Inside The Huskies

S-I All-American Ranks Top Recruiting Classes Without Tuimoloau — and UW Holds Its Own

The Huskies are still visible in the latest listing in the college talent hunt, even with the local standout undecided.
Dan Raley|
S-I All-American Ranks Top Recruiting Classes Without Tuimoloau — and UW Holds Its Own
S-I All-American Ranks Top Recruiting Classes Without Tuimoloau — and UW Holds Its Own

J.T. Tuimoloau is making it tough on recruiters and recruiting analysts everywhere.

They can't close the book on the 2021 class until he does. 

And that's not happening any time soon.

Another scholarship letter-of-intent deadline came and went without the prized defensive end from Eastside Catholic High School in Sammamish, Washington — considered the nation's top defensive prospect — choosing his college football destination.

His choices remain, and not necessarily in this order, Alabama, Ohio State, Oregon, USC and hometown Washington.

Without anything to go on — because Tuimoloau publicly has offered no clues whatsoever throughout the process — the experts suggest he will pick between the Buckeyes and Crimson Tide.

They're currently the college game's most successful programs, meeting last month in the CFP championship game, which was won by Alabama.

At the same, as Tuimoloau drags this out, the other three schools must be hopeful that they're at least getting careful scrutiny if not unexpectedly landing the 6-foot-4, 280-pounder.

With that, Sports Illustrated All-American has ranked the nation's top recruiting classes. 

No surprise, Alabama is No. 1, with Ohio State slots as the runner-up, Oregon comes in at No. 7, USC at No. 9 and the Huskies, slipping a little, stand at No. 19.

Tuimoloau could completely rearrange the order, depending on what he does this spring, which he has indicated will be his personal deadline.

He wants to visit all five of his finalists and look over the facilities, which he hasn't been able to do because of the pandemic. 

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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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