Had a chance to talk to the O'Dowd 4-star linebacker for a while yesterday. We talked about his top 6 schools and his decision timeline. I'll have a nice story up tomorrow, but here are the key takeaways in my opinion:
This will probably come down to a Cal/UW battle. Cal, UW, and UCLA were the three schools that he seemed to have the most established relationships with and most legitimate interest in. I don't believe UCLA is a viable option right though, as they have 3 LB's committed and are heavily pursuing other guys over Eifler for a 4th and likely last spot. If they prioritized him more, I'd be concerned. A&M and Michigan are shiny but unlikely. Oregon didn't prioritize him soon enough IMO.
He visited UW recently and likes the staff there a lot. He has a friend and former teammate there in safety Kevin King. He feels comfortable there.
The biggest thing that could potentially hurt Cal is how close to home it is for him. I could sense that while he sees the proximity as mostly a positive, he does wonder if it would dampen his college experience to have it be TOO close to home. Additionally some on-field momentum needs to be shown. But he has friends in the program (Hardy Nickerson and Dezhon Grace), has a great relationship with the staff, specifically Garret Chachere and Art Kaufman, and is immensely proud of where he's from and sees the appeal of playing in front of friends and family for the next four years. Additionally Cal has been recruiting him longer and harder than anyone. Lots of things to feel good about.
With that said, Eifler intends to make a commitment by the end of the summer...which was news to me and I think is favorable for Cal.
Full story coming tomorrow.
This will probably come down to a Cal/UW battle. Cal, UW, and UCLA were the three schools that he seemed to have the most established relationships with and most legitimate interest in. I don't believe UCLA is a viable option right though, as they have 3 LB's committed and are heavily pursuing other guys over Eifler for a 4th and likely last spot. If they prioritized him more, I'd be concerned. A&M and Michigan are shiny but unlikely. Oregon didn't prioritize him soon enough IMO.
He visited UW recently and likes the staff there a lot. He has a friend and former teammate there in safety Kevin King. He feels comfortable there.
The biggest thing that could potentially hurt Cal is how close to home it is for him. I could sense that while he sees the proximity as mostly a positive, he does wonder if it would dampen his college experience to have it be TOO close to home. Additionally some on-field momentum needs to be shown. But he has friends in the program (Hardy Nickerson and Dezhon Grace), has a great relationship with the staff, specifically Garret Chachere and Art Kaufman, and is immensely proud of where he's from and sees the appeal of playing in front of friends and family for the next four years. Additionally Cal has been recruiting him longer and harder than anyone. Lots of things to feel good about.
With that said, Eifler intends to make a commitment by the end of the summer...which was news to me and I think is favorable for Cal.
Full story coming tomorrow.
