Trio of Centennial prospects visit Arizona for UW game

As Arizona jumped into Pac-12 play over the weekend with a game against nationally-ranked Washington there were also some potential future Wildcats watching the game as well. Visits during the season can be tricky and Rich Rodriguez already mentioned earlier this season he wished he had more time to spend with recruits during the year, but that didn't stop three players from Corona (Calif.) Centennial from making the trip out to Tucson to take in UA's conference opener.

It was a special night for the group as they were able to see a former Centennial star, JJ Taylor, get his first start for the 'Cats. The night ended on a sour note with Taylor leaving the game with a broken ankle, but it was still another chance to see the college game up close.

Arizona has built a nice connection with So-Cal powerhouse program Centennial High School. The Wildcats feature former Huskies Taylor and fellow freshman Chacho Ulloa on this season's roster while Matt Scott is another Centennial alum. Rodriguez and his staff hosted a camp at the school over the summer and one of the participants was Miles Reed.

Reed was able to work with football analyst Miguel Reveles at the camp and work alongside four-star UA commit Nathan Tilford. The senior running back had a tough act to follow this season after Taylor left one heck of a career behind with the Huskies as he moved on to college.

Reed has delivered, however, and he is starting to leave his own mark early in the 2016 season. In Centennial's win over Liberty from Nevada Reed had four touchdowns and over 220 yards on the ground. Following in Taylor's footsteps was never going to be an easy task at Centennial, but Reed is happy with his progress so far.

"It's a blessing, and I'm happy that I can finally show what I can do," he said. "I'm just trying to make the most of it. I do thank JJ for everything that he's taught me."

Hawaii jumped in late in the spring with an offer and Montana decided to offer after that, but if he can continue his progress this season other schools very well could jump into the mix as well. Reed said USC, Oregon and UCLA have started to show interest and Arizona has started to come on now as well.

Reed is the classic case of an under-recruited prospect who will eventually help a team at the next level. Traditionally in a case like his senior film will be important and late offers could come. That is one reason he remains focused on finishing out this season strong and showing coaches all the things he can do on the field.

"At Centennial we run between the tackles and we don't really throw out of the backfield a lot," he said. "So nobody really knows about the hands, but I like to say I have a little Stickum on my hands."

Reed said he will visit Montana next and after that he will let the process "run its course" to see what other programs up their interest.

Reggie Whitfield also made the trip out to Arizona to check out the Wildcats take on the Huskies. Like Reed he camped with the program at his school over the summer and it gave the three-star cornerback a chance to work with UA cornerbacks coach Donté Williams and get a better feel for the program.

Like his teammate, Whitfield is letting the process play out while he contributes to his Centennial squad but things are moving along for the 2017 recruit.

"It's great just to watch college football and catch games," Whitfield said of his visit to UA. "That and then being able to visit campuses to see what these schools have to offer."

In addition to seeing Arizona over the weekend, Whitfield has been to San Diego State, UNLV, Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado as well earlier in the year.

Whitfield said the primary interest right now is coming from Big Sky and Mountain West schools and he said Washington State has also started to express interest as well.

With the type of schedule Centennial plays Whitfield has had an opportunity to cover some top-end talent and while it prepares him for the rest of his season it will also give college coaches a chance to see him in action as well.

"It's helped a lot because every week you have to prepare to play the best teams," he said. "It helps us as individuals because we're going up against D1 guys every week. It's preparing us for the playoffs and it's good for us to have that competition every week."

Joining his teammates on the unofficial visit to Tucson for Saturday's game was the 2017 receiver Justin Fisher. The 6-foot recruit had himself a big night Friday in Centennial's win with 161 yards and a touchdown in the victory over Liberty. Like his teammates senior film will be important in earning an offer, but his production on the field is certainly there to be noticed.

"The start to my season has been good," he said. "I'm trying to work on the little things like my routes and how I get off the ball and stuff like that. We work at a fast tempo, so get on the ball, look at the play, get off and after the play is over get back on. So there's little stuff like that I'm working on."

Fisher said he has already taken some visits and he plans on visiting Montana State as his recruiting process plays out. Being able to take visits in the meantime is helping him get a better familiarity with schools at the next level.

"I'm trying to get a feel for how things are on the field and off the field," he said.

In addition to visits having been around so many future college players at Centennial has given Fisher a good idea of what he wants to see and hopes to see as he goes through the process himself.

"It's actually helped us a lot," he said. "It's made a little tougher on us because the seniors who did what they did last year raises the expectations. It's just really good. I honestly think without them we wouldn't be where we are now."