2022 Athlete Josh Hunter Could Be Next in String of LSU Football Recruits Out of Mater Dei Program
LSU has landed a recruit out of Mater Dei High School in each of the last two cycles. The powerhouse program out of Santa Ana, California has produced highly regarded prospects Elias Ricks in 2020 and Raesjon Davis, who committed to the Tigers for 2021.
If 2022 athlete Josh Hunter winds up in Baton Rouge, LSU will have landed the third prospect from the program in as many years. Hunter says his relationship with both players has helped him develop on and off the field.
"We're super close, being on the defense, we hung out with each other everyday and practiced with each other everyday and Elias helped me out a lot," Hunter said. "Elias helped me so much on my mental side of the game during my freshman year."
Hunter said he was thrown into a prominent role as a freshman when one of Mater Dei's corners went down with an injury, forcing Hunter to step up and play varsity.
"It was really fun but really nerve wracking at the same time having to step up in that situation," Hunter said. "But I understood what I had to do and had great teammates to help me out like Elias and Raesjon. They stayed on me and made sure I was ready to go. With Raesjon, we're basically the leaders on defense so we communicate so much together that we have great chemistry."
LSU and Oregon are the only schools to offer Hunter at this point but the rising junior said Northwestern, UCLA, Oregon State and Washington have all shown interest.
LSU offered Hunter in May, 2019 and the Tigers visited Mater Dei a little later, with Hunter getting to meet offensive line coach James Cregg. With Hunter listed as an athlete in the 2022 class, schools are recruiting him on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball.
In the Tigers' case, Hunter said LSU is recruiting him at defensive back, where they envision him in a nickel corner role in the secondary. The mental side of the game is an attribute that Hunter takes great pride in and with him being an undersized corner, having those instincts and knowledge are of vital importance.
"Just knowing the situations and being able to help my teammates better read coverages has been something that really helps us," Hunter said.
Hunter has added weight since his sophomore season ended and is now up to 5-foot-9, 175 pounds. Adding on strength and flexibility are just a few of the areas he's attacking this offseason in the hopes of becoming a more physical player.
Mater Dei likes to stick Hunter all over the field at corner, safety and strong safety so with all of that versatility, he's been able to pick up on various techniques at all positions.
"I really just keep myself polished by doing drills every day," Hunter said. "Nobody's running by me so I really just pride myself on my technique and football IQ when I'm on the field."
LSU has always been on Hunter's radar as his grandfather, John Rivers, is a die hard LSU fan. The two sat down and watched every game that was on in California during the 2019 championship run.
Born in Louisiana, Rivers certainly passed on his LSU fandom to his grandson.
"He was born there and we still have family that lives out there so we're a big LSU family," Hunter said. "Watching great players like Delpit and Queen last year was tons of fun. The confidence and belief in themselves is one thing that I took away from watching that defense last year because that's what we have at Mater Dei."
The thought of one day playing with his old high school teammates has crossed Hunter's mind but said he's ultimately going to make the decision that's best for him.
"I think it would be amazing because we already know each other and we play great together," Hunter said. "The competition at LSU is second to none and they have told me that LSU's the best and they want to be the best. Our high school is one of the best in the country and we want to keep that tradition alive at the next level."
