Recruiting: UCLA football competes for recruits in-state, across country

Editor’s note: Daily Bruin Sports will be running a three-part series on UCLA recruiting over the course of the next three days. Today, we focus on the Bruins’ out-of-state recruitment strategy and how it pertains to the recent decommitment of former recruit Oluwole Betiku as well as what it says about the intricacies of the overall process.

Not long ago, UCLA fans across the nation were rejoicing over the commitment of five-star defensive end Oluwole Betiku. The Bruins had beaten out more than 25 Division I programs to sign the Nigerian native, largely thanks to the relationship Betiku formed with defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator Angus McClure.

“Coach Angus is just a great dude, he talks to me a lot, and he’s been more than a recruiter to me,” Betiku said a few weeks ago. “He talks to me like he’s my mentor. That’s how we are.”

But Betiku’s commitment wasn’t as solid as it seemed. After saying in the summer that he would not take visits to any other schools, the defensive end decided to visit Florida State and Texas A&M. On Friday, less than a week after his trip to College Station, Betiku decommitted from UCLA, dropping the Bruins’ recruiting class from 11th to 16th in ESPN’s rankings.

The recruiting world is built around relationships – McClure was not the only coach to foster one with Betiku. A senior at Junipero Serra High School, Betiku had similarly glowing words about USC defensive line coach Chris Wilson.

“I wouldn’t call Chris Wilson a recruiter. He’s more like an uncle to me,” Betiku said. “Me and him go way back, you know.”

Junipero Serra is in nearby Gardena, California, so both UCLA and USC have had a geographical advantage over other schools recruiting Betiku. But the top programs have national appeal – in addition to Florida State and Texas A&M, Betiku will also visit Notre Dame and the University of Florida.

If Florida or Florida State land elite California recruits, it will just be an addition to the embarrassment of riches that comes with being a top program in the recruiting hotbed of the Sunshine State.

A study by scout.com revealed that Florida was third among states in NFL draftees per capita, outdone only by much smaller states, South Carolina and Louisiana. By per capita numbers, California was just 19th among states.

In 2015, Florida pumped out 39 draftees, 17 of whom were from the talent-rich tri-county area of south Florida – Miami-Dade, Broward and West Palm Beach. The tri-county area is responsible for 57 NFL draftees in the past three years, the most of any metropolitan area in the nation.

Florida has produced the most NFL draftees of any state from 2012 to 2014, with 143 compared to California’s 112.

But UCLA has remained focused on in-state recruits. From 2012 to 2015, the Bruins have recruited over 63 percent of their players from California.

“We start right here at home first, I mean we’re the University of California Los Angeles, and we want the sons of California to play for us first,” McClure said. “If we’re going to go that far like Florida … we’re not going to go out there and get an above-average player, he has to be an elite player.”

During Jim Mora’s coaching tenure, that West Coast-centric mindset has brought in two top-15 recruiting classes (2013, 2015) and one top-25 class (2014), as ranked by ESPN. Mora has secured the services of big-time prospects like Isaako Savaiinaea, Jaleel Wadood and the nationally heralded Josh Rosen, as well as hidden gems like two-way player and potential first-round NFL draft pick Myles Jack.

Whereas the Bruins can generate top classes based mostly on in-state recruits, other elite public-school programs in smaller, less talent-rich states are forced to look outside their immediate surroundings, sometimes producing better results.

Alabama, for example, has brought in nearly 68 percent of its recruits from out of state in the past four years, including nine recruits from Florida. Ohio State has found 52 percent of its recruits outside of Ohio, including eight from Florida. It’s worked out for both programs – each has won one of the past three national championships.

A key contributor to Ohio State’s 2015 national title was defensive end Joey Bosa, a likely first-round pick whose younger brother Nick is the No. 3 recruit in the 2016 class. Nick Bosa, of course, is an Ohio State commit as well, yet another premier prospect the Buckeyes have plucked from the Sunshine State.

Meanwhile, UCLA, with just 37 percent of its recruits coming from out of state, has lost out on the ample supply of Florida talent. Since 2002, the Bruins have only successfully recruited three players from Florida – Asiantii Woulard, Sean Covington and Fabian Moreau.

Four months still remain until National Signing Day, plenty of time for the unexpected to occur. But, at this point, it appears that if Betiku ends up in Florida, he won’t be trading places with a top Florida prospect.