UCLA Football Early Signing Day Breakdown: LB Tre Edwards
As the national letters of intent come rolling in, All Bruins is going to be taking an in-depth look at every recruit who signs with UCLA in real time. Next up, linebacker Tre Edwards.
Tre Edwards, Linebacker
Hometown: Chula Vista, California
High School: Mater Dei Catholic
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 220 pounds
2022 Stats: N/A
247Sports Composite: Three-Star, No. 43 LB, No. 43 CA, No. 517 overall
High School Offers: Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Cal, Colorado, Illinois, Notre Dame, Oregon, Oregon State, San Diego State, Texas A&M, UCLA, UNLV, USC
Commitment Date: May 27, 2022
One of the initial building blocks of the Bruins' 2023 recruiting class is officially Westwood-bound.
Mater Dei Catholic (CA) linebacker Tre Edwards signed his National Letter of Intent on Wednesday, becoming the second player to join UCLA football's roster during the early signing period. Edwards was the fourth commit of the cycle for coach Chip Kelly and the second on the defensive side of the ball.
Seven months later, the elite San Diego prospect put that pivotal decision in writing.
“I’m excited to play under coach Chip Kelly and coach Norton,” Edwards said in a statement released by the team. “They have a lot of experience with coaching in both college football as well as the NFL. Being able to gain knowledge from both of them will help me both on and off the field. It’s also an honor to be a part of a successful university in all aspects of athletics and academics.”
Edwards is a four-star recruit, according 247Sports and ESPN, but Rivals and On3 have him rated as a three-star. In the 247Sports Composite, Edwards ranks as the No. 43 prospect in the state, the No. 43 linebacker in the country and the No. 517 overall player in his class.
Among California linebackers, Edwards ranks No. 4.
Inside linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr. was busy out on the recruiting trail this year, and while Edwards is the highest-rated of the bunch, he won't be the only player coming in at the position.
Three-star Solomone Malafu is the other true linebacker who committed to UCLA this year, while three-star safety Ty Lee and three-star athlete Donavyn Pellot are expected to suit up in Norton's group as well. Cal linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo – who racked up 91 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss with the Golden Bears this fall – announced his transfer to Westwood earlier in the month with two years of eligibility remaining.
That group of reinforcements will be joining Darius Muasau, Kain Medrano and JonJon Vaughns, who are all on track to return after holding down starting jobs in 2022. Former Alabama transfer Ale Kaho is also in line to return from an injury that cost him his entire season.
With so many bodies in the linebacker corps – not to mention Choe Bryant-Strother and Jalen Woods – playing time may be hard to come by for the young newcomers. If any of them have a chance to contribute right away, though, it's Edwards.
Click here to check out All Bruins' 2023 early signing period tracker
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PHOTO COURTESY OF TRE EDWARDS/TWITTER
