Football: Inland Empire safeties have cornered the market

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Don’t look now, but the Inland Empire has become a recruiting hotbed for Division I programs looking for help in the secondary. Over the past two months, or so, scouts from all over the country discovered that some of the nation’s top safeties reside just east of Los Angeles and have been flocking to the 909 ever since. Here’s a quick look at some of the region’s top prospects.

• Sure, Chris Metcalf and Dijon Washington get loads of attention, but Lester White is just as talented and deserves to be mentioned among the Southland’s best at his position. The 6-foot-1, 200-plus pound senior from Riverside North has offers from numerous West Coast schools, but according to these quotes, Nebraska has emerged as his favorite.

• Nat Berhe is no slouch either. San Diego State figured that out in March and immediately put a scholarship on the table for the 5-foot-11 senior from Colton. Not surprisingly, Minnesota and New Mexico reportedly stepped up their efforts to land him, and it appears as if Arizona State and Oregon are doing the same.

• Believe it or not, Syracuse made the 3,000-plus mile trip to Southern California in May to do its best to impress Richard Spencer from Rancho Verde. According to these quotes, it might have worked, although the 6-foot senior hasn’t pledged to the Orangemen. Nevada and UTEP are also in the running for a commitment.

• Northwestern jumped out to an early lead in the battle to win Davion Fleming‘s services. But all of sudden, it looks like the Wildcats have some competition, given the fact that this note indicates the 6-foot senior from Upland returned from a trip to Stanford recently. Cal and UCLA are among the other interested parties.

-- Sean Ceglinsky