BOULDER — Mike MacIntyre told the prized offensive tackle to wait.
As Jake Moretti, the coveted 6-foot-4, 270-pound prospect from Pomona, began to think twice about his verbal commitment to national power Ohio State, the rising program in his backyard began to look more and more appealing.
So Moretti called MacIntyre, Colorado’s coach, back in November to say he was considering staying home.
MacIntyre was thrilled to hear from the player he and his staff had recruited hard before the lineman pledged to join the Buckeyes. But when MacIntyre gathered Moretti and his parents in his office overlooking Folsom Field and the Flatirons beyond, the coach preached patience.
“I told him, ‘I don’t want this to be some knee-jerk reaction,'” MacIntyre said. “I don’t want it to be an emotional decision. I want you to come to Colorado because you want to put both feet in the boat. I said, ‘Don’t tell me an answer right now. I want you to go home and think about it.'”
Moretti went home. He woke up the next morning and went to see MacIntyre again. The hometown kid was all in.
“It’s safe to say I didn’t send him home again,” MacIntyre said.
It became clear on national signing day Wednesday that Moretti wasn’t the only high-caliber prospect the Buffs attracted. MacIntyre introduced a 27-player class — 22 from high school, five from junior college — that ranked 29th in the country and sixth in the Pac-12, according to Scout.com, by far CU’s best showing in years.
Fresh off a remarkable turnaround season that resulted in a Pac-12 South division title, the Buffs recruited a class peppered with players who were coveted by other major programs.
“There’s really not a school that has anything better to offer than Colorado right now,” said MacIntyre, the reigning national coach of the year.
Todd Peterman, the coach at the DeSoto High School outside Dallas that produced two four-star CU recruits in receivers KD Nixon and Laviska Shenault Jr., read off a list this week of the schools that had recruited and offered the two players. It was a who’s who of many of the nation’s top programs.
“Colorado came in here and beat out some good ones,” Peterman said. “Laviska sat across from (Alabama coach) Nick Saban and didn’t take (his offer). He sat across from (former LSU coach) Les Miles on campus and didn’t take it. He just felt comfortable with (CU co-offensive coordinator and recruiting director Darrin) Chiaverini and wants to be coached by him.”
Moretti, Nixon, Shenault and Grant Polley, an offensive lineman from Denton, Texas, were the highest-rated prospects in the 2017 class, but there is depth, talent and versatility throughout the group, MacIntyre said. Linebacker Jonathan Van Diest (Cherry Creek), defensive linemen Dante Sparaco (Cherry Creek/IMG Academy) and Jalen Sami (Vista Ridge) and offensive linemen Moretti and Heston Paige made up the in-state haul.
The Buffs also signed 6-foot-5, 205-pound quarterback Tyler Lytle out of Redondo Beach, Calif., and he arrived on campus in January to begin preparing for spring practice. Steven Montez, who played well in several games while replacing starter Sefo Liufau last season, “has a leg up” in the race for the starting quarterback job, MacIntyre said. But Lytle will have an ample chance to make an impression.
“I just saw a really great opportunity,” Lytle said of his decision to choose CU over a laundry list of offers that included programs such as Miami, Baylor and California. “I recruited back in June before Colorado had all that success, and I really believed in it then. When they got of too a great start, it really came to fruition.”
MacIntyre was energized Wednesday as he rattled off anecdotes about his new players. He spoke about Chris Mulumba, the defensive end who became a judo champion in Finland after his family fled war-torn Congo. He talked about Sebastian Olver, the 6-5, 250-pound former rugby player from Australia who came to the United States about 18 months ago to pursue a football career. The coach smiled as he talked about linebacker Carson Wells from Bushnell, Fla., the son of a cattle rancher who raised his own steer named “Ralphie” he plans to sell before heading to CU.
“To me,” MacIntyre said. “It’s about the stories of these kids.”
5 facts about CU’s class
Interesting nuggets about Colorado’s recruiting class, which was finalized Wednesday:
— Jalen Salami, a 6-foot-6, 320-pound defensive tackle from Vista Ridge in Colorado Springs, is a man of many talents. Among them is an affinity for playing instruments. Salami excels at playing both the piano and the ukulele.
— Linebacker Jonathan Van Diest, from Cherry Creek, performed hundreds of hours of community service during high school. He spent time volunteering with the Mile High Workshop, a program that helps find jobs for addicts and ex-felons.
— Nate Landman, a 6-3, 210-pound linebacker out of Danville, Calif., was born in Zimbabwe, South Africa and his father played rugby for the national team.
— Four-star offensive lineman Grant Polley, from outside Dallas, has athletic genes. His uncle, Greg Breaux, was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 47th round of the 1988 amateur draft.
— Sunday’s Super Bowl, played in Houston, should bring back good memories for new CU running back Alex Fontenont. The 6-foot, 190-pound back scored three rushing touchdowns for George Ranch High School in the Class 5A Texas state championship game at Houston’s NRG Stadium.
Source: CU