UW lands one more Tuiasosopo for football
Much like his two brothers before him, Matt Tuiasosopo thought about leaving home.
But in the end, the pull of home was simply too much.
Last night, Tuiasosopo — a Woodinville High School quarterback generally regarded as the top recruit in the state this year — gave an oral commitment to play football for the Washington Huskies. Tuiasosopo called UW coach Keith Gilbertson yesterday with the news.
"I just felt in my heart it was the place for me," said Tuiasosopo, whose brother, Marques, played quarterback at UW from 1997 to 2000 and whose other brother, Zach, will be a senior fullback for the Huskies next year. "It's the place I feel the most comfortable."
The first day high-school seniors can sign letters of intent to play football is Feb. 4.
Matt Tuiasosopo also seriously considered UCLA, in large part because of the presence of offensive coordinator Steve Axman, who was the quarterbacks coach at Washington for Marques Tuiasosopo in 1999 and 2000. UCLA is also the alma mater of his father, Manu, also a former Seattle Seahawk.
But Matt Tuiasosopo, who is 6 feet 2, 210 pounds, said he also likes the coaches at Washington, particularly Gilbertson and John Pettas, the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
Tuiasosopo also had considered USC, but said after sitting down with his family this week that he didn't feel like waiting any longer.
"I'm really excited," he said. "This is a good day."
Matt Tuiasosopo had been regarded as the player the Huskies had to get to make their recruiting class this year, particularly in the wake of all the football program's recent struggles. Matt Tuiasosopo was rated this week as the No. 3 recruit on the West Coast by TheInsiders.com.
But Matt said he wasn't concerned about UW's troubled year, nor is he bothered by the specter of being compared with Marques, who was the Pac-10 offensive player of the year in 2000.
"I'm going to make my own name," he said.
One possible complication is baseball. Tuiasosopo is also regarded as one of the top baseball prospects in the state and is likely to be selected in the major-league draft in June. He said if he is taken in the fifth round or higher he will have to make a decision as to which sport to pursue.
"We'll have to see then," he said, adding he probably wouldn't try to play pro baseball while also playing college football. "But I'm a Husky right now."
Matt said no one in the family pressured him to attend UW.
"They all just wanted me to do what's best for me, what would make me happy," he said.
Woodinville finished 5-4 overall, 5-3 conference, beating Redmond (9-7) and losing to Lake Washington (21-14) in a three-way mini-playoff on Nov. 4 at Juanita High School for the fourth and final playoff berth from KingCo 4A.
Tuiasosopo was sidelined by injuries early this season. He suffered a sprained ligament in his left knee early in the opener against Skyline at Seahawks Stadium on Sept. 6, causing him to miss two games. He still rushed 93 times for 637 yards and nine touchdowns (6.8 yards per carry), with a high of 189 yards against Inglemoor.
He also completed 32 of 72 passes (44.4 percent) for 495 yards and two touchdowns with four interceptions. He was named a first-team All-KingCo 4A quarterback.
Seattle Times staff reporter Matt Peterson contributed to this report.