Inside The Huskies

Oklahoma Receiver and UW Target Could Decide Soon

Mason James recently visited Montlake for the Huskies' Junior Day weekend festivities.
Dan Raley|
Jedd Fisch hosted Oklahoma prospect Mason James on Junior Day weekend.
Jedd Fisch hosted Oklahoma prospect Mason James on Junior Day weekend. | UW

Mason James has traveled to Seattle and the University of Washington to look around, coming out for Junior Day activities two weeks ago.

He's entertained Husky receivers coach Kevin Cummings at his North High School in Norman, Oklahoma, in mid-January.

He no doubt knows all about Demond Williams Jr. and what the young UW quarterback can do for him -- see Giles Jackson, Sun Bowl.

Now it's the 4-star pass-catcher's move.

The 5-foot-11, 175-pound James has informed the On3 recruiting site he's down to five schools in Missouri, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Texas and Washington, and his decision is coming "sooner than I thought."

The Longhorns are a late add, which might not bode well for the UW and the rest of this guy's suitors.

However, the Huskies remain in the mix as the outlier with all of these Central time zone schools.

Besides, his North High quarterback from last season, Owen Eshelman, is coming to the Northwest. Eshelman signed to play for Washington State.

Mason James met with UW receivers coach Kevin James in mid January at his school.
Mason James met with UW receivers coach Kevin James in mid January at his school. | UW

While most receivers are described as quick or fast, meaning they're either a short-distance target or a deep threat, James is said to be both.

He has 4.5-second speed in the 40 and is probably faster. For a 4-8 team last season, he caught 56 passes for 1,233 yards and 17 touchdowns.

Reports indicate he's supposed to return to Montlake in early April for another round of Jedd Fisch and Company hard sell, but it's not clear if he'll still be uncommitted by then.

He's pared his scholarship offers from 30 to 10 to five, recently shedding Arizona State, Florida, Kansas State, Kentucky Michigan and Ole Miss along the way, while adding those Longhorns late in the process.

To get the latest UW football and basketball news, go to si.com/college/washington

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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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