According to the (Watsonville) Register-Pajaronian, Cabrillo College sophomore strong safety Taylor West has accepted a “preferred walk-on invitation” to play at Cal Poly next year.
Last season, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound West made 109 tackles (No. 2 in the state) and blocked five kicks (No. 1 in the state) en route to All-Golden Gate Conference First Team honors.
Other standout defensive additions could be on the way, as well.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported that the Mustangs have made an offer to Kapolei (Hawaii) High’s Cyril Ontai.
Ontai, a 5-10, 205-pound linebacker, is listed as the country’s 77th-best safety prospect by Rivals.com, which reports him being recruited by Stanford, and given offers by Navy and Air Force.
Perhaps where he chooses to go could depend on what position he wants to play. Cal Poly would probably keep him at linebacker, while the FBS programs might try to force him into being a safety.
Regardless of where he’ll actually end up playing, it looks like he can hit a ton:
Closer to home, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported, Cal Poly has shown interest in 5-10, 180-pound Ronald Kennedy Jr., a running back and defensive back from Mayfair (of Lakewood) who told the newspaper he prefers defense.
Certainly, it doesn’t seem as if he’d have any problems being disciplined. The Press-Telegram reported he has a 3.94 GPA, is being looked at by Army, does 1,000 sit-ups and push-ups every night and is “built like a Greek god,” according to one of his coaches.
It’s not as if all freshmen don’t make an immediate impact at Cal Poly. While most redshirt, cornerback Asa Jackson started as a true freshman last season, and linebacker Quentin Greenlaw was activated a few games into the year.
Of course, the recruiting efforts aren’t all defensive.
The Inland Valley Bulletin reported Cal Poly (in addition to San Diego State, Utah State and UTEP, among others) has shown interest in 5-7, 160-pound Diamond Ranch (of Pomona) running back Brian Spirlin. You can get a good look at him (wearing No. 3) around the 1:15 mark of this video, although the language in the accompanying song might be objectionable for some. (Oh, the Internet.)