touchdowns and five interceptions. Despite those numbers most think he doesn't have the arm strength to be a Pac 10 QB. What he does have his good wheels and the ideal size to be a safety and that is the spot most are recruiting him for. Moten will likely get a shot at QB but pencil him in at safety.
LB Simi Vehikite a Washington target who resides in Hawaii gave his commitment to Ken Norton and USC after meeting with Sarkisian earlier this week. What the big fish wants the big fish usually gets. Vehikite was a sleeper who popped up on everyone's radar screens after putting together some great film.
All world OT Stan Hasiak will visit Washington in January and the Huskies have a very good chance of stealing the UCLA commit. Hasiak and his father are very impressed with the hiring of Jim Michalczik.
Garfield's Deandre Coleman recommitted from Washington and has committed to California. Coleman has little or no chance of qualifying but the word on the street is Cal will get him into a local JC and once he gets his AA degree in two years the road will be clear for him to be a Bear.
Cal has an advantage in this regard because all you need is an Cal JC AA degree to qualify. Washington on the other hand is a lot harder to get into via the JC route because of tougher requirements.
I wouldn't say Coleman is a lock to get that AA degree or even be a decent prospect in two years. His senior film was terrible to say the least and he is going to have to improve his work ethic in almost every way to be a factor some day.
The recruiting dead period started today and will end on January 2nd. Sarkisian will be in LA working full time for USC until after the Rose Bowl.
26 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Go Sark!!!
Hopefully he will go hard after some of the instate guys like Washington, Danser, Enger, Trufant & Simone. Sprinkle in some of these guys from Cali and we could end up with a very good class considering the circumstances.
I’d reverse that Snostrebla. We need as many Cali recruits as possible and then we sprinkle in some of the UW guys. It’s late in the recruiting period, a down year in-state and we need quality over quantity. I would take Trufant & Enger.
We need Kevin Danser out of San Jose Bellarmine Prep, I take it that’s who you mean.
Simone? meh. He’s a Coug.
Ooops...
For some reason I thought Danser was a local kid. I’d like to add Washington also if possible. My only reason for Simone would be the Heaps connection but in reality we don’t really need any WR’s (as well as RB’s) in this class and I don’t think Simone would come to UW anyway as he knows we are stacked at that position with talent that he most likely will never beat out.
Trufant and Enger
I would take Trufant and Enger too but Enger isn’t going to go to UW. He is in love with OSU. Trufant on the other hand is a guy I think that ends up at UW because he wants to stay close to home.
by John Berkowitz on Dec 21, 2008 11:48 AM PST reply actions
Stellar Recruiting Class or Subpar?
I think our incoming class will be just fine. We’ll get our share of good kids and in-state kids. Looking at the situation I think coach Sarkisian is getting the very best he can, but more importantly I think he is going after kids that will work within his system. Good coaches make prep recruits into good players, all americans, and legends.
I’m not worried about recruiting, Sark will get his kids this year and build towards sucess. He has a good group of starters and ex-starteres coming back to the program. He is going to recruit kids towards his system in his initial recruiting season at the UofW, and continue to build upon the success that he builds. He did mention “It won’t take long…”.
Go Sark! WOOF!!!
One class won't make or break the team...
…I think if they just keep the kids that are committed and then sprinkle in a few more things will be fine. I don’t think there were many real needs. The last class was pretty strong and diversified. I think we do need to find a kicker/punter and a couple of offensive lineman at a minimums. The next class will really start to build the momentum.
Kind of worried that we dont have
a DC yet….I would have thought this would have been filled. Is this bothering anyone else…even a little bit?
Well, it’s too bad that Sarkisian hasn’t been able to get his top targets. One of the drawbacks of hiring Sarkisian is we’re getting someone with very little in the way of a coaching tree – he’s only coached at USC and the one season at Oakland. The pool of guys he’s worked with and has connections to are relatively small.
All that said, I’m not going to stress too much that he doesn’t have a DC yet. The coaches convention that happens right after the new year is probably when we’ll see the majority (if not all) of the remaining positions filled.
KIRKD – I’m a little bit surprised by your comment I thought you were more positive than that haha
Very true that Sark doesn’t have a coaching tree of his own but we are talking about the favorite son of Petey Carroll..and I actually think Carroll offered Sark his insight and assistance initially (to his own detriment now that Sark has tried to steal almost everyone from USC) so that Sark has full access to the Carroll coaching tree.
As OC for the most high profile program in the nation, Sarkisian is one of the most successful and well-known coordinators in the BCS, I don’t think there’s any coach that doesn’t at least know of him and plenty know him personally. Sark can get the ear of any coach in the NCAA and probably the NFL too…just not Norm Chow!
I don’t think you’re suggesting that Sark’s DC search is in trouble or failing..I think you’re exactly right that the Coaches Convention will be the site of the new DC hire. One thing I like is that Sark is taking his time to get this right, we don’t need a DC in December but we need the right man for the long haul.
As I said, I’m not particularly worried. For all the reasons you listed, plus the lure of coming to a sleeping giant (which is what the UW program is right now), I think Sarkisian will be able to land a quality DC. He’s already hit a home run in the hire of Michalczik, and Kennedy Pola would also be a home run (Scot Loeffler would be at least a triple if we continue the baseball metaphor).
I think it’s taking a little more coaxing by Sarkisian simply because he’s having to extend his contacts quite a bit to fill his staff, but he’s doing well so far and I expect that will continue.
My only point is that, in comparison to someone like DJ, who had coached as an assistant at Florida State, Michigan and Colorado and as a head coach at Kent State, Sarkisian has far less built-in coaching contacts. In the long run, I don’t think it will matter much – I expect Sarkisian to succeed here.
Well said Kirk
Sometimes enthusiasm can cover for experience.
by John Berkowitz on Dec 22, 2008 1:29 PM PST up reply actions
kirkd
The turn around of Husky football is not going to be affected by waiting for the the person we want for DC. They have a plan and a passion that we haven’t seen in many years. The person they want is waiting on a head coaching job. That is how it works sometimes.
I never suggested otherwise. I have some doubt that the person Sarkisian is waiting on is waiting on a head coaching job – Ron English already got his job and Rocky Long hasn’t been contacted according to sources – but as I said, I’d expect the staff to be pretty much filled out by the end of the coaches convention the first week of January.
Only from a Fan's Perspective
Yes this is alarming that coach Sark has’nt hired his two coordinators yet. But honestly at this point how much is this or will this affect the program? Not so much. I think from a fan’s perspective not having a DC is alarming. But keep in mind coach Sark indicated that he wasn’t going to hire coaches quickly just to fill the staff. He said he wanted to put the best coaching staff together and I think him taking his time is what we are seeing.
English tooth the Central Michigan job. Who is the next viable candidate? Nick Holt? Sounds as if Ken Norton Jr. is staying w/ USC. If Holt were hired away from Pete’s belt loop I think the move would enhance his career. Holt was head coach at Idaho for what 2 years, then took a DC job at USC. Now taking a DC job at UDub could be considered a jump from DC at USC. Why? Because let’s be honest who is really running the defensive at USC? Bing … Bing … Bing! That’s right fellas, Pete is running that defense. If we hired Nick Holt away from SC, Holt would be THEE guy and it would be his “blue print”. A young HC in Steve Sarkisian and a young DC in Nick Holt would mesh very nicely. I am quite confident that Holt wants to pursue his own head coaching job in the future (Idaho wasn’t it) and I think Holt could get their faster if he could turn the UDub defense into a lethal machine! He can’t do that at USC because everybody knows Pete runs the Trojans D. More or less Holt is just another face in the crowd on the Trojans sideline. Make no mistake- Holt would be an aggressive go-getter. Ever see that guy? He’s the equivelent to Will Mustchamp in the sideline rants category!
Holt would be a good pick…
and they
gave Seto the title of assistant DC which seems a little weird. I dont know if Holt would come but i agree that it would be HIS show if he did.
Holt
all ready said no, he was the first one offered, even before Seto. Why would USC’s D-coordinator want to make a lateral move form a 11-1 team to a 0-12 team??? He might be a good option, I just don’t think there is a snowball’s chance in hell that we get him.
"Bow Down to Washington"
"Kick the tires and light the fires!"
It seems that Pete keeps putting people closer and closer to the same level as Holt and at UW, he would be top Dawg!
a very long shot, i know, but hey, I have seen crazier! I think he has an NFL guy and he is waiting for the season to end…only explaination i can think of.
Lateral ... Schmateral!
Wait on there big fella! A lateral move as DC at USC to DC at Udub? Not hardly! All Holt has at USC with the DC job is a title and the day-to-day operations. Quite certain the defensive game planning stems for Pete Carrol’s desk. Furthermore I think Holt’s job is to more or less implement the strategy of Carroll’s.
This would not be a lateral move. Nick Holt at UofW? It would be his blue print and have his finger prints would be all over this thing up here. I’m not sure Holt has thought this out very well. We all know the guy is striving to be a college head coach (Idaho wasn’t it) and with the opportunity at UofW to put his own defense on the field would get “his” name penciled in as a hot commodity as an exciting young head coach-in the waiting. At SC he is more or less seen as Carroll’s defensive puppet and his name has been overlooked and put back in the “not-head coaching-material-vault” again.
Holt has to see that this would be a golden opportunity to jump start his career. At SC he is just another face on the sideline. At UDub it would be all his…
All of that may be true, but it’s also semantics. The hard reality is that Holt is likely making somewhere in the vicinity of $700K/year (that’s what Sark was making as OC). At the UW, I doubt they’d offer more than $400K since Michalczik is making $350K.
Now, if the UW is willing to bust the bank for Holt, and they don’t think Michalczik will get pissed about it, then maybe it’s a possibility.
I think their are two reasons Holt previously said no thank you.
1) The money
2) USC is “safe”
If the guy wants to make a run at a possible head coaching job someday in major college football he needs to get out of his “comfort zone”. Personally I think Nick knew deep inside that Idaho could not remotely come close to building anything close to what Boise State has built. Idaho is and will be a road block job for quite some time. That is the reason he got out in a hurry.
But I think he needs to get out from under Pete’s shadow in order to show the college football world that he is a big time coach. Although the USC machine has become the premiere college football program in the land, how many assistants under Carroll have made it to the big time? Chow is still an OC, Oegeron (spelling) is still an assistant, Kiffin- the verdict is still out but signed on as head coach at Tennessee, Sarkisian- same applies from Kiffin. No USC assistant has made a significant splash under the Carroll flag yet. This is the reason I think Holt should bolt!
Yes he’d take a significant pay cut, but given the offer to run “your” own defense and to show the college football world that you are indeed a great DC will push his stock thru the roof! Yet staying on at SC is safe and I realize that. It is a comfort zone that feels safe. But let me tell you Nick (if you are out there), that comfort zone is keeping you in the vault and nobody sees you or what you’ve done. USC is all Pete Carroll right now. The hype is all about Carroll.
Get out of your comfort zone and make a name for yourself, because it’s not happing at SC- Baby!
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
