They were scheduled and lined up like movies on Netflix, one after the other.
But they were part of a choreographed Friday announcement of college football's Class of 2025 recruiting hopes — announced in an awkward fashion on YouTube channels, Instagram pages and with long periods of silence at the moment of announcement — and all of those players included the University of Washington among their finalists.
For many, it wasn't a happy ending for viewers tuning in from Seattle, with the Huskies trailing 4-1.
UW received an eager commitment from three-star linebacker Caleb Smith of Birmingham, Alabama, who chose the Huskies over Purdue, but the Huskies were unable to land three-star offensive lineman Darius Afalaba of Lehi, Utah, to Oklahoma, four-star defensive lineman Josiah Sharma of Sacramento, California, to Oregon and five-star cornerback Dijon Lee of Mission Viejo, California, to Cullen DeBoer's Alabama team.
The good news about these latest recruiting moves is that the Huskies and their ever-attentive fan base need only repeat the process on Monday when they add three more players in similar fashion: four-star linebacker Zydrius Rainey-Sale from Spanaway, Washington; four-star edge rusher Chinedu Onyeagoro from Los Angeles; and four-star edge rusher Smith Ologbo from the Houston area.
Laney Sale will choose between Florida State, UCLA and Washington. Onyegoro will choose between Florida, SMU, UCLA and the Huskies. Ologbo will choose between Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech and Washington.
The decision of 6-foot-5, 250-pound Caleb Smith to play at Parker High School, just 50 miles from Tuscaloosa and Alabama's football program, was especially encouraging for the Huskies because it moved their recruiting radius further southeast than ever before. UW's recent roster of roster members includes only one Alabama player, linebacker Cam Bright, a transfer from Montgomery.
One player who was a bit of a surprise among UW's passers-by on Friday was Afalaba, a 6-foot-5, 320-pound interior line prospect from Lehi, Utah. He seemed to get on very well with UW offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Brennan Carroll, at least judging by the multiple promotional photos of the two together.
He was so important to the University of Washington that Carroll traveled to Skybridge High School in Afalaba, halfway between Salt Lake City and Provo, to meet with Fish within two weeks of him being hired on his staff in January.
Afalava is the son of Al Afalava, who played four years as a free safety at Oregon State from 2005-08 and three seasons in the NFL, compiling a 4-0 record against UW and 3-0 record at Husky Stadium. Interestingly, Afalava is six inches taller and 110 pounds heavier than his father during his playing days.
Afara likely inherited his height from his mother, Jerrell, who was over 6-foot-tall and played basketball center in high school in Hawaii. In fact, she accompanied her son on scouting visits to UCLA and posed with him in the obligatory promotional shots.
Afalaba chose the Sooners over Michigan State, his hometown of Utah and the University of Washington, and also had offers from Michigan, Louisiana State, Nebraska, Oregon and Mississippi.
The player the Huskies never would have thought would be Lee, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound cornerback, because five-star recruits tend to go to other powerhouse programs. He chose DeBoer's new team over Georgia, Texas, Texas A&M, Southern California and Washington.
The 6-foot-5, 295-pound Sharma committed to Washington and to DeBoer's staff on Sugar Bowl day against Texas, but after rescinding his commitment, it seems unlikely he will commit to the Huskies again as his recruiting has begun in earnest. He chose the Ducks over Alabama, Texas and Washington, turning down DeBoer the second time around.
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