Kurtis Brown gets the go-ahead to commit to Arizona

When Arizona brought in its new defensive staff in the offseason the goal was to raise the talent level as well as develop the talent already on the roster. One spot Arizona didn't quite get where it needed to in the 2016 class was the defensive line and it has been a priority for the coaching staff early in the 2017 cycle. UA emerged with an early offer for Bakersfield (Calif.) Liberty defensive tackle/defensive end Kurtis Brown and Tuesday night he gave UA its second defensive commitment of the night when he committed to the Wildcats.

Brown visited Arizona a little less than two weeks ago and he gave the visit rave reviews and things started to sound like they were close to wrapping up. GOAZCATS.com spoke with Brown on Sunday at the Tom Lemming photo shoot and he said if an opportunity felt right he would not delay his decision. He wasn't kidding and after receiving the go-ahead from his mom on Tuesday night it was done.

"Ever since I visited I thought Arizona was the right place," Brown said Tuesday night. "It was just that my mom wanted me to wait until the summer to make sure I have the right choice. She called me into the room and she was like, 'if you had any offer would you still commit to the University of Arizona?' And I was like, 'of course, that's where I want to go.'

"So she gave me the permission and I felt like right now was the right time to do it."

Being able to see Arizona practice and get more familiar with the staff, as well as seeing his friend and Liberty alum Anthony Mariscal in action, gave Brown all of what he needed to see to make his decision. He was not shy about his feelings for the visit to Tucson and eventually when that trip wrapped up he had decided where he wanted to go and it was going to be tough for any school to knock UA off that top spot.

"Before when I got the offer I thought Arizona was a beautiful school, but I didn't really know much about it," he said. "I knew Anthony goes there and they have a great program, but as soon as I got there it changed my mind like 'this is where I want to go and this is where I want to spend the next four or five years of my life.'"

Now that his decision is out of the way Brown said his attention will turn to becoming another recruiter for the Wildcats with his main targets being recent visitors Thomas Graham and Elijah Blades to help bolster Arizona's defense even more for the future.

Brown chose the Wildcats over many other offers including programs such as Colorado, Oregon State, Purdue and Washington State among others.

He is now the fourth commitment in Arizona's 2017 class and the second of the day joining linebacker/defensive end Kylan Wilborn.

Watch our video interview with Brown from Sunday's photo shoot and join the discussion about the latest UA commitments on our premium message boards.