Editor’s note: Daily Bruin Sports is on day two of a three-part series on UCLA recruiting. Today, we focus on the wealth of talent in South Florida and the different schools that have expanded their recruiting to include the region.
The parking lot was completely empty – rightfully so, two hours before a Friday night high school football game – but that wasn’t a sign of things to come.
Across American Heritage Academy’s turf field, one could easily spot coach Mike Rumph trotting along the sidelines in preparation for his team’s showdown against the highly-touted Coconut Creek Monarchs later that night.
Rumph, a former national champion cornerback at the University of Miami in 2001 and a first-round pick for the San Francisco 49ers in 2002, is entering his second year as head coach of the American Heritage Patriots. The Patriots were ranked No. 21 in the nation by USA Today just last week. Last season, his state championship squad featured more than 15 Division-I players, and some of the best talent in the nation, including dual-threat quarterback Torrance Gibson at No. 1 Ohio State and cornerback Tarvarus McFadden at No. 12 Florida State.
This year’s team doesn’t falter by much, as Rumph has several ESPN150 recruits at his disposal. For perspective, No. 15 Michigan has offered scholarships to seven American Heritage players, while No. 7 Alabama and No. 1 Ohio State have each offered five. His four-star receiver Brandon Johnson ended his recruitment early with a verbal pledge to Tennessee one month ago.
No. 24 UCLA has yet to offer one American Heritage player in the class of 2016 or 2017. Other Pac-12 schools such as Oregon, USC and Cal have made it out to Plantation, with each school offering at least one athlete.
The coach’s perspective
When asking coach Rumph why he thought UCLA wasn’t showing much recruiting interest in South Florida, his answer was concise.
“You know that’s a hard question to answer,” Rumph said. “If you want to go and look at the best football in the country, everybody knows that you got to come to South Florida or Florida, period.”
The former 49er also expressed how distance is an obvious factor in getting kids from Florida to explore the West Coast. A recurring theme for his players – and the majority of coveted South Florida recruits – has been to play in the SEC or ACC.
That being said, Rumph is still interested in his players heading west, particularly after being coached by Jim Mora during the UCLA coach’s tenure as a 49ers defensive backs coach.
“I think UCLA is a perfect school for some of my boys, because of a coach like Jim Mora Jr., who’s one of my favorite coaches of all time – tenacious and constantly working,” Rumph said. “And then the culture of UCLA, the academics, the atmosphere; it’s one of the most beautiful campuses in a great location. How my (defensive backs) play (at American Heritage) is a direct correlation of Jim Mora Jr. There’s a lot of appeal to that.”
The recruits’ perspective
In a dominating rout of the talented Coconut Creek Monarchs, 4-star defensive end Brian Burns rivals was one of many players who dictated the game for American Heritage, as the 6-foot-5-inch, 217-pound senior captain had two sacks and a flurry of tackles. The Army All-American selection has more than 20 offers, including from the likes of national contenders such as Auburn, Notre Dame and Michigan, as well as Oregon in the Pac-12.
When asked if UCLA had been recruiting him, his face quickly became puzzled, and his only response was a sideways shake of the head. With such a faint idea of the school in his mind, it was hard to ask Burns about a program that has never spoken to him. The same could be said for 2017 cornerback recruit Marco Wilson, but he was one of many players who expressed interest in UCLA, should the interest be reciprocated.
“I would love to go to the West Coast, especially California – I love California,” Wilson said. “UCLA, I mean, I haven’t heard from them yet, but I know they’re a great program. If they were to show interest, I’d definitely listen to them.”
The playmaking defensive back is recovering from a torn ACL and meniscus, but has still raked in over 15 offers, including Alabama, Michigan, Clemson and Ohio State. He also became a YouTube sensation this May when he was videotaped executing a one handed catch while simultaneously doing a back flip.
In Westwood, UCLA’s coaching staff has had to deal with the losses of junior defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes, junior linebacker Myles Jack and senior cornerback Fabian Moreau this season. The latter is a Broward County native and developed into the team’s surest cornerback before suffering a season-ending knee injury in early September.
Maybe these losses wouldn’t be as heart-piercing should UCLA receive the commitment of a player in the ilk of Burns or Wilson.
Before Rumph left the sidelines to continue leading his team in warmups, he left with a final note.
“I don’t understand why (UCLA) wouldn’t come out here, it’s a no brainer.”