UW Comes Face to Face with Conerly the Collegian For First Time
Thirteen miles previously separated the University of Washington football team from Josh Conerly Jr. Now it's 275.
It was a straight shot down Montlake Boulevard, which feeds into 23rd Avenue and then merges with traffic onto Rainier Avenue South, to go from Husky Stadium to find this guy at Rainier Beach High School.
Yet it was a commute that never was going to happen. Not with Jimmy Lake's Huskies, not with Kalen DeBoer's rebuilt team. There were just too many distractions along the way.
From the south Seattle school affectionately known as "The Beach," Conerly emerged as one of the most talented and athletic offensive linemen to come through the national recruiting ranks in years. As that rare 5-star recruit, he naturally had his pick of schools.
Much later than everyone else, Conerly called everyone together for his formal announcement and chose Oregon over Miami, Michigan, Oklahoma, USC and Washington.
Video was taken showing Ducks coaches in their football complex simultaneously jumping around, yelling and back-slapping over their recruiting good fortune.
A 6-foot-4, 294-pound true freshman, Conerly has lived up to his advance billing as he gradually acclimates himself to the college game and waits his turn behind a veteran line.
Or did you not notice that he caught a 4-yard touchdown pass last weekend to open the scoring in a 49-10 win at Colorado?
No, he hasn't changed positions. He just does what most other tackles don't do: score TDs.
On Saturday afternoon, he'll come face to face with one of his rejected suitors for the first time when Oregon (8-1 overall, 6-0 Pac-12) hosts the Huskies (7-2, 4-2) at Autzen Stadium. He averages 13 plays per game and doubled that amount in appearances against Eastern Washington and Arizona.
While Husky fans continue to bemoan the loss of Conerly to their bitter neighborhood rival, he might tell you that it felt more like home than Montlake. He might add that he simply made a stronger connection to the new Dan Lanning coaching staff. That he likes being close to the Oregon coast.
There's no way of verifying this, and the player is under no obligation to share any details, but a well-placed UW source said a name, image and licensing deal worth upwards of seven digits ultimately was what sent this young man outside of Seattle's city limits to play football.
Unlike Saturday's football game, whatever Conerly was compensated — and his substantial amount was all was in accordance with NCAA rules newly in place — just goes to show that borders really no longer exist for anyone, anywhere.
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