Steve Sarkisian stuck to the script and came away with a solid class ranked in the top-half of the Pac-12. The mantra he followed is tried and true and Washington: Lock up the in-state talent and reach into California to fill out the class. Kasen Williams, Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Bishop Sankey and others were the best in the state of Washington in 2010, and Washington came away with them all.
Here’s a look at the cornerstones in the Huskies’ class of 2011.
Kasen Williams: A beast of a wide receiver, Williams comes to Washington with the most accolades out of any recruit in the class of 2011. Named to the US Army All-American Bowl, a variety of all-american teams and tabbed as the Parade Magazine Player of the Year, Williams is the cornerstone of Sarkisian’s class and should make an impact right away.
Williams was a Washington target from day one, as evidenced by the trip Sarkisian took to Skyline High School shortly after being named the Washington head coach. Picking up Williams wasn’t only important from a talent standpoint for Washington, but also from a symbolic standpoint. By targeting the top-5 players in the state, and securing them all, Sarkisian accomplished his goal to “build a fence” around the state of Washington.
Austin Seferian-Jenkins: Already possessing the size to play at the college level, Seferian-Jenkins should contribute right away at Washington. At 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds — a weight that’s listed low, it seems — Seferian-Jenkins has tight end size, but wide receiver athleticism. Though Washington has all but left its tight ends out of the receiving game recently, the addition of Seferian-Jenkins should give the corps an immediate boost, and allow the Washington staff to utilize the tight end more in the offense as early as this next season.
He, like Williams, was named a US Army All-American and received plenty of accolades in his senior year at Gig Harbor High School. When all was said and done, Seferian-Jenkins was ranked as the No. 2 tight end in the class of 2011, and among the nation’s elite overall.
Washington fans should be thrilled to see Seferian-Jenkins and Williams in the recruiting class of 2011. Each should have an immediate impact on the field right away and are building blocks to future success for the Huskies. Add in the fact that each chose to stay home and play at Washington, and you’ve got the recipe for recruiting success.
We’ll be back with more on the recruiting class, including profiles of some of the impact players and under-the-radar guys to keep an eye on. For all the news from Wednesday’s festivities, check out our national signing day StoryStream.