When Jermaine Kelly (Los Angeles/Salesian) was asked about what he thought of his official visit to Washington, the senior said simply “They ooh’d and ahh’d me.”
The 6-foot-1, 171-pound cornerback was in Seattle for the Huskies’ 17-13 upset win over Stanford. He was one of five official visitors who stormed the field after the game.
“It was crazy,” Kelly said. “I’ve never even witnessed something like that in person. I’ve always seen it on TV. It was great. I don’t know how they did it. They pulled it off. The crowd was just amazing. Like I said, I’ve never witnessed anything like that up close.”
Kelly, a UCLA commit, was on the sideline pregame, joined by USC cornerback commit Chris Hawkins (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) and cornerback Johnny Johnson Jr. (Fresno, Calif./Central East). Kelly also sat with the defensive backs during the game.
He wore a purple-and-white Washington scarf throughout the game but said he is still committed to the Bruins.
“Nobody has a reason to be worried,” Kelly said, when asked about his commitment to UCLA. “It’s still very, very early. I’m not going to make any decisions right now.”
Freshmen defensive backs Brandon Beaver and Shaq Thompson were Kelly’s hosts during the trip. Kelly said talking to senior cornerback Desmond Trufant about his late-game interception against the Cardinal was one of the highlights of his visit.
“They are cool dudes,” Kelly said. “The whole team is cool. Nobody really has a big ego to where they don’t talk to anybody. They really showed the recruits how it is to be a Washington Husky.”
The visit also included an opportunity to see the progress that has been made on Husky Stadium.
“That’s a cool stadium to play in,” Kelly said. “I’m not even going to lie. The new stadium is going to be nice and, plus, I know how the fans are, so it’s like, who wouldn’t want to play in that stadium?”
After talking to teammates Rodney Carr, a senior, and Kyahva Tezino, a sophomore, about the trip, Kelly said the Huskies have caught their attention after hearing about how the Huskies “ooh’d and ahh’d” the senior during his visit. While his commitment hasn’t changed, the trip left him with plenty to think about and a few memories he will never forget.
“They brought it,” Kelly said. “We ate like every 20 minutes and they showed us the academic side as well as the athletic side. It wasn’t just all football. They showed us what type of majors we can get into, stuff like that. It was a great experience. I enjoyed it.”