Schooler has now become a priority for the staff

The Arizona Wildcats lost out on one of the top JuCo linebackers in the nation after Delshawn Phillips flipped to Illinois after taking a visit a few days before.

Now the staff will be looking to fill the need at the linebacker position, which doesn’t have a whole lot of depth as we look to the future.

To address the need, an offer went out to Colin Schooler, a product out of Mission Viejo, California. He checks in at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds, and holds offers to Fresno State, Nevada, and New Mexico. He is also hearing from UCLA, Utah, and USC could be on the verge of offering as well.

“Coach (Marcel) Yates has come to my high school a few times and he is the main guy who started to recruit me,” Schooler said about his communication with the staff. “He said he liked my film and liked the way I played. Said he liked my game a lot.”

When I spoke to Schooler, it had been just a few days before he was officially offered. When we spoke he said that he is hopeful to see an offer during an unofficial visit he is planning to take in January.

“I really like Arizona because it is a college town,” he explained of what draws him to Tucson. “It’s the only show in town, not like Phoenix, no pro football, hockey, basketball or baseball.”

The family has also been interested in the program as well. Schooler’s older brother, Brenden, was waiting for an offer from Arizona last year, but it never came his way. Instead, he took an offer to Oregon where he started ten games as a true freshman, leading the team in interceptions with four and finishing third in tackles with 74.

The younger Schooler’s recruitment has been heating up ever since his high school season ended. Now with the dead period in full effect, he’s going to have to move quickly before National Signing Day. He has a few visits that he is trying to set up right now.

“I am looking for the right fit,” he said about his decision process. “The feeling that I could spend the next 4-5 years of my life there. This is what is going to set the rest of my life, so I don’t want to just go anywhere because of a name or anything like that. I am looking forward to the interaction with the staff and meeting the players to ask them what they think of UA.”

Schooler will be in Tucson on January 14 for his visit and he will make a decision after he takes his final visits before National Signing Day.

At Mission Viejo, Schooler carried the ball 101 times for 1,161 yards and 19 touchdowns. On defense, he finished with 77 tackles, two sacks, and two interceptions.