Updated, Sept. 3 at 8:05 p.m.: 17 additional visitors have confirmed since this piece was first published.
Rivalry weekends do double duty in recruiting. The crowd is louder, the pageantry is easier to sell, and prospects who have only seen Husky Stadium on a phone screen get to experience the gameday version with over 70,000 people in it.
Washington opens the Jedd Fisch era’s third season against Washington State on September 6, and the recruiting board for this Sunday’s Apple Cup is one of the deepest the staff will host all fall. At least 34 prospects are expected on Montlake across three classes — nine 2027 commits, 21 2028 targets, and four 2029 names who are already drawing attention in the state.
Star ratings via Rivals Industry Ranking.
The headliners
2028 5-star EDGE Jalanie George (Desert Edge – Ariz.) is the biggest name on the list. George is a national-level pass rusher out of the same Desert Edge program that produced 2027 UW commit Zerek Sidney, and that pipeline matters. Washington’s coaching staff has spent the last two cycles maintaining its connection to the state of Arizona that the staff built when Fisch was at the University of Arizona.
George has UW in his Top 6, along with Auburn, Ohio State, Miami, Oklahoma, and Florida. Getting a prospect of George’s caliber into a rivalry environment this early in his junior year is a good early sign for Washington’s chances at landing this coveted 5-star prospect.
Locking down top local talent remains a top priority for Washington’s coaching staff. 2028 4-star QB AJ Tuivaiave (Graham-Kapowsin – Wash.) is the in-state name to watch. Fisch’s staff has made no secret of wanting him to stay in the Northwest. Tuivaiave is the state’s headline quarterback in 2028, and Washington has him as a top local target.
Two key prospects come from the Eastside. 2028 4-star DL Aedyn Havili and 2028 4-star TE Tytan McNeal (Eastside Catholic – Wash.) make the short trip to Montlake. Both of them have already been on campus a handful of times. Eastside Catholic is a local football powerhouse, and like Tuivaiave, the staff is focused on keeping these two prospects home.
2028 4-star TE Presley DeLance (Lake Oswego – Ore.) has told me Washington is among the schools recruiting him hardest and that the Husky offer stands out on his board — but he lives in Oregon, and the Ducks are the in-state program. This is a good chance for Washington to make its case in person.
Washington’s Detroit push
Four 2028 prospects are making the trip from metro Detroit, and two come from the same building. 4-star WR Mylan Griggs and 4-star OT Antijuan Wilkes both play at Cass Technical. 4-star WR DeAndre Bidden comes from Harper Woods, and 3-star ATH Tyler Trusel from Brother Rice in Bloomfield Hills.
This isn’t a one-off. Washington has been working the Detroit area hard in this cycle — Cass Tech IOL Josh Baker and Martin Luther King DL Elijah Willis have both drawn Husky attention, and Willis has a fall visit set for the Penn State game in November.
The 2027 commits coming back
At least nine current commits from the 2027 class will be at Husky Stadium this weekend: 4-star IOL Gecova Doyal (Puyallup – Wash.), 4-star RB Jeremy Adeyanju (Sandra Day O'Connor – Ariz.), 4-star DL Tevita Nonu (O'Dea – Wash.), 4-star WR Tre Moore (Pflugerville Weiss – Texas), 3-star IOL Reis Russell (Valor Christian – Colo.), 3-star LB Titus Osterman (Kimberly – Idaho), 3-star TE Zach Albright (Glacier Peak – Wash.), and 3-star CB Maurice Williams (Timberline – Wash.).
Per Huskies Wire, 2027 3-star EDGE commit Chaz Gray is bringing his brother, 4-star LB Tahj Gray, who is one of the higher-rated 2028 linebackers on the board, and he'll see Washington for the first time with a commit in the family already sold on it. Chaz picked the Huskies over Clemson and Tennessee. Peer recruiting doesn't get more direct than a sibling.
Other visitors of note
The rest of the 2028 group covers a wide map.
4-star QB Hunter Fujikawa (Mililani – Hawaii) gives Washington a second signal-caller in the building, and the Huskies have consistently mined the islands under this staff. 4-star DL Isaac Kalubi Lukuni (Rabun Gap-Nacoochee) is a 6-3, 280 defensive lineman traveling all the way from Gerogia.
Washington will also host a pair out of California’s Central Valley: 3-star QB JJ Howard Jr. (Clovis West – Calif.) and 3-star RB James Curoso (Clovis – Calif.). The Huskies have been active in the Fresno area this cycle.
3-star IOL Ofa Taufalele (Bellarmine Prep – Wash.) continues the staff’s emphasis on developing in-state offensive line talent. OT Luke Jennings (Glacier Peak – Wash.) makes the trip from the same program as 2027 TE commit Zach Albright, who will be in the building as well.
3-star WR Quincey Clay (Capital – Idaho) is a name I’ve been tracking since Washington offered in late July. Clay is the top-rated recruit in Idaho.
Also expected: 3-star LB Julian Bruno (Grant Union – Calif.), 3-star DL Tory Clark (Woodward Academy – Ga.), 3-star CB Jordan Hicks (Calvert Hall – Md.), and 3-star WR Avery Thompson (Paducah Tilghman – Ky.).
Looking ahead to 2029 and 2030
Four sophomores round out the board, and all four are local: 4-star DL Kamari Wilson (Mount Tacoma – Wash.), DL Kitiona Tupua (Puyallup – Wash.), and WR Kaydon Tatum (O’Dea – Wash.), and OT Xavier Berry (Federal Way – Wash.).
Finally, one freshman, 2030 ATH Eli Riley-Stevenson (Crescent Valley - OR) will be making a visit.
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With high-caliber talent coming in from coast to coast, this weekend carries significant weight for the future of Washington's recruiting classes. I’ll have follow-ups from the visitors after the game.