Huffman Recruiting roundup: Cal-UCLA duel on field and off, UW’s expanding ‘fence’ and Arizona schools set visit lists for openers

The Hotline is delighted to provide West Coast fans with a regular dive into the recruiting process through the eyes and ears of Brandon Huffman, the Phoenix-based national recruiting analyst for Rivals/On3. He submitted the following report on Sept. 3 …

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IIntrastate battle in the Bay

Calimony. Calgorithm. JKS. Nico. Tosh. Ches.

All of those names and topics will set social media on fire on Saturday night with arguably the most intriguing West Coast game of the weekend: Cal hosts UCLA in Memorial Stadium in a classic Pac-12 After Dark duel at 7:30 p.m., only now featuring an ACC team and a Big Ten team.

The Bears and Bruins have had a sibling rivalry for over a century, but the intensity has increased since Cal sued for damages (through the UC Regents) when UCLA left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten.

Now, each school has a new coach, new hope and a new future.

What isn’t new is UCLA coach Bob Chesney facing Cal’s Tosh Lupoi. The last game Chesney coached at his previous gig, James Madison, was against Lupoi and his former team, Oregon, in the College Football Playoff opening round. (The Ducks won handily.)

They have since relocated to the Golden State and open this season against each other.

The number of recruits that have both the Bears and Bruins on their list of potential landing spots is impressive.

Excluding the 2027 prospects who are pledged to Cal, such as quarterback Dane Weber and receivers Demare Dezeurn and Charles Davis, or to UCLA, like running back Duece Jones-Drew, the presence of in-state recruits from the classes of 2028 and 2029 simply adds more juice to the matchup.

The list includes receivers Damari Dean, Hayden Koo and DJ Tubbs, tight end Jaylin Smalls, quarterback Koa Malau’ulu, offensive linemen Elisha Mueller and Lance Ciechanowski and edge Pierce Buckey.

UW recruiting outside the fence

When Steve Sarkisian coached Washington, he wanted to “build a fence” around the state. Aside from Kasen Williams and Austin Seferian-Jenkins, who stayed home and played for the Huskies, that fence had a massive hole.

Chris Petersen was more adept at re-wiring the fence. But his successor, Jimmy Lake, took the wire cutters to it, and his successor, Kalen DeBoer, didn’t think it was important.

Third-year coach Jedd Fisch saw how valuable the figurative fence can be and hired a staff that understood the imperative. (Director of recruiting Marcus Griffin and director of player personnel Jacob Crawford are just two examples.) The Huskies have made it a huge priority.

Meanwhile, Fisch is using his connections to Arizona to turn that state into a pipeline to Seattle. Seven of UW’s commitments from the class of 2027 are from the Grand Canyon State.

This weekend, when the Huskies host Washington State in the earliest Apple Cup kickoff ever, they’ll do so with a number of top in-state targets in attendance.

But there will be key recruits from Arizona and nationally, as well.

The biggest news? The second-ranked player in the 2028 class, five-star Arizona edge rusher Jalanie George, will spend the weekend at UW.

George has two class-of-2027 teammates from Desert Edge High School already committed to the Huskies: quarterback Blake Roskopf and receiver Zerek Sidney.

Washington will also have the top-three in-state recruits from the 2028 class in Husky Stadium: tight end Tytan McNeal, defensive lineman Aedyn Havili and offensive tackle Kyler Harden.

For good measure? Some Michigan standouts will attend, too, including the No. 1 player in the state in 2028, Detroit offensive tackle Antijuan Wilkes Jr.

So Fisch’s fence has expanded.

Territorial Cup foes open the season

Arizona State won the Big 12 in 2024, its inaugural season in the conference, while Arizona produced an upside surprise last year.

Each school hosts an FCS program on Saturday night, when the blistering sun has set in the desert, but both have the chance to impress key in-state targets.

Arizona has several commits due on campus, including a contingent from Crean Lutheran High in Irvine, California.

Additionally, the Wildcats’ top in-state running back target in 2028, Devante Roebuck, plus 2029 quarterback Ryan Trocki (from Chaparral HS in Scottsdale), are expected to attend the opener against Northern Arizona.

Meanwhile, the Sun Devils will have their top in-state skill position commitment on campus: receiver Kingston Anetema from Mesa High.

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More importantly for coach Kenny Dillingham, two major in-state 2028 targets are attending the Morgan State game: edge Sione Taueli, a teammate of Anetema, and offensive tackle Liam McNeal.

While neither game should be close, each school has a chance to impress the recruits in the stands.

New Pac-12 debuts

After undergoing a massive transformation, the new Pac-12 gets started this weekend, although many of its games are on the road against some College Football Playoff favorites.

Newcomers Boise State, Texas State and Fresno State visit Oregon, Texas and USC, respectively.

Fellow newcomers Utah State and San Diego State host Big Sky schools Idaho State and Portland State, while Colorado State welcomes Wyoming.

The two holdovers, Oregon State and Washington State, visit Houston and Washington, respectively.

While the Pac-12 home games might not attract touted recruits, these scheduled road games could really boost the conference.