Mique backing off UCLA?
For a while this spring, Mique Juarez didn't just look like he was heavily considering UCLA, he actually looked like he was ready to flip to the Bruins.
Yet the five-star linebacker told us Sunday that things may be changing with UCLA. He said he hasn't spoken with Scott White in a while, and added USC is coming after him much harder at the moment.
"UCLA is still in the picture, but I mean I haven't really been reaching out to UCLA coach Scott White," Juarez said. "USC is coming a lot harder. But UCLA, they're still in the picture."
We've heard from a source that it was actually Juarez who was the one pulling away from White and the Bruins. We've heard Juarez asked to take a step back from recruiting for a while to focus on school and his team. But that appears to have only helped USC here, as it never backed off.
"USC is just showing a lot more interest," said Juarez, who will camp with USC this week and not UCLA.
We're still ages away from Signing Day, and Juarez is anything but a firm pledge to USC. He's still considering UCLA, and he's also going to visit Oregon and Nebraska soon, so he's clearly open to the recruiting process. But for now, heading into the summer, SC holds the lead.
What else is going on at linebacker?
UCLA wants to add one more linebacker to this class, and it looks like it has five top priorities for that last spot: Juarez, Camilo Eifler, Lamar Winston, Caleb Kelly and Daelin Hayes.
It will be a battle to get Juarez from USC this fall. A source told us this week it's looking like Washington or UCLA for Eifler, who's set to unofficially visit Westwood within the next few weeks. Winston looks like an Oregon / UCLA / Stanford battle at the moment, with a Westwood visit coming likely next month. Kelly and UCLA have a hot and cold relationship, and at one point, it looked like they were set to part ways. For now, the buzz is back to being a Michigan-UCLA battle here, although if the two went their separate ways at some point in the next few months, I still wouldn't be shocked. Hayes, a USC commitment, has shown some recent interest in UCLA, with Lokeni Toailoa telling us in Baltimore that he was going to flip him to the Bruins. There's a chance he could visit UCLA soon.
Keep an eye on the other Toailoa
There's been a lot of recent buzz about Leni Toailoa (Lokeni's younger brother), mostly because many think if a big Pac-12 school were to offer Leni, Lokeni would drop UCLA and commit with him to that school.
But we've heard there's actually some legit interest in Leni from UCLA, and it has nothing to do with firming up Lokeni's pledge.
With the safety position down this year - UCLA has dropped Shurod Thompson, Lamar Jackson certainly feels like a linebacker and Brandon Burton appears to be leaning toward Florida State now - the Bruins are in the market for a player there. Leni has flashed some upside, and when you consider the fact that he's a year young for his grade, there may even be more upside there than initially thought.
Don't be surprised if UCLA offers Leni, regardless of what happens with other DB targets down the road.
Lee gives an update
We caught up with new UCLA commit Dymond Lee Sunday, and he is definitely under the impression that he's coming to UCLA as a quarterback. It's nearly impossible to early enroll from Chaminade, so he'll arrive next summer, but he insists he'll be under center when he does come. He said with Asiantii Woulard's transfer, UCLA coaches were open to giving him the opportunity.
He added that he will take visits this summer and fall, likely to Miami, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Colorado, but he seems to be firm in his pledge regardless.
Short Shots
-A source told us this week, prior to David Long's Stanford visit, that UCLA was very much in it for the four-star Loyola athlete. Most considered him a Stanford lock, but the source said Long was definitely still considering the Bruins. After talking to Long Sunday, however, he sure sounded like he saw everything he needed to see on his Bay Area visit to Stanford this week. He's looking to narrow his list down to five soon, and UCLA and Stanford will likely make the cut, and he'll take official visits to all five of his finalists, but the Cardinal will be tough to beat here.
-Keep an eye on Cathedral receiver Renard Bell. He's likely going to camp with UCLA this week, and in the little action we saw of him at 7-on-7 Sunday, he certainly seemed to be a more explosive (yet smaller) version of Damian Alloway. We've heard UCLA really likes him, and if he shows well at one of the Bruins' skills camps this week, he may just earn an offer.
-Four-star receiver Dylan Crawford will be one to watch this summer. He's begging for an Oregon offer, but it doesn't look like the Ducks want to pull the trigger. USC has cooled on him, and there's been some wonder whether he could make it into Stanford or not. Which means UCLA may just be in a good spot for the wideout after all. His recruitment will be interesting to follow the next few months.
-Punter Bailey Raborn expected to hear if he earned an offer from UCLA by Tuesday. He said if an offer came, he'd commit on the spot. So watch for that this week.
You can read the archives of The Bruin Bite over on The Bruin Bite premium board. Feel free to ask questions or comment here.
For a while this spring, Mique Juarez didn't just look like he was heavily considering UCLA, he actually looked like he was ready to flip to the Bruins.
Yet the five-star linebacker told us Sunday that things may be changing with UCLA. He said he hasn't spoken with Scott White in a while, and added USC is coming after him much harder at the moment.
"UCLA is still in the picture, but I mean I haven't really been reaching out to UCLA coach Scott White," Juarez said. "USC is coming a lot harder. But UCLA, they're still in the picture."
We've heard from a source that it was actually Juarez who was the one pulling away from White and the Bruins. We've heard Juarez asked to take a step back from recruiting for a while to focus on school and his team. But that appears to have only helped USC here, as it never backed off.
"USC is just showing a lot more interest," said Juarez, who will camp with USC this week and not UCLA.
We're still ages away from Signing Day, and Juarez is anything but a firm pledge to USC. He's still considering UCLA, and he's also going to visit Oregon and Nebraska soon, so he's clearly open to the recruiting process. But for now, heading into the summer, SC holds the lead.
What else is going on at linebacker?
UCLA wants to add one more linebacker to this class, and it looks like it has five top priorities for that last spot: Juarez, Camilo Eifler, Lamar Winston, Caleb Kelly and Daelin Hayes.
It will be a battle to get Juarez from USC this fall. A source told us this week it's looking like Washington or UCLA for Eifler, who's set to unofficially visit Westwood within the next few weeks. Winston looks like an Oregon / UCLA / Stanford battle at the moment, with a Westwood visit coming likely next month. Kelly and UCLA have a hot and cold relationship, and at one point, it looked like they were set to part ways. For now, the buzz is back to being a Michigan-UCLA battle here, although if the two went their separate ways at some point in the next few months, I still wouldn't be shocked. Hayes, a USC commitment, has shown some recent interest in UCLA, with Lokeni Toailoa telling us in Baltimore that he was going to flip him to the Bruins. There's a chance he could visit UCLA soon.
Keep an eye on the other Toailoa
There's been a lot of recent buzz about Leni Toailoa (Lokeni's younger brother), mostly because many think if a big Pac-12 school were to offer Leni, Lokeni would drop UCLA and commit with him to that school.
But we've heard there's actually some legit interest in Leni from UCLA, and it has nothing to do with firming up Lokeni's pledge.
With the safety position down this year - UCLA has dropped Shurod Thompson, Lamar Jackson certainly feels like a linebacker and Brandon Burton appears to be leaning toward Florida State now - the Bruins are in the market for a player there. Leni has flashed some upside, and when you consider the fact that he's a year young for his grade, there may even be more upside there than initially thought.
Don't be surprised if UCLA offers Leni, regardless of what happens with other DB targets down the road.
Lee gives an update
We caught up with new UCLA commit Dymond Lee Sunday, and he is definitely under the impression that he's coming to UCLA as a quarterback. It's nearly impossible to early enroll from Chaminade, so he'll arrive next summer, but he insists he'll be under center when he does come. He said with Asiantii Woulard's transfer, UCLA coaches were open to giving him the opportunity.
He added that he will take visits this summer and fall, likely to Miami, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Colorado, but he seems to be firm in his pledge regardless.
Short Shots
-A source told us this week, prior to David Long's Stanford visit, that UCLA was very much in it for the four-star Loyola athlete. Most considered him a Stanford lock, but the source said Long was definitely still considering the Bruins. After talking to Long Sunday, however, he sure sounded like he saw everything he needed to see on his Bay Area visit to Stanford this week. He's looking to narrow his list down to five soon, and UCLA and Stanford will likely make the cut, and he'll take official visits to all five of his finalists, but the Cardinal will be tough to beat here.
-Keep an eye on Cathedral receiver Renard Bell. He's likely going to camp with UCLA this week, and in the little action we saw of him at 7-on-7 Sunday, he certainly seemed to be a more explosive (yet smaller) version of Damian Alloway. We've heard UCLA really likes him, and if he shows well at one of the Bruins' skills camps this week, he may just earn an offer.
-Four-star receiver Dylan Crawford will be one to watch this summer. He's begging for an Oregon offer, but it doesn't look like the Ducks want to pull the trigger. USC has cooled on him, and there's been some wonder whether he could make it into Stanford or not. Which means UCLA may just be in a good spot for the wideout after all. His recruitment will be interesting to follow the next few months.
-Punter Bailey Raborn expected to hear if he earned an offer from UCLA by Tuesday. He said if an offer came, he'd commit on the spot. So watch for that this week.
You can read the archives of The Bruin Bite over on The Bruin Bite premium board. Feel free to ask questions or comment here.
