Huskies Add 'Pocket Mobile' QB Commit For 2022 Class
Last Saturday’s UW spring football game was an opportunity for fans of all ages to come out to Husky Stadium for a preview of what the 2021 season will have in store.
That included several recruits and their families, who flew up on their own dime – the current dead period in recruiting will end on June 1, when prospects can begin to take official visits – for the game.
Among those who made the trip was La Jolla (Calif.) quarterback Jackson Stratton. Seven days later he called head coach Jimmy Lake to give him some news and insight to the future of the QB room.
Stratton, a 6-foot-4 and 205-pound junior, made his commitment to UW on Saturday securing his place as the signal-caller for the 2022 class. He becomes the third verbal pledge for the Huskies, joining four-star wide receiver Germie Bernard and three-star tight end Chance Bogan.
Washington stepped up their interest in Stratton in early April and backed it up with a scholarship offer, the only Power Five school to do so.
Several other Pac-12 schools were interested in the SoCal quarterback, but the Huskies belief in him was reassuring enough to return the favor.
“It’s so nice. They were super excited.” Stratton told Rivals of Lake and the coaching staff’s reaction to his call Saturday morning.
“I was talking to a lot of the other schools, just like I was talking to Washington. I just love the school, too. I kind of let them (UW coaches) that they were a school I wanted to go to – one I was looking at – and they reciprocated.”
During his time in Seattle last weekend one thing that stood out to Stratton was the city itself and the tall buildings downtown. It’s not San Diego, or Kansas for that matter.
It is where he’ll call home for the next four years.
Like most people who live in California Stratton spent the majority of his 2020 focused on what he could do. It resulted in the biggest growth, both literally and figuratively, in his life.
“Last year was kind of tough,” he said. “They were pushing back the schedule. We didn’t even know if we were going to have a season until about a week before it happened in the spring. So, it was tough. You’re just working for a time that you didn’t know was going to be there.
“It was great to be able to play this year. I’ve been working super hard all offseason. I probably made the biggest jump I have in a single year ever this year. I put a lot of credit to that on quarantine."
That maturation was on display this spring when Stratton led La Jolla to a perfect 5-0 record, throwing 19 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
In his first game as a sophomore Stratton threw five interceptions.
His first game as a junior he threw five touchdowns and at the time a career-high 258 yards in a 49-12 win over Morse. His next two games, against Mira Mesa and Mission Bay, were both 300-yard performances with a combined 10 touchdown passes and one pick.
For Stratton, his focus is on a constant state of growth on and off the field.
He finished the shorted spring season throwing for 1,269 yards and boasted a 141.9 quarterback rating while completing 69.8 percent of his passes (74 of 106). While Stratton knows he isn’t the most polished runner, what he lacks in mobility he makes up for in accuracy.
“I would say I’m a pocket-mobile guy,” he said. “So, I stay in the pocket but I’m good at moving around in it to extend plays.”
What does it come down to for Stratton?
“Arm strength and accuracy. Just putting the ball where it needs to be. My size definitely helps being able to see over the linemen, being able to see the field. It definitely depends on reading defenses. Knowing what you’re doing, where you’re going to go with the ball and just get the ball in the hands of playmakers.”
If there is a comparison to make, it could be to 2021 first-round draft pick Mac Jones out of the University of Alabama. Big, strong-arm quarterback who can make the throws and is mobile to be efficient without relying on his legs to threaten a defense.
“Exactly,” Stratton said of the correlation, before adding “get the ball in the hands of people a lot faster than men.”
Stratton gives the Huskies their third pledge for UW – all three of which are on offense – but he could be the start of a movement from San Diego to Seattle in the 2022 class. He’s got a pair of defensive backs who have their eye on the program as well who he plans to try and get to join him in Purple and Gold.
Jalil Tucker, a four-star San Diego (Calif.) Lincoln athlete, and Jahlil Florence, a three-star cornerback who also plays for Lincoln, are two of Stratton’s top recruiting targets now that his decision is made and final.