How Did Stanford University Land Two Top Washington Husky Recruiting Targets?
By Bret Stuter
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And so, as it sometimes happens, Washington native Foster Sarrell was the one who “got away”. Sarrell was a blue chip offensive lineman, the likes of which have not been seen in the state of Washington for some time. In fact, he made a late visit to the University of Washington, on December 9th, and a month later chose Stanford University.
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At some point in time, head coach Chris Petersen will need to thwart Stanford’s hold on Washington offensive linemen. Many hope Sarrell would be that occasion.
It began in 2012, when offensive guard, Josh Garnett, the top prospect in the state of Washington left the state to become a focal point of the Stanford offensive line. As a result, Foster Sarrell naturally gravitated to Garnett when seeking advice. Per ESPN’s Erik McKinney, that advice came honestly:
"“There are definitely probably some similar situations with that last recruitment between Stanford and UW,” Sarell said about his talks with Garnett “Everybody is always talking about keeping guys in state, stay at home and play for the home crowd.”"
Cardinals of a feather…
On one hand, the recruit who left the state for Stanford convinced Sarrell to do the same. On the other hand, Washington is not without it’s own reputation for standouts on the offensive line. As a matter of fact, the Huskies had an incredible run in 2016 with every expectation to improve this season.
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Ultimately, the keys to success are not in the hands of the rankings of recruits for the Washington Husky football program, but rather in their willingness to learn from the coaching staff. The hold upon Washington recruits by Stanford University was not severed by the recruiting class of 2017.
But eventually it will be.
In the end, it had nothing to do with loyalty, with integrity, or with obligation. It was two young men who were persuaded to take the path through Stanford University from self interests. If UW hopes to win that battle in the future, the Washington Huskies must be prepared to tout their university experiences as well.
Leave nothing to chance. Be proud of what UW did for you. Only then will young men truly understand what it can do for them as well.