Many College Football Recruits Don’t Wait for Deadline to Select School

He was serenaded by the Trojan marching band and wooed by UCLA Coach Terry Donahue and several other of the best college football programs in the country.

For the last month, Hartwell Brown of Los Alamitos High School heard more recruiting pitches than a potential Marine. Football coaches and recruiters called day and night. Letters flooded his mailbox.

Then, it all came to an end last week.

Brown, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound defensive end, is one of 24 Orange County football players who have orally committed to a college and plan to sign national letters of intent Wednesday.

“I enjoyed the recruiting process,” Brown said. “Some players say they get sick of it but that wasn’t the case with me. But it is a relief to get all this over with. I spent four weekends in a row on the road.”

Stanford won a close battle for Brown, one of the most widely recruited players on the West Coast. He orally committed to Stanford on Feb. 5 after a weekend visit to USC.

“I’m really pleased with the (recruiting) experience,” Brown said. “One of my fondest memories was having a one-on-one breakfast with Donahue.

“During my trip to USC, we were having lunch at a club on campus and the marching band came in, lined up along the wall and started playing for us.

“It was very impressive. They finished with (the song) ‘Conquest’ and I was sitting there going ‘Wow.’ ”

But the Trojan fight song wasn’t enough to lure Brown to USC.

After his recruiting trip, he discussed options with his parents. He narrowed his choices to USC, UCLA and Stanford. Then USC and Stanford. Then just Stanford.

“I think Stanford will win and the academics are very, very strong,” Brown said. “I felt comfortable with the coaches and players when I visited there. I had a gut feeling I would be going there after my visit.”

That “gut feeling” also told Brown to turn down offers from Notre Dame, Colorado, Nebraska, California, Washington State, Arizona State, Oregon, Oregon State, Arizona, Northwestern, Fresno State and San Diego State.

Why all the interest?

Take a look at his resume:

--SuperPrep magazine’s defensive player of the year in the Far West region.

--Sixty-three tackles, seven sacks and two fumble recoveries.

--A score of 1,330 out of a possible 1,600 on the Scholastic Aptitude Test.

--National Football Foundation scholar-athlete award winner.

--The Times’ All-County first team.

Max Emfinger, a Houston-based college scout, said Brown “is one of the best defensive linemen in the country.”

“Brown is definitely the best on the West Coast,” Emfinger said. “He has everything you want--good size, speed and has good numbers on his (college) boards.

“He came out of nowhere this season. He’s not on any of the preseason lists, but he’s on everyone’s now.”

If all goes as planned Wednesday, Brown will join El Toro quarterback Steve Stenstrom, the county’s leading passer last season, at Stanford.

Emfinger said the oral commitments are usually kept, although a few players change their mind on signing day.

“Of the kids who go into this weekend with commitments, 95% will stay with their (original) decision,” he said.

If that’s the case, then Oregon has fared the best in Orange County.

Nine county players listed Oregon among their final choices and four have orally committed to the Ducks--Mater Dei’s Danny O’Neil (quarterback) and Kealii Clifford (running back), El Toro’s David Cuttrell (offensive lineman) and Mission Viejo’s Mark Slymen (defensive lineman).

O’Neil, 6-2 and 175 pounds, was fourth in the county in passing, completing 132 of 210 attempts for 1,929 yards and 16 touchdowns.

“This is a good opportunity for me,” O’Neil said. “Oregon’s a program on the rise. I turned down a couple of good places in USC and Alabama, but I had to go where I felt I belonged.”

O’Neil said he might compete for playing time as a freshman with the Ducks, who were 8-4 last season and tied for second in the Pacific 10 with Washington.

Oregon beat out traditional powers USC and Alabama for O’Neil’s commitment. Cuttrell plucked the Ducks from a list that included USC, UCLA and Iowa.

Emfinger figured Oregon’s passing game has a certain appeal. Also, USC and UCLA are set with quarterbacks Todd Marinovich and Bret Johnson, so “all the good quarterbacks in California had to go elsewhere,” he said.

That’s just what Los Alamitos quarterback Todd Gragnano did.

Gragnano is one of three county players who has orally committed to Nebraska. The others are Los Alamitos linebacker Brian Havens and Esperanza offensive lineman Brenden Stai.

Although he’s a dropback passer, Gragnano said he wouldn’t have any problems fitting into Nebraska’s run-oriented offense.

Gragnano, 6-2, 181 pounds, threw for 2,315 yards and 19 touchdowns last season and etched a place in the Orange County record books.

His 6,140 career passing yards are fifth in Southern Section history and third on the all-time county list behind Capistrano Valley’s Marinovich (9,182) and El Toro’s Johnson (6,627).

“I thought Gragnano was great from the start,” Emfinger said. “Nebraska thinks he’s the quarterback of the future.

“It’s the first time Nebraska has signed a big-time passing quarterback. They’re always looking for an option guy who can run the ball.

“They feel he will be a dominant player. He has a strong arm and he’s one of top quarterbacks on the West Coast.”

Los Alamitos sent four players to Division I programs--Gragnano, Brown, Havens and running back Erik Mitchell (Colorado)--more than any other Orange County high school.

Mater Dei has three players who committed: O’Neil, offensive lineman Ryan Motherway (UCLA) and linebacker Ryan Walton (Northern Arizona). Corona del Mar, Mission Viejo and Esperanza each have two.

Dana Hills linebacker Andy Marrone had a good time on his recruiting trip to Nevada Las Vegas. Although he’s under the legal gambling age of 21, he managed to slip a few coins in the slot machines on The Strip.

“I lost about $10,” he said. “We cruised The Strip a bunch of times on the first night. We went on a tour of the campus the next day and saw the UNLV-North Carolina State basketball game. It was incredible.”

Incredible enough for him to orally commit to the Rebels last week.

COUNTY COMMITMENTS Orange County high school football players who have made oral commitments to major college football programs:

Name School Position College Hartwell Brown Los Alamitos Lineman Stanford Kealii Clifford Mater Dei Running Back Oregon Tom Cowen Western Lineman Colorado State David Cuttrell El Toro Lineman Oregon Todd Gragnano Los Alamitos Quarterback Nebraska Brian Havens Los Alamitos Linebacker Nebraska Jeff Jackson Corona del Mar Tight end Washington Kevin McAninch Huntington Beach Lineman Army Tim Manning Trabuco Hills Defensive back California Andy Marrone Dana Hills Linebacker UNLV Erik Mitchell Los Alamitos Running back Colorado Lawson Mollica Edison Lineman Pitt Ryan Motherway Mater Dei Lineman UCLA Keith Navidi Esperanza Lineman Washington Danny O’Neil Mater Dei Quarterback Oregon Ron Papazian Whittier Christian Running back Pacific Brian Pizula Sunny Hills Running back New Mexico State Steve Stenstrom El Toro Quarterback Stanford Mark Slymen Mission Viejo Lineman Oregon Brenden Stai Esperanza Lineman Nebraska Danny Todd Foothill Lineman Colorado Ryan Walton Mater Dei Linebacker Northern Arizona Chris Wild Mission Viejo Linebacker Pacific Jerrott Willard Corona del Mar Linebacker California Scott Wohrman Fountain Valley Lineman CS Long Beach

Note: The first day high school football players can sign national letters of intent is Wednesday.