Inside The Huskies

We're Already in the First Quarter of the UW-Michigan Game

Recruiting crossovers add a little more competitiveness to the looming contest.

Dan Raley

We're Already in the First Quarter of the UW-Michigan Game
We're Already in the First Quarter of the UW-Michigan Game /

The tweet from TJ Hall, Jr. out of Clovis, California, was fairly cryptic in tone.

"Respect my decision."

The defensive back from San Joaquin Memorial High School let recruiters know he was newly committed to the University of Washington, which flipped him from Arizona. 

That was Saturday. 

On Monday, Hall pushed the send button on another post.

"A.G.T.G Blessed to receive an official scholarship offer to the University of Michigan."

Apparently, the Wolverines, similar to the Huskies raiding the Wildcats for a recruit, didn't see the kid's earlier tweet.

Or chose to ignore it.

Washington and Michigan don't meet until September 11 in Ann Arbor, on national TV, in a game pivotal for Jimmy Lake truly launching his program and for Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh in relaunching his.

Yet this little recruiting scenario just adds to the competitive juice in the big intersectional matchup that will have everyone lathered up when the teams take the field inside the Big House, home to 110,000 fans on game day.

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As it stands, Hall simply may have wanted to advertise the newfound attention coming his way from a Big Ten powerhouse. That alone is a badge of honor. Let it be known that he has not decommitted from the UW or suggested through social media that he might be wavering once more.

Yet if there's any indecision on his part, the Huskies likely won't wait for him. They did that with offensive lineman Mark Nabou from Seattle's O'Dea High School, pulling out after he committed and then drew offers from Michigan, Texas A&M, TCU and others, and wanted to explore them. Nabou said as much to a recruiting website. He remains uncommitted.

However, the program crossovers involving Hall and Nabou are hardly the end of the story.

A big show was made of Landen Hatchett receiving an offer and visiting Michigan this past weekend.

Young Hatchett, who is uncommitted and making the rounds, is very well thought of as guard or center by all of the top schools. He's from Ferndale, Washington.

Did we forget to mention that his brother Geirean is a Husky freshman offensive lineman and once highly recruited himself?

While matching bloodlines certainly don't guarantee that one brother will follow another to a school, it often happens that way.

Consider 4-star tight end Ryan Otton of Tumwater, Washington, recently pledging to the Huskies and maintaining a family connection that began with Cade Otton, now a UW starter, All-America candidate and NFL prospect.

This Hatchett might want to play alongside his brother at the collegiate level.

Or get as far away as he can and do his own thing.

Either way, the Washington and Michigan game keeps getting better as the days diminish before kickoff. 

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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