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A sometimes overlooked factor in high school football recruiting proved its importance again Wednesday as UCLA signed standouts from Orange County despite its transition at head coach.
The critical role of assistant coaches and support staff emerged as San Juan Hills offensive lineman Cooper Javorsky and Mater Dei defensive back CJ Lavender Jr. signed with the Bruins on National Signing Day.
Both players credited their rapport with UCLA assistant coaches before signing.
They joined Orange Lutheran wide receiver Markus Kier and Santa Margarita safety Logan Hirou in signing with the Bruins before the expected hiring of James Madison coach Bob Chesney. UCLA fired coach DeShaun Foster (Tustin High) in September after an 0-3 start and shifted to interim coach Tim Skipper.
“I have been locked in with UCLA the minute that I committed,” said Lavender, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound senior who flipped his commitment to the Bruins from Washington on Oct. 21.
“I have built a great relationship with (football recruiting operations) coach Marshawn (Friloux) and general manager (Khary) Darlington.”
Javorsky (6-4, 295) said the Bruins’ recruiting staff also made a strong impression with him.
“I’ve been to all the home games this season and the entire recruiting staff never stopped making it clear they wanted me there,” said Javorsky, who decommitted from UCLA on Sept. 15 after Foster’s departure. “That means a lot to me. I wanted a place where I felt at home.”
Lavender and Javorsky both plan to graduate from high school early and enroll at UCLA in January.
The importance of assistant coaches notably surfaced in the recruitment of former La Habra cornerback Clark Phillips III, who signed with Utah in 2019 after being a longtime Ohio State commit.
La Habra coach Frank Mazzotta recently recalled how the departure of then Ohio State co-defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley for Boston College factored in to Phillips signing with Utah.
“He was the one who had the relationship with Clark,” Mazzotta said of Hafley, who left for Boston College just prior to Signing Day. “Clark had been back there twice. They communicated all the time because that’s how Clark was.”
Mazzotta said Utah was “ecstatic” to sign Phillips, who starred for the Utes and now plays for the Atlanta Falcons.
