The Hotline is delighted to provide college football 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 May 8 …
Fisch on the water
There is more movement on Montlake.
Two weeks after Washington made a seismic move by flipping five-star offensive tackle Kodi Greene, a Seattle native, from Oregon, the Huskies landed another big fish from the Evergreen State.
Their latest catch is the No.1 recruit in-state prospect in the 2026 class, edge rusher Derek Colman-Brusa.
The Huskies were always going to be a factor for Colman-Brusa: They signed his older brother, Lowen, in the 2025 class.
But Oregon and Ohio State were making serious pushes for the younger sibling. After Derek took unofficial visits to Eugene and Columbus, it appeared UW had some work to do.
Turns out, there was never a doubt. After visiting campus two weekends ago, he returned Friday night for the Huskies’ spring game and informed the coaching staff he was committing.
On Sunday night, Derek went public with the news. For the second year in a row, UW landed the top-rated player in the state.
The Bruins’ big chance
UCLA’s recruiting resumes has been spotty in recent years, thanks largely to an aversion to the process under former coach Chip Kelly.
Year 1 under DeShaun Foster showed some promise, especially given he was hired in February ’24 — late in the offseason cycle.
While the Bruins have four commitments in the 2026 class, all four were secured before Jan. 1. That could change soon, and this weekend will be telling for the Bruins as they host a dozen official visitors.
Included in that group are the No. 1 recruit in Colorado, defensive lineman Tufanua Ionatana Umu-Cais; three of the top seven players in Utah; the No. 1 recruit in Hawaii, Talanoa Ili; and two teammates from Massachusetts.
A pair of linebackers are also key to the weekend: Matthew Muasau, the younger brother of former Bruin linebacker and current New York Giant, Darius Muasau; and Texas linebacker Joseph Credit, who will announce his commitment next week and counts Arizona State, Kansas and the Bruins as the finalists.
This is precisely the momentum Foster spent so many months discussing, especially since the buzz over transfer quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
More wins for USC
Another week brought additional commitments for the Trojans.
In fact, USC added two pledges in the aftermath of landing Keenyi Pepe, the five-star offensive tackle originally from Southern California but now at IMG Academy in Florida.
The day after Pepe committed, four-star Ohio cornerback Elbert Hill followed suit and picked USC. The No. 12 cornerback in the country spurned his home-state Buckeyes, perhaps a sign of the move to the Big Ten paying off for USC.
The following day, another four-star prospect — one from their back yard — picked the Trojans: receiver Luc Weaver from Sherman Oaks.
Weaver became the 15th in-state player to commit to coach Lincoln Riley in the 2026 class. And if you count Pepe, who grew up in California but played for IMG in Florida, it’s actually 16.
Another tough week for Oregon
The Ducks are experiencing an unusually rough stretch on the recruiting trail.
During a spring in which multiple prospects have de-committed from Oregon and flipped their allegiance to other schools — including two to USC, one to Washington and one to Brigham Young — the Ducks just missed on two major out-of-state targets and another top 100 player from California.
Colman-Brusa’s commitment to Washington was a blow. The Ducks made him a major priority for almost a year.
Related Articles
Pac-12 finances: Legacy schools bled cash in final year of conference
Trump’s (planned) commission on college sports: Will it save the NCAA or just add to the chaos?
Pac-12, Mountain West agree to mediation over poaching penalty, exit fees
College football Top 25 rankings: Clemson is No. 1, then Penn State, Texas
CFB recap: Bill Belichick, the CBS fiasco and bread crumbs to realignment
Earlier in the day, receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt chose Ohio State, where he’ll join his Mater Dei High School teammate, Chris Henry Jr. (The Ducks were trying to flip Henry, who doubled down and reaffirmed his pledge to the Buckeyes.)
Then on Monday, the No. 2 quarterback in the country, Jared Curtis, of Nashville, selected Georgia over Oregon. It was a tough 30 hours for the Ducks.
Vandals enter the chat
For all the talk about Sacramento State thus far in 2025, another Big Sky program is continuing to make recruiting waves of its own.
Idaho has been recruiting well since coach Jason Eck took over in 2022, and FBS programs have noticed. When Eck left for the New Mexico job over the winter, a slew of Idaho players entered the transfer portal and have ended up at FBS schools.
But the heat hasn’t cooled off in Moscow, thanks to new head coach Thomas Ford.
Ford was a key part of the Vandals’ resurgence under Eck, serving as the running backs coach. And he did great work in his one season (2024) coaching the position at Oregon State.
But Ford hasn’t missed a beat since returning to Moscow. This week alone, the Vandals landed three top-30 players from the state of Washington, including two from prominent program Lakes High School in Lakewood.
Ford is a Washington high school product himself, first as a player and then as the former head coach at Stadium High School in Tacoma (think of the movie, 10 Things I Hate About You).
His ties to the region are strong, and the Vandals beat two FBS schools for the Lakes H.S. duo of linebacker Tau Mareko and receiver Tristan Baker.
Idaho should continue to be a force in the Big Sky.
*** Send suggestions, comments and tips (confidentiality guaranteed) to [email protected] or call 408-920-5716
*** Follow Huffman on the social media platform X via @BrandonHuffman and support @AveryStrongDIPG
*** Follow Wilner on the social media platform X: @WilnerHotline
