Two-way standout gets first offer
Two-way standout lineman J.J. Fifita (6-2, 262, 5.0) from Lake Balboa (Calif.) Birmingham is getting a lot of recruiting attention from schools coast-to-coast. Fifita received some good news along the recruiting front as he has received his first offer.
"J.J. received his first offer from San Diego State," Birmingham coach Ed Croson said. "I truly think this will be the first of more to come."
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"J.J. is surprisingly fast for a big man," Croson said. "If you watch him on film he makes plays sideline-to-sideline."
"The best thing about J.J. is he's so strong and tough," Croson said. "He has a power clean of 300-pounds and just today he snatched 183-pounds."
"There is a lot to like about J.J.," Croson said. "He's really smart and takes all AP courses."
"J.J. comes from a great family and has strong ties," Croson said. "His older brother George will be in the rotation at San Diego State as a sophomore as a defensive end."
Now it all makes sense. The Aztecs want to keep it all in the family and decided to get a jump on the competition so San Diego State is the first college to offer.
The amazing thing about Fifita is he earned first-team all-league honors as a defensive tackle while only playing part-time.
"What people have to understand is that all of our big guys have to learn offensive line first," Croson said. "When we let him play defense he went wild. He probably projects as a defensive tackle, but he's a heck of a offensive left tackle for us."
Besides San Diego State, Fifita is getting recruiting action from Florida State, LSU, Tennessee, Nebraska, Oregon, Washington, Colorado State and Fresno State have all been showing him a lot of attention.
Location is will be a factor because of his close family ties so look for Fifita to stay out west.