Lucas recruitment has West Coast feel

Chase Lucas' summer visit itinerary may or may not be finished. The 2016 wide receiver goes back and forth on the subject. He knows he has plenty of time to check out schools. He won't sign a letter of intent until more than a year from now, after all. But even still, California is calling.

If Lucas does, indeed, take more visits this summer, he'll head west.

"I think I'm done with the visiting right now, but I might be going down to UCLA," Lucas said. "That's in a week. They wanted me to come down there, but I never really got to it because I was down in Florida on summer vacation. If I go down to UCLA, I'll go to USC too."

When Lucas, a standout at Chandler (Ariz.) High School, discusses the California-based programs, it's easy to see which one stands out in his mind. The Bruins' coaching staff has a strong relationship in place already while USC is yet to make things official with a scholarship offer. It's a fact that doesn't matter much now, but could come into play down the road.

"I don't know too much about USC, but I know a lot about UCLA," Lucas said. "Their running backs coach is a good coach. He's a real easy-going guy, but he'll get on you in a heartbeat. The coaching staff seems really nice out there. I love UCLA is a really good school with a really good program. I'm really, really interested in UCLA."

Also working in UCLA's favor is its relative proximity to Lucas' Phoenix-area home. Then, that's an advantage that isn't exclusive to the Bruins. Arizona and Arizona State stand to benefit strongly from the situation.

Proximity to home matters to Lucas. So even if SEC powers come calling, pulling him out of the Pac 12 will be tricky. That much is already obvious.

"Honestly, the biggest part in my recruiting is the location," Lucas said. "I need a good location. I'm raised by a single parent, so my mom is a big part in my life. I have to be close to her. That's first. With the colleges, I'm looking at the academics. If I don't succeed in football, I need something to fall back on after that."

Lucas, who holds six scholarship offers, names no frontrunners in the process at this juncture.