Pac-12 recruiting: ASU commit visiting Arizona, Mater Dei players at USC v Colorado

The Hotline is delighted to provide Pac-12 fans with a regular dive into the recruiting process through the eyes and ears of Brandon Huffman, the Seattle-based national recruiting editor for 247Sports. He submitted the following report on Sept. 28 …

The buzz may have died down ever so slightly, but there is still plenty of excitement in Boulder.

After losing the Pac-12 opener at Oregon, Colorado returns to Folsom Field this weekend for its first conference home game. Most of the attention won’t even be on USC quarterback Caleb Williams, the Heisman Trophy winner across the field.

Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders has a who’s who of recruits coming to town, including a trio of players who attend a high school that has long sent stars to USC.

Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei is the No. 1 team in California, and its 2025 and 2026 classes are absolutely loaded with talent.

Jordan Davison, the No. 2-rated tailback in the junior class, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite Rankings, will return to Boulder for the first time since spring when he attends the morning kickoff.

And his classmate, Marcus Harris, the No. 7 receiver nationally, will flank him.

They’ll be joined by two teammates, elite edge rusher Shaun Scott and receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, who are members of the 2026 recruiting class.

For Sanders and the Buffs, keeping the top in-state players at home is even more important — and something his predecessors have repeatedly failed to accomplish.

The Boulder buzz has given Colorado traction with the No. 1 player in the state in the high school senior class, Fort Collins offensive lineman Gage Ginther.

He committed to Tennessee in April, but Colorado’s early-season success has provided momentum, and Ginther plans to attend the game Saturday morning.

Mel Tucker patrolled the CU sidelines for one season before he left for Michigan State. One of his top commitments to the Spartans was a Colorado prospect, Nick Marsh, a 4-star athlete.

Once Tucker’s firing became official this week, Colorado immediately pursued Marsh, and he’s scheduled to visit campus for the game.

More out-of-state talent is expected, as well. Sanders and the Buffaloes have a big opportunity this weekend to impress.

Beavers under Friday night lights
College coaches often grumble about playing games on Friday nights, but as the Pac-12 is very aware, television controls the scheduling.

Visiting teams don’t particularly like the short week and having to travel a day early, but at least they aren’t missing a recruiting opportunity.

Home teams, though, compete directly against the Friday night prep schedule. They are often unable to host prospects for the game-day experience because the recruits are in action for their high school.

As a result, college teams with home games on Fridays must rely on bye weekends or Thursday night games to allow for recruits to come.

That’s the situation Oregon State finds itself in tonight when the Beavers return to Reser Stadium to face Utah.

With a Friday game, the majority of in-state recruits won’t be able to attend. But the Beavers are still going to have a couple out-of-state prospects in town.

One is Danville (Calif.) two-way standout Julian McMahan, who has a bye this weekend.

But more importantly, the Beavers will have Graham (Wash.) receiver Malachi Durant on the sideline. Durant is the highest-rated commit in OSU’s 2024 recruiting class and has been a star for Graham-Kapowsin High School, the No. 1 team in Washington.

Holding onto Durant is a priority for the Beavers, who suffered their first decommitment since the implosion of the Pac-12 on Wednesday with West Hills (Calif.) offensive lineman David Abajian.

Abajian told 247Sports’ Greg Biggins:

“I had some concerns about conference affiliation and where Oregon State would be moving forward. I really liked the coaching staff a lot and the program in general and at the time I committed, nine of the 10 teams remaining were still on board.

“Things are kind of up in the air now, and I just don’t know how it will affect me moving forward. I wasn’t sure about the direction the school is going or if they’ll have any issues retaining their coaches in a new conference so I felt it was best to open things up for now.”

Wildcats hosting committed visitors
Arizona won’t just have one of the most dynamic offenses in college football coming to town this weekend when Washington visits Tucson. The Wildcats also will be hosting a pair of prospects who have committed to other schools.

Conference affiliation isn’t an issue for Arizona, which has a home secured in the Big 12. And it will host one of San Diego State’s top commitments, Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.) safety Rahim Wright.

The bigger story is the Wildcats’ official visit this weekend from Scottsdale (Ariz.) athlete Dylan Tapley.

Why is it significant? Because Tapley was the first in-state commit to Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham from the class of 2024. Also, he’s the highest-rated in-state pledge to the Sun Devils.

However, Arizona has secured commitments from the No. 1 and No. 3 ranked in-state prospects. The former is 5-star edge rusher Elijah Rushing. The latter, quarterback Demond Williams, flipped his commitment to Arizona from Mississippi.

While Tapley has said he remains committed to ASU, his official visit to Tucson should be reason for concern.

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