The last 20 hours are an example of how quickly things can change in the recruiting world. Beau Bisharat was getting ready to make his college decision, but then Alabama starts showing interest out of left field and as a result, he is very confused. And it hasn't been just the Crimson Tide showing late interest in the four-star athlete prospect from Carmichael (Calif.) Jesuit. Michigan and Nebraska have also been after Bisharat in recent days/hours.
I do know his parents absolutely loved their time in Boulder this past week and would both like to see Beau play his college football at Colorado. Behind-the-scenes, Bisharat indicated on Saturday that he wants to play in the Pac-12 and did not plan to take any more visits. If he does change his mind and check out Tuscaloosa, he would not be allowed to take a trip out there until next weekend. SEC programs have a reputation for being loose with the rules, but I am told that if Alabama (or any school) hosted Bisharat on a visit on Monday or Tuesday, before signing day, it would not just be a secondary recruiting violation. It would be a major recruiting violation. I still like the Buffs' chances of signing Bisharat, but at this point it is a very fluid situation.
As I posted on the board earlier today, four-star wide receiver prospect Juwann Winfree has de-committed from Pittsburgh. This weekend, he took a trip out to Memphis. Riley Ferguson, his quarterback at Coffeyville Community College, signed with the Tigers in December and was a mid-year transfer. Buffs fans shouldn't worry about Memphis from what I'm told. Winfree is expected to announce his commitment to Colorado on Monday or Tuesday.
In case you were wondering why Palm Springs (Calif.) High athlete Tayler Hawkins did not include Colorado among his finalists, it is because the Buffaloes informed him recently that they no longer had a spot for him. He will sign with either Washington State or San Diego State on Wednesday.
With Marrero (La.) John Ehret safety prospect Jarrius Wallace, there was a slight glimmer of hope for the Buffs, even after he verbally committed to Arizona this past week. But he has decided recently that he is going to stick with his pledge to the Wildcats. I believe I saw a rumor on here that Wallace might have been asked by Colorado to grayshirt. That was not the case.My sources are not sure what La Mirada (Calif.) High defensive end recruit Keanu Saleapaga is going to do. He is of course down to Colorado and BYU. I will reach out to his coach, former Buff quarterback Mike Moschetti tomorrow to find out when/how Saleapaga will be announcing his decision.
It is not out of the realm of possibility that Fua Pututau could decide to join Pookie Maka on the Buffs' commitment list, but I will stick with my prediction that he will decide to stay in-state for college.
“Fua told me he would let me know what his plan is for announcing on Monday,” Cottonwood Senior head coach Mike Tidwell told me. “[Buffs defensive coordinator and linebackers] coach [Jim] Leavitt has done a great job recruiting Fua but he has got a lot of family ties to BYU and Utah. I would love to see Colorado get Fua, too, but I don't know if that is going to happen.”
Pututau has said from the beginning that he plans to take a two-year Mormon mission after graduating from high school. Even though Pookie Maka is also LDS, he had always indicated in the past that he would enroll at his school of choice immediately. Tidwell told me today that Maka began thinking recently about the possibility of taking a mission as well.
“I am not sure if Pookie is going to end up taking a mission or not. There is an outside chance he will. Colorado said they would sign him either way. I would love to see Pookie go right to Colorado and tear it up out there next year,” Tidwell said.
If you've read any of my front page articles on Maka, you know Tidwell is a huge fan of Leavitt. He didn't necessarily shield Maka from other colleges, but was as pro-Colorado as possible throughout Maka's recruiting process.
“Once I saw Pookie's latest ACT score at the end of December, I probably should have called Oregon [State] and Missouri and Vanderbilt and Wisconsin and told them, 'Hey, Pookie is eligible.' They probably would have all jumped back on and tried to get back on him and get him to take a visit,” Tidwell explained. “But Coach Leavitt stayed with him throughout and had done such a great job recruiting him and is the best coach to help Pookie reach his potential. Pookie was already loving Colorado and I just didn't want to make his decision tougher.”
Tidwell was also very candid about Maka's living situation: “Pookie has never had a situation where he has had an endless supply of food. I don't want that to come off like his parents haven't provided for him. In fact, of all the Polynesian players I have coached, he has the best home life, with two stable parents. It is just that they are often not home because they have seven kids to provide for. Mom works and dad tries to go and do landscape work, and the kids are often left to their own devices.
“Pookie had an older brother that was a very good football player. He was not nearly as tall as Pookie but he was a very good defensive tackle. He played at Snow College but he kept washing out because of grades and making wrong choices. Fortunately, I think Pookie has figured it out. It really clicked for him, almost too late, but he is doing well academically now.
“Pookie is going to be a heck of a player. We had a little trouble at Cottonwood with not having enough bodies so I had to play him out of position a little bit as a senior. But if you watch his junior film, you can just see that burst and his movement and his hips. He is just so fluid with his hips. He makes it look easy.”“I attended the in-home visit Jim Leavitt had with Pookie when we ate all the Polynesian food and had the octopus,” Tidwell said. “It was just awesome, let me tell you. Most of it was really good, but honestly some of it was like, 'What am I eating?' I felt bad for Jim. He was a trooper, man. He just pounded through that stuff.”
I have been able to confirm Temecula (Calif.) Linfield Christian School athlete Lorenzo Burns will be signing with Arizona on Wednesday.
The next three days should be interesting around here. Stay tuned...
MONDAY MORNING UPDATES:
I spoke to La Mirada head coach Mike Moschetti just now and he said Keanu Saleapaga is expected to wait until signing day to announce his decision. As expected, his decision will come down to Colorado and BYU. Moschetti said he doesn't know which direction Seleapaga is leaning at this point. The former Buff quarterback did not hold back his feelings when asked about his player's upcoming announcement: "I hope he does go to Colorado. That is where I played and I believe in them, I believe in the school. Hopefully that is where he goes." Moschetti added that BYU's new staff has done a "good job of selling their school."
I still haven't had an opportunity to do an interview with Juwann Winfree, but the four-star prospect from Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College informed me via text message that he plans to "address everything today." I'm still trying to find out exactly what time he will be doing that.
