One week ago we broke the story of Juanita High School’s Thomas Toki and the fact that his film showed a player of the utmost potential. There it was for the world to see and having his story go National through the Rivals Network gave his recruiting a bounce. Because the 2015 Defensive Tackle showcased some big time talent on that film that needed to be watched outside the NW.
Thomas Toki landed offer #1 today and it was a big one!
Being a great High School player in your region will get your name out in the immediate area. For the Kirkland, Washington athlete his 2013 campaign had made some noise in local news papers and blogs and made him a blip on the recruiting radar in the West. When the story ran last week he had about 300 views on his Hudl film and was being looked at by handful of schools. Those views almost double in a week and the story was read hundreds of times if not thousands.
One of the schools who had just begun recruiting Thomas was UCLA who stopped by during the week and showed some potential interest in him. Toki was encouraged and felt that his first offer might come before the Summer ended. That all changed today when he was called by his Head Coach, Shawn Tarantola, who told him he needed to call Coach Steve Broussard at UCLA.
“I called him right away thinking he was going to ask me some questions and invite me to camp or something like that. But he came out and offered me a scholarship to play for the Bruins,” said an upbeat Toki. “It was UNBELIEVABLE. I am so blessed and owe it all to God. This is really just incredible.”
That is how good the film is. Add to that the regional recruiting jumping to National coverage and what happened is not hard to understand. The Bruins wanted him right away and most likely needed to see his schools progress. When a lesser known kid with a high ceiling gains attention of this level it will get the card players to lay their hands down. By offering Thomas the Bruins have sent a clear message. They are the first to offer and for him no one will ever fill that spot but them.
“We talked about my film. He loved my aggression and natural ability to disrupt plays. He said the staff all agreed and he told me he will be touching base with me form here on out and check to see how I am doing. That was really great to hear from him,” he added given Broussard high marks for his approach.
Was he really that surprised at the offer?
“I mean I was thinking Portland State and Idaho or schools like that might be offering sometime soon which would be great. But this is unexpected,” repeated Toki admitting the impression they have made on him could be a lasting one.
What this does potentially is make other schools who want in on this Sophomore sort of “man-up” if you will. No one can force anyone to do anything; that is not what is being implied. But in the College recruiting game which is more complicated then a game of 3 – Dimensional Chess this first strike move by the Bruins is brilliant. It is a verbal offer; that is all. 18 months from now Thomas Toki can sign a piece of paper and agree to be a Bruin if he wants to and his grades are solid. But he and the Bruins can choose not to honor anything that is verbally agreed to.
“I am hearing a lot from UW again right now. That is very active. I am not going to make a decision anytime soon but I am going to focus my recruiting efforts in certain areas now.”
Is his non-stop grind going to slow? Is his hunger for an opportunity satisfied?
“No way. Not at all. In fact what this did was make me more dedicated and more hungry. It is a real motivator too,” concluded Thomas.
What a story for him and such great news. Jim Mora and the Bruins have done a Masterful job recruiting the NW the last couple of years and that does not appear to be changing anytime soon. Thomas Toki’s recruitment took a big step today as the Bruins solidified him as a Top 2015 Recruit!
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