UCLA Secures Commitment from 4-Star WR Theo Howard
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @HogManInLA
The UCLA recruiting machine that head coach Jim Mora Jr. has created continued to roll through the weekend picking up a verbal commitment from area wide receiver Theo Howard.
Howard jumped on the recruiting scene in 2014 after securing 52 passes for 869 yards with seven touchdowns for Westlake High School in the San Fernando Valley. The 6’0”, 170 pound, talent has helped the Warriors to a 7-2 record during his senior campaign catching a team-high 49 passes for 815 yards with eight touchdowns.
Colleges have fallen in love with Howard’s receiving abilities with 27 reported offers on the table. The list reads like a who’s-who of college football teams that includes USC, Utah, TCU, Oregon, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Cal, Boise State, Notre Dame, Arizona, Michigan, and Miami. The Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl selection committed to Oregon on March 15, days after visiting Texas A&M for their Junior Day, but decommitted from the Ducks in mid-August. On Oct. 2 Howard visited the Bruins and returned to College Station for an official visit on Oct. 16.
Howard posted a message on Twitter regarding his commitment reading, “I want to thank each and every institution that expressed interest in having me attend their school and participate in their football program. Today I have chosen to accept an offer to attend college at UCLA. I want to thank god, and my parents without whom none of this would be possible. Lastly, I will be early enrolling in January!”
Landing verbal commitments for the Bruins 2016 class has come in spurts and the latest round has netted junior college defensive tackle Nick Terry on Thursday and Howard on Sunday.
The Bruins 2016 recruiting class now has 20 commitments filling needs across the board. Having true freshman Josh Rosen under center has not hurt the Bruins landing top receiver talent, Darian Owens, Dymond Lee, and Howard are each considered 4-star recruits.
UCLA 2016 Verbal Commitment List
WR Theo Howard, 6’0”, 175 lbs, Westlake HS, Westlake Village, CA
WR/CB Marquis Lawson, 5’8”, 166 lbs, Crenshaw HS, Los Angeles, CA
WR Dymond Lee, 6’2”, 175 lbs, Chaminade HS, West Hills, CA
WR Darian Owens, 6’0”, 192 lbs, Clovis West HS, Fresno, CA
TE Jordan Wilson, 6’5”, 215 lbs, Montgomery Bell, Nashville, TN
QB Matt Lynch, 6’5”, 182 lbs, Legacy HS, Broomfield, CO
RB Demetric Felton, 5’10”, 170 lbs, Great Oak HS, Temecula, CA
FB Jalen Starks, 6’1”, 240 lbs, Crespi HS, Encino, CA
OC Toleafoa Auwae, 6’3”, 296 lbs, Kapolei HS, Kapolei, HI
LS Johnny Den Bleyker, 6’0”, 200 lbs, Moreau Catholic HS, Hayward, CA
K JJ Molson, 6’1”, 190 lbs, John Abbott College, Montreal, Canada
P Bailey Raborn, 6’0”, 195 lbs, St. Thomas More, Lafayette, LA
DE Marcus Moore, 6’3”, 244 lbs, Crespi HS, Encino, CA
DE Osa Odighizuwa, 6’2”, 250 lbs, David Douglas HS, Portland, OR
DT Nick Terry, 6’4”, 295 lbs, American River C.C., Sacramento, CA
LB Krys Barnes, 6’2”, 220 lbs, Liberty HS, Bakersfield, CA
LB Breland Brandt, 6’4”, 220 lbs, Windward HS, Los Angeles, CA
LB Lokeni Toailoa, 6’0”, 213 lbs, Wilmer Carter HS, Rialto, CA
CB Chris Gaston, 6’2”, 180 lbs, Bishop Amat HS, La Puente, CA
SS Leni Toailoa, 6’1”, 192 lbs, Wilmer Carter HS, Rialto, CA
Photo credit: scout.com; WR Theo Howard.