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 Seattle-based national recruiting editor for 247Sports.
He submitted the following report on June 13 …
Bruins on a bender
The years in the wilderness under Chip Kelly are over. UCLA is recruiting at — to quote former Bruins basketball coach Steve Lavin — a “magical level.”
Okay, that might be a bit of hyperbole. But UCLA fans desperate for a winner will happily settle for a “normal recruiting approach.”
Kelly didn’t like to recruit. That was evident in the classes signed during the former coach’s tenure and the Bruins’ reliance on the transfer portal.
But former Bruins star running back DeShaun Foster, who was named head coach in the winter of 2024 — after Kelly left to become Ohio State’s offensive coordinator — made it clear he wants to recruit high school prospects.
And UCLA landed eight commitments in the last week, seven of them from the 2026 class.
Four of the ’26 pledges came from California and two from the same school: defensive backs Justin Lewis and Joshua Mensah, from Rancho Cucamonga High School. Two more are from Orange County in offensive lineman Cooper Javorsky and safety Logan Hirou.
The bigger eye-catchers were the two four-star offensive linemen from Florida: Micah Smith and Johnnie Jones.
A hat tip goes to new offensive line coach Andy Kwon, who convinced both the Sunshine State natives to commit, then landed Javorsky for good measure.
Hello, Huskies
As much as Washington wants to win with local recruits (the Fence, as former Husky coach Steve Sarkisian once described it), the current head man on Montlake, Jedd Fisch, wants a national pulse.
Well, this week showed the rewards of that approach as receiver Mason James, who grew up in the shadows of Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, picked the Huskies over the Sooners, Missouri and Arizona State.
The Top247 wideout was a big focus of UW receivers coach Kevin Cummings and Fisch, but it was actually quality control coach Caleb Wilson who was the ace in the hole for the Huskies.
They also landed their third Las Vegas commitment in the class: Dre Pollard joined his Clark High School teammate, Dominic Harris, and fellow Sin City native Gavin Day in pledging to Fisch’s program.
What’s more, UW landed its fourth tight end from the state of Oregon, Beaverton’s Sam Vyhlidal, since Fisch and tight ends coach Jordan Paopao arrived on Montlake.
Vyhlidal follows 2025 signees Baron Naone and Austin Simmons and 2024 signee Charlie Crowell to make the move from Oregon to Washington.
And while he hasn’t committed, five-star edge rusher Tristian Givens, who is from Georgia, visited last weekend and has UW in his top three with Tennessee and Texas A&M.
The reason the Huskies are on the short list?
New director of recruiting Marcus Griffin, who built a rapport with Givens when he worked for Cal. His move to Seattle put Washington squarely in the mix.
Griffin was also key in Washington flipping composite five-star Kodi Greene from Oregon, but Greene was a Seattle native.
If Washington lands Givens, then Griffin will have earned his weight in gold.
A City of Angels duel for Hawaii’s top recruit
Either UCLA or USC is going to land the No. 1 recruit in Hawaii, to the extent the definition fits.
While Talanoa Ili is Hawaii’s top prospect — and the No. 3-rated linebacker in the country — he’s still theoretically a Southern California product: Ili spent his first three years at Orange Lutheran in the vaunted Trinity League.
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It will either be the Bruins or the Trojans. And all the buzz is pointing towards USC.
All eyes on Ryder Lyons
This is not only the visit Oregon has been waiting for, but also the first visit for the No. 1 recruit in California: The Ducks are hosting five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons, the Folsom, California star who canceled his trip to USC last week.
To clarify, because there’s a logjam of possibilities in Eugene: Oregon also offered Boise State commit Bryson Beaver, who subsequently de-committed from the Broncos.
In fact, Beaver is Oregon’s chief 2026 target.
That’s because the much-discussed plan for Lyons to enroll in 2027, after serving a one-year LDS church mission, is still in the works. Although Oregon gets the first visit from Lyons, don’t expect a decision imminently.
He’s scheduled to see Brigham Young next weekend, the chance for players to get on campus during the critical month of June.
Oregon has experienced a roller coaster spring on the recruiting trail with several de-commitments: Jonas Williams flipping from the Ducks to USC, then losing out on Jared Curtis.
But all the gnashing of the teeth would end if the Ducks land Lyons. Corralling a commitment from four-star receiver Messiah Hampton on Friday certainly didn’t hurt.
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