Welcome to The Bruin Bite, our weekly feature here at BruinSportsReport.com that brings you the latest inside information on UCLA football, basketball and recruiting.
The Bruin Bite is information gathered for BruinSportsReport.com subscribers, and it is information gathered solely for BruinSportsReport.com subscribers. Everything that is reported on The Bruin Bite must stay on BruinSportsReport.com. All news found here is intended for this premium message board only.
With that out of the way, on to the Bruin Bite:
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UCLA in the lead for Owens
Four-star receiver Darian Owens visited UCLA for two straight days this weekend, and told us afterward the Bruins are now the leader.
We actually spoke with a source close to Owens this weekend who told us the four-star was seriously considering ending his recruiting process on the trip. The word "commitment" was tossed around a few times, the source said, but ultimately, Owens figured he needed to see just a bit more before making that pledge. He'll visit Washington likely later this month, and that might be the only hurdle UCLA needs to clear.
The source said Owens could be targeting an early summer choice after that visit.
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Where does receiver recruiting go now?
While it's only April, it actually looks like UCLA's receiver class is starting to take shape.
The Bruins have Damian Alloway that they'll be on the way as well.
From speaking with a source close to the situation, it appears UCLA could be looking at just taking one more outside receiver after that.
Obviously the Bruins are making a big push for four-star Javon McKinley, who visited UCLA twice this past weekend. But there's still some trepidation that he's a USC lock.
So now, we're hearing UCLA could make San Diego wideout Steffon McKnight perhaps that final outside receiver priority. McKnight initially didn't have the Bruins in his top list, appearing to favor USC, but with SC's depth chart and its likely haul for 2016 wide receiver recruits, we're hearing McKnight is starting to ease up on that lean just like Owens did a few months ago.
So a class of Owens, McKnight, Alloway and Felton would not only make plenty of Bruins happy in Westwood, it's starting to become likely as well.
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Big visitor week ahead
UCLA had more than a dozen top recruits visit this past week, and this week, more are coming.
Four-star DB Jack Jones will likely make it out as well.
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Short Shots
-If things should fall through with top priority linebackers like Robinson, Caleb Kelly, Lamar Winston and Camilo Eifler, keep an eye out for Fresno linebacker David Tate. The LB who's 7-on-7 teammates with Kelly told Rivals.com this week: "UCLA is my dream school right now. I love the rivalry between UCLA and USC. My uncle actually ran track for USC so every time they play UCLA in football, we have a family rivalry that takes place. I love how UCLA develops their players into being great NFL players."
-Four-star 2017 corner Deommodore Lenoir told Adam Gorney this week he still has UCLA on top of his list. At this point, it's probably safe to say the Bruins either lead or are in the top two for all four of the top corners in the region in 2017: Darnay Holmes, Keith Taylor, Jaylon Redd and Lenoir.
-Four-star RB / slot receiver Melquise Stovall has a top six, and UCLA and USC are both in it, but make no mistake, the Trojans lead huge here.
-In an unexpected move, four-star DB Troy Warner committed to Oregon this week. Many, including us, had him pegged for UCLA.
-A defensive lineman to watch out for is four-star Louisiana DT Rashard Lawrence. The 6-foot-2, 307-pound DL told Rivals.com last week that "UCLA is really recruiting me hard and I plan on getting out there this summer." Alabama, Ole Miss, Ohio State, LSU and UCLA appear to be the leaderboard here.
-Four-star receiver Devin Duvernay told Rivals.com last week he's looking to visit UCLA soon.
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You can read the archives of The Bruin Bite over on The Bruin Bite premium board. Feel free to ask questions or comment here.
The Bruin Bite is information gathered for BruinSportsReport.com subscribers, and it is information gathered solely for BruinSportsReport.com subscribers. Everything that is reported on The Bruin Bite must stay on BruinSportsReport.com. All news found here is intended for this premium message board only.
With that out of the way, on to the Bruin Bite:
***************************************************************************************************************************
UCLA in the lead for Owens
Four-star receiver Darian Owens visited UCLA for two straight days this weekend, and told us afterward the Bruins are now the leader.
We actually spoke with a source close to Owens this weekend who told us the four-star was seriously considering ending his recruiting process on the trip. The word "commitment" was tossed around a few times, the source said, but ultimately, Owens figured he needed to see just a bit more before making that pledge. He'll visit Washington likely later this month, and that might be the only hurdle UCLA needs to clear.
The source said Owens could be targeting an early summer choice after that visit.
***************************************************************************************************************************
Where does receiver recruiting go now?
While it's only April, it actually looks like UCLA's receiver class is starting to take shape.
The Bruins have Damian Alloway that they'll be on the way as well.
From speaking with a source close to the situation, it appears UCLA could be looking at just taking one more outside receiver after that.
Obviously the Bruins are making a big push for four-star Javon McKinley, who visited UCLA twice this past weekend. But there's still some trepidation that he's a USC lock.
So now, we're hearing UCLA could make San Diego wideout Steffon McKnight perhaps that final outside receiver priority. McKnight initially didn't have the Bruins in his top list, appearing to favor USC, but with SC's depth chart and its likely haul for 2016 wide receiver recruits, we're hearing McKnight is starting to ease up on that lean just like Owens did a few months ago.
So a class of Owens, McKnight, Alloway and Felton would not only make plenty of Bruins happy in Westwood, it's starting to become likely as well.
***************************************************************************************************************************
Big visitor week ahead
UCLA had more than a dozen top recruits visit this past week, and this week, more are coming.
Four-star DB Jack Jones will likely make it out as well.
***************************************************************************************************************************
Short Shots
-If things should fall through with top priority linebackers like Robinson, Caleb Kelly, Lamar Winston and Camilo Eifler, keep an eye out for Fresno linebacker David Tate. The LB who's 7-on-7 teammates with Kelly told Rivals.com this week: "UCLA is my dream school right now. I love the rivalry between UCLA and USC. My uncle actually ran track for USC so every time they play UCLA in football, we have a family rivalry that takes place. I love how UCLA develops their players into being great NFL players."
-Four-star 2017 corner Deommodore Lenoir told Adam Gorney this week he still has UCLA on top of his list. At this point, it's probably safe to say the Bruins either lead or are in the top two for all four of the top corners in the region in 2017: Darnay Holmes, Keith Taylor, Jaylon Redd and Lenoir.
-Four-star RB / slot receiver Melquise Stovall has a top six, and UCLA and USC are both in it, but make no mistake, the Trojans lead huge here.
-In an unexpected move, four-star DB Troy Warner committed to Oregon this week. Many, including us, had him pegged for UCLA.
-A defensive lineman to watch out for is four-star Louisiana DT Rashard Lawrence. The 6-foot-2, 307-pound DL told Rivals.com last week that "UCLA is really recruiting me hard and I plan on getting out there this summer." Alabama, Ole Miss, Ohio State, LSU and UCLA appear to be the leaderboard here.
-Four-star receiver Devin Duvernay told Rivals.com last week he's looking to visit UCLA soon.
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You can read the archives of The Bruin Bite over on The Bruin Bite premium board. Feel free to ask questions or comment here.
