DeSaussure, Leaning North, Chooses Washington

Andre DeSaussure, a football and track standout at Taft High, signed a national letter of intent with Washington on Wednesday, one day before the NCAA allowed USC--his original first choice--to recruit him again.

USC had stopped recruiting DeSaussure on April 11 and declared him ineligible at the school because of a possible rules violation after his participation in the Quincy Watts Invitational on March 26.

On Thursday, the NCAA cleared USC of wrongdoing, but DeSaussure said the controversy surrounding his eligibility did not influence his decision.

DeSaussure, the defending City Section champion in the 100, 200 and 400, had been leaning toward playing football and running track for USC, but Washington’s persistent recruiting altered his thinking.

“I just changed my mind, that’s all,” he said. “I did say I was leaning toward USC, but that doesn’t mean I was definitely going to go there. I never made a commitment.”

DeSaussure ran a leg on an unattached 400 relay team that included Watts--the 1992 Olympic champion in the 400--in the collegiate meet at USC. The Trojans interpreted his actions as a possible NCAA rules violation because high school athletes are not allowed to compete in intercollegiate meets.

“The NCAA has determined that there was no recruiting advantage gained from (DeSaussure’s) participation in the Quincy Watts Invitational,” USC sports information director Tim Tessalone read from the NCAA statement, “and therefore, the NCAA has restored his eligibility to compete for USC should he choose to go there.”

DeSaussure, who also took a recruiting trip to Arizona, is regarded as a project in football, but with personal bests of 10.74 seconds in the 100 meters, 21.1 in the 200 and 47.11 in the 400, he has the speed to be a deep threat at wide receiver. He was the runner-up in the 400 in last year’s state track and field championships.

He had 27 receptions for 656 yards and five touchdowns last season.