Washington was first to offer 2018 Palmdale (Calif.) running back / athlete Richard Newton last week, with fellow Pac-12 conference foe Washington State offering Monday.

The Huskies continue to search for their running back in the class of 2018 with 4-star T.J. Pledger recently committing to Oklahoma. Pledger was the only true running back recruit to hold a UW offer until the Newton received his offer.

"It was huge it and it will open a lot of doors for me," Newton told Rivals following the Huskies offer. "It just felt unreal and it definitely came as a surprise."

UW running backs coach / recruiting coordinator Keith Bhonapha has played point on his recruitment thus far for the Huskies, and made the call to give Newton the good news late last week.

Bhonapha has a long-standing relationship with the under-the-radar running back and it could play a key role in UW's efforts moving forward.

"Stay true to who has always been there," Newton said on what Bhonapha's message was to him following the offer. "Just because they've been there so long. I've been hearing from Washington since my sophomore year."

With the Huskies bursting on the scene in 2016, and finishing 12-2 for the programs best record under Chris Petersen, Newton sees a lot of positives in UW with the hope of visiting soon.

"Well they were No.4 in the nation last year," Newton said of what stands out about UW. "It's been a long time since they were good like that. They weren't expected to go so far and do so well so that's what got me.

"I was planning on visiting either way. Just get a feel of it. See it in person. See what's it like in person."