Simonds back from Pac-12 trip
Ben Simonds is from the Palm Springs area, that's a really warm place, so the 2014 offensive lineman definitely noticed the dropping temperatures Saturday night at the Oregon-Cal game.
Other than the nippy weather, the La Quinta, Calif., standout had a great time during his unofficial visit to Cal and said he's hoping the Golden Bears stay in his recruitment.
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"I got in early to the campus and toured the campus a little bit," Simonds said. "I went down for the pre-game and I really liked the field and the facilities. They did a whole renovation and that was nice. It was definitely a lot colder than I was used to. It was really, really cold.
"I probably got in first contact with them about two months ago and they've been talking to me. The offensive line coach has been e-mailing me a few times every week and making sure to see how everything is going."
La Quinta lost in the first round of the playoffs last weekend and that was unfortunate for Simonds but it allowed him to take the trip to Berkeley to check out one of the Pac-12 teams recruiting him. It was definitely worth the trip.
"It was good getting up to Cal and seeing the campus," Simonds said.
It's still early in the recruiting process for the 6-foot-4, 256-pound interior lineman in the 2014 class but he's already hearing from some big programs. Cal, Washington, UCLA and even Nebraska a little bit have been sending recruiting mail.
The Golden Bears have probably been the most aggressive early on and Simonds said he looks forward to hearing more.
"Those are the main schools so far," Simonds said. "Cal is probably one of the biggest so far. There have been a lot of Pac-12 schools."