Huskies Finally Grab First Verbal Commit

It has been a slow off-season in the Husky recruiting circles. How slow? Up until yesterday, Washington was the only PAC-10 school to not have a single verbal commitment for the class of 2009. But today is a new day, and right on the eve of PAC-10 media day, the Huskies have joined the crowd. Keith Price, a 6-2, 180 lb. dual-threat quarterback prospect, gave his pledge to Tyrone Willingham and company last night.

Price is a decent get for UW, a three-star prospect out of Bellflower, CA, and has been compared somewhat to former Oregon star Dennis Dixon. Maybe that's a stretch, as Price only started at quarterback last year and didn't exactly dominate, throwing for 955 yards and running for over 300 yards. Price chose UW over offers from Utah and Nevada, so it's not as if he's left the likes of Pete Carroll out in the cold. But according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, Price is also viewed as a bit of a late-bloomer, and impressed UW coaches considerably at their summer camp. He wanted to stay close to his western roots, and with UW, he got what he was after:

"I wanted to stay on the West Coast and I wanted to stay in the PAC-10," he said. "I got some looks from Louisville and they really liked me, but I didn't really want to go back East. I wanted to stay on the West Coast - Washington, I'm already used to the offense. It's the same kind of offense my high school is running, so I thought it would be a perfect fit."

Most of all, Price believes he's a great fit to eventually follow in Jake Locker's footsteps and into the UW version of the spread offense, with a real shot to compete for the starting gig once Jake has left Montlake. But Price's commitment raises a good question, in what took so long for this to happen? Why is UW the last to join the PAC-10 recruiting crowd?

It has been a head-scratcher to say the least. After all, Willingham generated good vibes from his strongest recruiting haul in his time at UW in 2008. But it's been a big goose egg in recruiting up until yesterday. Clearly the biggest issue is the pure speculation about Willingham's future, something that has picked up speed as the '08 season approaches. You can bet every PAC-10 coach on the recruiting trail is using the buzz that Willingham's time might be running out, filling the ears of prospects with statements like "Why would you want to commit to a coach who might be out of a job by December?" It's hard to ignore the chatter. Plus, Willingham is famously perched atop the annual coaches hot seat lists (currently number ONE at coacheshotseat.com).

Willingham has two more years left on his deal, but UW has been without a full-time AD since December of last year. Speculation is that the acting AD, Scott Woodward, could eventually take the post on a permanent basis, but it is still an ongoing process. If UW does bring in new blood for the AD position, well, said AD will likely want to make his own decision on the future of the football program.

With so much uncertainty, the last thing UW would want to do right now is give Willingham an extension. You almost never see a coach enter the true last year of his contract. Either he gets an extension or he's asked to leave the building. So this truly is a make-or-break year for Willingham. We'll see how the class rounds into shape, but it could be a slow trickle of commits until everything gets sorted out inside the athletic department.