Ruffman Recruiting Report - 2012 reset

By Jon Gold on September 2, 2011 2:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) |

Campus correspondent Jacob Ruffman chimes in here with a quick recruiting reset based on some recent news, and we'll have a Q&A with recent UCLA 2013 commit Dashon Hunt later today...

With the season only a few days away and high school football already in action, recruiting has taken a backburner in recent UCLA news. There has been some movement over the past month, though.

In August, the Bruins received two commitments - one from four-star offensive lineman Hiva Lutui from Trinity high school (Tex.) and the other from 2013 defensive back Dashon Hunt from Westlake (Calif.).

Lutui, a cousin of fellow Bruin commit Isaiah Folasa, is a mauler who plays guard for his high school team. Chances are he'll stay at guard but there is potential that he could move to center if needed.

Hunt enters his junior year as one of the top defensive backs in southern California. While he is a bit undersized at 5-foot-9, 175 pounds, he is extremely physical, a sure tackler and has excellent anticipation. He had sixty tackles, seven interceptions and four defensive touchdowns last season as a junior.

Comparisons ould be drawn to Bruin great and current Tennessee Titans cornerback Alterraun Verner, as Hunt plays the game cerebrally. If this season resembles his sophomore campaign, Hunt should be one of the top-rated corners on the west coast for the 2013 class.

Just win, baby
Several top prospects checked out UCLA's summer camp and fall practices over the past few weeks including DT Ellis McCarthy, CB Kevon Seymour, QB Devin Fuller, LB Jeremy Castro, CB Brandon Beaver, OG Joshua Garnett among others.

There is an overwhelming feeling that UCLA is on the verge of getting deeply involved in the recruitments of a lot of these top prospects, but most are apprehensive about the future of the program. It's been well documented that several Pac-12 foes are negatively recruiting UCLA because of the perceived instability at the top. This has hindered Rick Neuheisel and Co. for the time being, but if the Bruins win eight or nine games, they could pull in a group reminiscent of the 2010 class that signed more than ten four- and five-star prospects.

Potential official visitors after the jump...

It's still early in the process but some prospects are starting to line up official visits. Here's a list of some that reportedly have said they would most likely take a visit to UCLA:

QB Devin Fuller: Old Tappan (NJ)
The dual-threat QB visited UCLA back in July and left impressed enough to put the Bruins in his top 11 and some believe UCLA may even be in his top four. Most pundits believe he will likely stay on the East coast but UCLA is in good position to receive an official visit.

OT Jeremiah Poutasi: Desert Pines (Nev.)
Poutasi is the cousin of UCLA freshman DT Sam Tai and he has UCLA in his top two with Utah. He recently set a visit to Oregon, who has yet to offer but if the Ducks do decide to offer a scholarship, they could be a frontrunner for Poutasi.

OG Lacy Westbrook: Dominguez HS (Calif.)
Westbrook has consistently said that UCLA is recruiting him the hardest out of any school. He told Scout.com that he will most likely take an official visit to UCLA but there is a possibility he won't because it is close to home.

DT Faith Ekakitie: Lake Forest Academy (Ill.)
After missing on Westlake DT Justin Solis, UCLA expanded its search and the fruits of that may be seen in Ekakitie. Recently the 6-foot-3, 275 defensive tackle said he would officially visit UCLA along with Oregon, Boston College and Georgia Tech.

DE Luke Kaumatule: Punahou School (Haw.)
Kaumatule recently sustained a potentially season-ending injury in his first game, but the 6-foot-7 defensive end will still be recruited heavily. He is the teammate of UCLA commit Steven Lakalaka and he said back in July that he would take officials to UCLA, Stanford, Oregon and California.

DE DeForest Buckner: Punahou School (Haw.)
The other 6-foot-7 defensive end for Punahou has a similar list to Kaumatule and chances are they will take their officials together. Buckner said he would visit California, Oregon and UCLA. The sentiment with Buckner is that he is leaning toward Cal but UCLA is still in the picture mainly because of the Lakalaka connection.

S Shaquille Thompson: Grant HS (Calif.)
Thompson is the top safety in the nation and he is considered a lock to Cal where he committed last spring before backing off to give himself options. Thompson did say over the summer that he will likely visit Notre Dame, Washington and UCLA this fall, which means that his recruitment isn't over, but it would take a lot for any team to pry him away from Cal.

Here are some other potential official visitors to watch for this fall:

CB Brandon Beaver

WR Darius Powe

LB Deaysean Rippy

DT Dwight Melvin

CB Ishmael Adams

LB Jeremiah Allison

WR Kenny Lawler

CB Kevon Seymour

CB Marcus Rios

LB Rashawn Hooker

WR/CB Richard Smith

OT Ronnie Stanley