Huskies Offer Baton Rouge Teammates, Quarterback and Cornerback
One thing is certain about the new University of Washington football coaching staff — it doesn't shy from a challenge.
In a 24-hour span, Kalen DeBoer's recruiters extended scholarship offers to quarterback Rickie Collins and cornerback Jordan Matthews, teammates for the Woodlawn High School Panthers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and both 4-star recruits for the Class of 2023.
One is committed to Purdue, the other considered a top LSU recruit in that SEC school's backyard.
Collins, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound dual-threat QB, has made no public utterances that he is backing away from his Boilermakers commitment yet that hasn't stopped the Huskies and others from continuing to pursue him.
Not sure if this plays into Collins' recruitment, but new UW receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard recently left Purdue to come work for DeBoer.
On Thursday, two hours after the Huskies made him a scholarship proposal, Collins received one from Missouri and the Tigers' quarterbacks coach Bush Hamdan, the former UW offensive coordinator for Chris Petersen.
Collins, who grew up admiring New Orleans Saints and former Boilermakers QB Drew Brees, committed to Purdue in October. Still, he continues to add to his scholarship offers, now 22 and counting.
This past season for a 5-5 Woodlawn team that made the 5A playoffs, Collins threw for 2,016 yards and 16 scores.
The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Matthews holds 25 offers with LSU and Texas thought to be the current leader for his services.
He comes from a football family. His father Roshaun is a former LSU and Southern defensive lineman who coaches the Woodlawn defensive line. His brother Josh is a McNeese State wide receiver who began his college career at Louisiana Tech.
Jordan Matthews is a cornerback with 25 scholarship offers.
This Matthews, with his size and speed, stands to be better than everyone in the house.
"Since I was 8 years old, I've been playing football," Jordan Matthews said. "My dad has raised me that I'm going to be the next big thing."
Matthews said he will choose a college football program based on his chance to play early, its ability to send defensive backs to the NFL and its winning atmosphere.
The Huskies already pulled off a package deal this week by gaining commitments from defensive tackles Armon and Jaylon Parker, twins from Dearborn, Michigan.
Two commits from Louisiana would be quite a coup.
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