Class of 2023 Quarterback Luke Duncan Commits to UCLA Football
The Bruins have added one of the top quarterbacks in the state to their upcoming recruiting class.
Class of 2023 quarterback Luke Duncan verbally committed to UCLA football on Tuesday, he announced on Twitter. Duncan only received his scholarship offer from the Bruins on Friday, but he was ready to commit less than a week later.
The Miramonte (CA) signal-caller also had offers from Cal, UPenn, San Diego State, San Jose State and UNLV.
UCLA now has five commits for its 2023 class, three of which are on the offensive side of the ball. Four-star running back Roderick Robinson II and three-star receiver Grant Gray were among the first to join the class, and they will combine with Duncan to form a baseline of offensive talent in current cycle.
The Bruins were a relatively late entrant into Duncan's recruitment, but that did not appear to hinder their progress with him for very long.
Duncan went on an unofficial visit to Cal in April, an official visit to Oregon State on June 10 and he had an official scheduled for Cal on June 23. The Bay Area recruit never made that second trip to his hometown team, though.
In an interview Duncan had with 247Sports over the weekend, he said he would be coming to Westwood for an unofficial visit on Tuesday. On Tuesday afternoon, UCLA Director of Player Personnel Ethan Young tweeted his signature "BOOM!", which he does every time the program gets a verbal commitment.
Duncan is a three-star recruit, according to 247Sports, Rivals and On3. In the 247Sports Composite, Duncan is ranked as the No. 63 prospect in California, the No. 38 quarterback in the country and the No. 788 recruit in his class. Duncan is the No. 7 quarterback in California, but he was No. 2 among those who were yet to announce their commitments.
Throwing for 2,949 yards and 30 touchdowns his junior year at Miramonte, Duncan completed 57.0% of his passes and boasted a 147.7 passer rating on the state. Duncan worked mostly as a pocket passer, but he did rush for 180 yards on 26 carries.
Duncan runs a 4.70-second 40-yard dash and also has experience as a punter and kickoff specialist for the Matadors.
Coach Chip Kelly and quarterbacks coach Ryan Gunderson had sent offers to three class of 2023 quarterbacks before Duncan, but the Bruins were not exactly in the running for any of them by mid-June. Long Beach Poly (CA) five-star Nicholaus Iamaleava committed to Tennessee in March, while Pittsburg (CA) four-star Jaden Rashada narrowed his list to five Thursday and left out UCLA.
That left Kelly and Gunderson back at square one heading into the summer, but it didn't take long for them to pivot and cash in on Duncan.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson is entering his final year of eligibility, so UCLA will have to plan for a change at quarterback come 2023. While former four-stars Ethan Garbers and Justyn Martin are already waiting in the wings, the Bruins were left without much long-term stability when Parker McQuarrie and Kajiya Hollawayne transferred to Independence Community College and Grambling State, respectively.
Duncan's commitment moves UCLA's 2023 recruiting class up from No. 59 to No. 51 in the 247Sports Composite rankings. In the Pac-12, the Bruins' class jumped Oregon State, Stanford, Washington and Utah to reach No. 5 in the conference.
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