Local Athlete Vincent Holmes Earns UCLA Football Scholarship Offer

The receiver/safety hybrid from San Jacinto has picked up interest from the Bruins, USC, Washington and Arizona.

(Photo Courtesy of Vincent Holmes/Twitter)

The Bruins are now officially in the mix for a fast-rising Southern California athlete.

UCLA football sent an offer to class of 2023 prospect Vincent Holmes on Tuesday night, Holmes announced on Twitter. The all-around athlete from San Jacinto High School (CA) plays both receiver and safety, but considering Holmes said he got the offer from defensive backs coach Brian Norwood, it appears the Bruins are looking at him as a safety first.

Holmes' recruitment has picked up major steam in recent months, and that was after he made it all the way through his high school junior season without a single offer. Northern Arizona was the first school to offer Holmes a spot in January, and offers from Arizona, Washington and Colorado popped up in the next few weeks.

Fresno State, USC, Washington State and Oregon State all offered Holmes in early March, making the Bruins the ninth team to enter the mix.

after a great conversation with @brian_ohana5 i am blessed to receive a(n) offer from University of California Los Angeles 💙💛@UCLAFootball @Coach_Galliano @GregBiggins pic.twitter.com/ZTAlxnm6Xo

— vincent holmes (@vincentholmes18) April 6, 2022

Holmes, who measures in at 6-foot-2 and 175 pounds with a 40-yard dash time that approaches 4.40 seconds, has had more production at receiver than safety over the past two years.

In his 15 games at the varsity level between his sophomore and junior seasons, Holmes has racked up 913 yards and seven touchdowns on 47 catches, plus three two-point conversions. On the defensive side of the ball, Holmes has recorded 18 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, four interceptions and four pass deflections.

This past season also provided Holmes a chance to get in some work on special teams, as he returned three kickoffs and two punts for a total of 90 yards.

Holmes does not have a profile on Rivals, and he does not have a rating or ranking from the industry-wide 247Sports Composite system. 247Sports gave Holmes a three-star rating, though, and he is a four-star prospect according to ESPN.

247Sports has Holmes slotted in as the No. 90 safety and No. 149 player in California, while ESPN has him at No. 22 and No. 27 on those lists, respectively.

The disparity between being a top-25 safety, a top-100 safety and an unranked prospect just goes to show how much of a question mark Holmes is at this point, without much hype throughout his first few years of high school competition. As Holmes approaches his senior year, there should eventually be more of a consensus on his standing in recruiting circles.

UCLA seemingly needs bodies at safety regardless, considering where they stand on scholarship players at that position after 2022.

Stephan Blaylock and Mo Osling III, their starting strong safety and free safety, are in their final years of eligibility. Veteran Kenny Churchwell III will have one last year of eligibility for 2023 should he choose to cash it in. Elisha Guidry and Alex Johnson also project to be gone by the time 2023 rolls around, and the transfer portal gives an opportunity for other depth pieces to leave as well.

The Bruins did add two safeties in their 2022 recruiting class – Kamari Ramsey and Clint Stephens. Those two were their highest-ranked defensive commits, but there does not appear to be much reliable depth behind them moving forward.

UCLA has also offered 2023 safety Christian Pierce, giving the staff two options early in the cycle to try and add on as that potential fourth safety moving forward.

As it stands, though, the Bruins do not have a single commit for their 2023 class, at safety or any other position.

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