A trio of tight end prospects in the 2023 class now hold a scholarship offer from the University of Washington.
As fate would have it, all three are from the Midwest and the two latest offers have gone to players from The Show-Me State. On Monday, UW tight ends coach Derham Cato extended the latest offer to Francis Howell (Saint Charles, Missouri) sophomore Brett Norfleet.
The 6-foot-7 and 225-pounder now holds two Pac-12 offers, pairing the Huskies offer with Arizona State who offered in January. Over the past month Cato and Norfleet have begun to build a strong relationship, and with the offer it is only expected to strengthen as time goes on.
"It was a surprise, in that our initial conversations they typically don't offer early. They like to get to know you first," Norfleet told TheDawgReport. “We’ve built a relationship from day one. We talk once or twice every week and I look forward to continuing to build that relationship with coach Cato.”
Norfleet is three inches taller than the two other tight ends who hold an offer from UW in his class. Often the case, his stature is greater than most of his peers on the field and that is a large – pun intended – reason for his recruitment starting to rise.
In addition to his offers from the Conference of Champions, the sophomore holds scholarship opportunities from Arkansas, Florida State, Kansas State, Minnesota and Missouri.
Prior to the Covid-19 lockdown on recruit visits Norfleet was able to see Mizzou and Notre Dame, though the Fighting Irish have not offered to date. Once the NCAA lifts the ban on visits Norfleet is expected to trip to the schools he hasn’t seen, including UW.
“I’m still learning about the program. Every week coach Cato fills me in a little bit and I do my research off to the side,” Norfleet said.
All seven schools are looking at the sophomore at tight end. Some have indicated they are considering him for playing both defensive end and on offense, but if it comes down to it his position at the next level will be tight end.
Tracking passes from quarterbacks is hard to simulate. So, in the off-season, Norfleet picks up a bat and takes the diamond for Francis Howell. First base, outfield and on the mound, each helps him cross train for the gridiron.
“100 percent. At first base and in the outfield, you have to track the balls, take the right steps,” Norfleet said. “Sometimes you got to dive. It’s the same with football. You have to track the ball, dive, catch the ball and make the play.”
Cato has evolved the tight end position at Washington to feature three different types of players; h-back, in-line (blocking) and split out. Norfleet, at 6-foot-7, can match up with most linemen, but admittedly he knows pass blocking is an area of his game he wants to improve.
“I’m a miss-match with most people. I’m aggressive. And I just know all the plays and I know that if my quarterback is in trouble I have to get open for him,” he said, describing his game.
“My coaches and I have talked about it. That’s probably my weak point; my blocking. It’s not really weak. I just need to improve on it and stay within my feet. Stay with my block and finish to the whistle.”
Aside from UW, Norfleet said he has also been hearing from Northwestern. He added that he has weekly conversations with Arizona State, Missouri and Washington.
