Inside The Huskies

Looking for Next Manu, UW Pulls LB Commitment from Same HS

Isaiah Leilua is the firt to pledge to the Huskies following Junior Day activities.
Dan Raley|
Isaiah Leilua has committed to the UW.
Isaiah Leilua has committed to the UW. | UW

Jedd Fisch found someone who would become the best linebacker in the Pac-12 when he happened upon Jacob Manu five years ago at Servite High School in Southern California.

Fisch and his University of Washington coaching staff are hoping they've discovered another Manu by retracing their steps to the same talent source.

On Tuesday, Isaiah Leilua, a 6-foot, 220-pound Servite linebacker -- an inch taller and five pounds lighter than his predecessor -- announced he has committed to the Huskies, becoming their eighth pledged player for 2027.

The UW has gone linebacker heavy for this class, with Leilua the fourth on the second row to join this recruiting class with twins Justin and Titus Coach from St. John Bosco High in the Los Angeles area and Titus Osterman from Kimberly High in Kimberly, Idaho.

The 3-star Leilua, with 17 scholarship offers coming from places such as Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Stanford, Tennessee and USC, is the first player to commit since the Huskies held their Junior Day recruiting festivities over the weekend.

“Washington recruited me harder than anyone,” Leilua told On3. “I’ve been feeling them the most for awhile and I have a great relationship with the coaches there. They reach out almost every day to make sure they get that UW logo in front of me. I like the defense and the overall scheme there, and it’s just a great all around fit for me.”

Leilua is set to become a four-year starter at Servite, which would be one year more than Manu.

With his senior season yet to come, he has 185 career tackles in 29 games so far compared to Manu's final high school career totals of 179 tackles over 30 games.

Leilua comes off a junior season that was limited to six games after he incurred a season-ending shoulder injury. He ended up with 27 tackles, 7 tackles for loss and a sack for Servite's third consecutive 6-5 team, all of which he's played on.

As a sophomore, he finished with 67 tackles, 3 TFLs and 2 sacks over 10 games, and as a freshman he piled up 91 tackles, 7 TFLs and 3 sacks.

While Manu will finish up with a fifth college season at the UW this fall, Leilua will conclude his high school career in Anaheim, maybe making for smooth handoff of lead linebacker duties in Montlake for the 2027 season.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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