Santa Margarita’s O’Brien Picks Arizona

Calling it “the perfect situation,” Santa Margarita quarterback Sean O’Brien announced Sunday he has committed to play next season at Arizona.

O’Brien, 6 feet 4 and 214 pounds, chose the Wildcats over Arizona State, California and Washington. He plans to sign with Arizona on Feb. 3, the first day of the signing period.

“I wanted to play quarterback in college and this was the perfect situation to go into,” said O’Brien, whom Cal recruited as a tight end. “Arizona’s starter (George Malauulu) is graduating, and so is his backup. They run an option, and the quarterback is sprinting out all the time. It’s the perfect offense for me.”

Other county athletes announcing their commitments Sunday were Sunny Hills linebacker Brian Willmer (UCLA), Orange punter-placekicker Micah Knorr (Utah State), and Sunny Hills volleyball player Rachel Hochgesang (Oregon State).

O’Brien visited Arizona Jan. 16-17 and canceled a trip to Washington next weekend. He said he chose Arizona for academics as well as athletics, adding that he’s interested in the school’s wildlife conservation program.

He began working out last week with Bob Johnson, who coached sons Rob and Bret and Stanford’s Steve Stenstrom when he was at El Toro.

“Coach Johnson is getting me going on all the fundamentals,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien said he hopes to play as a freshman and skip a redshirt season. He said the Wildcats have the potential to contend for the Pac-10 title next season.

“Arizona had one of the best defenses in the nation, and everyone is back but a couple cornerbacks,” he said. “All but one of the offensive linemen are back. All they need is a quarterback who can take them all the way.

“Everyone is saying it’s Rose Bowl or bust next season.”

Willmer, a Times All-Orange County first-team selection, will join Esperanza defensive tackle Travis Kirschke and Irvine offensive lineman Sean Gully at UCLA. Willmer chose the Bruins over Notre Dame, USC, Cal and Colorado.

“Everything felt right about UCLA,” he said. “It’s where I’ve wanted to go for some time.”

Knorr, a Times’ all-county first-team punter, chose Utah State over Oregon State and Colorado State. He plans to study business management.

Hochgesang, an All-Southern Section player, picked Oregon State over Fresno State and Colorado State. She plans to study physical therapy at Oregon State.

Best in the West: Todd Marinovich didn’t do it as a Capistrano Valley senior. Neither did Bret Johnson and Stenstrom when they were quarterbacks at El Toro.

But Trabuco Hills quarterback Pat Barnes has.

Barnes became only the second county player to be named unanimously to the Long Beach Press-Telegram’s Best in the West team Sunday.

Barnes, who has committed to Cal, joined Fountain Valley running back Willie Gittens (1978) as the only county players to receive the maximum 10 votes from the panel of Pac-10 coaches and recruiters that selects the team. For a player to receive a vote, panel members must believe he would start in college by his sophomore year.

Barnes was one of three unanimous selections this season along with Baldwin Park running back Lawrence Phillips and Oceanside El Camino defensive back Bryant Westbrook.

Past unanimous selections include Granada Hills Kennedy quarterback John Elway (1979), Los Angeles Locke quarterback Darian Hagan (1988), Long Beach Poly linebacker Willie McGinest (1990) and Escondido Orange Glen quarterback Sean Salisbury (1981).

The Best in the West consists of players from Arizona, California, Oregon and Washington. California had 32 players named to the 37-member team.

Los Alamitos quarterback Tim Carey, who committed to Stanford, received nine votes and just missed a unanimous nomination.

Other county players on the team were Esperanza defensive tackle Travis Kirschke (UCLA), Sunny Hills linebacker Brian Willmer (UCLA) and Rancho Alamitos strong safety Leon Vickers (Stanford). Each player received eight votes, two more than required to make the team.

Notes

Irvine offensive tackle Brian Davies has visited New Mexico and is favoring Utah State, where he’s visiting next weekend. . . . Mater Dei fullback Nicky Sualua has scholarship offers from Oregon, Ohio State and UCLA, but is waiting until after his upcoming visit to Kansas to decide on a school.