Blakley waiting for postseason rush

At this point, it's more "when" than "if" for Coeur d'Alene, Idaho's Chase Blakley, considered to be one of the top 2012 tight ends in the country. The three scholarship offers he currently holds are just the start. That fact isn't really up for debate.

Instead, the drama here lies in which school might be next to make things official. A host of new programs are ramping of their contact with the junior, and he doesn't mind taking a guess as to who may claim the next seat at the table.

"Maybe Washington State or Utah or UCLA," Blakley said. "Actually, probably Utah. Utah hits me on Facebook. The coaches hit me on there and we message back and forth. I want Utah. They pop out for me."

With Utah still biding its time, Washington is the only BCS-level school to offer Blakley so far. And while he's flattered by the invitations from Eastern Washington and Idaho, he has larger things in mind. Other top-flight schools are starting to get involved in his recruitment as expected, but it's a waiting game at this point.

Still, indications are that he should enjoy the downtime.

"More schools are starting to talk and send mail and stuff," Blakley said. "It's starting to really get busy now."

As for unofficial visits, Blakely has grand plans for the offseason. He hopes to hit the campuses of UCLA, California, Oregon, Stanford and Nebraska, as well as take a return trip to Washington. At the moment, the Huskies lead the 6-foot-4 tight end's recruitment for obvious reasons.

"They're my first big offer and definitely a school of interest," Blakley said. "It's my favorite school so far because they are the biggest school. They're probably the No. 1 school right now."

A verbal commitment, Blakely said, won't come until after his senior season at Coeur d'Alene. He expects to have plenty of options to weigh, after all. For now, though, he's busy working on a criteria. The one he's come up with is wide-ranging.

"It's about the academics and the atmosphere at the school," Blakley said. "The campus and where it's located. The coaches and how they treat their athletes. Academics is a big thing."

As a junior, Blakley has helped lead Coeur d'Alene to an 8-2 overall record. The Vikings are set to play their second-round state playoff game on Nov. 10.