Advertisement
football Edit

Usher with new leader

There hasn’t been a tougher player to get a hold of in the last month than Los Angeles (Calif.) Jefferson wide out Austin Usher. Phone problems at home have prevented not only the media but college coaches from getting a hold of him but through it all, two schools still remain at the top of his board.
Usher, 6-3, 200 pounds is one of the premier prospects in the West region and combines great size and above average speed. The wide out first caught our eye two years ago at the NorCal Nike Camp where he clocked a 4.40 in the 40 on Stanford’s fast turf surface and made some unbelievable catches as well.
Advertisement
Usher had a solid junior season as well catching 21 balls for 696 yards and 12 touchdowns. He attended the NorCal Nike Camp once again this year but a sore hamstring severely limited him to the point he couldn’t even participate in the one on one drills at the end of the day. He still ran a 4.57 in the 40, this year run on thick, wet grass and jumped 31 inches in the vertical.
On the recruiting front, Oregon State has been a longtime leader largely due to the presence of Usher’s older brother Whitfield who he’s very close with. The Beavers are still among his top two but a new leader has emerged.
“Oregon State and Cal are my top two and I’m still looking at Washington a little too,” Usher said. “I had set up December trips with all three of them but our phone has been out of service for a long time and I haven’t been able to touch base with them to confirm everything. The schools have been talking to my coach here at Jefferson but I haven’t been able to talk with them that much.
“The school I’m really looking hard at is Cal right now. That’s my top school and they want to move my visit up to November. I still like Oregon State a lot too and going to the same school as my brother is important but right now, I’m just really thinking a lot about Cal and think they would be the best fit for me. I still haven’t dropped Washington even though they’re going through a coaching change. I still may trip there but it would be good to see who the new head coach will be before I do.”
Usher will take the SAT for the first time this Saturday. Academics have been an issue in the recruitment of Usher but he said he’s confident he’ll do well on the test and will have no issues qualifying.
Advertisement