Linebacker Ozzie Nicholas Talks Recruiting
When Cal offered La Costa Canyon LB Austin "Ozzie" Nicholas (6-1, 225) after his sophomore season, it held significant meaning.
"It was, great. I’ve always really liked Cal since I was a little kid and it was awesome to get my first offer from a school that I thought so highly of," said Nicholas.
Since then, the three-star has seen his list of offers grow. The list includes Harvard, Princeton, Washington St., Arizona, Utah St. to Colorado St. and many more. Ozzie went on to break down some of the schools that he's had the chance to visit.
"With Cal, I’ve been there multiple times and I really like their campus and facilities," Nicholas said. "It has a great atmosphere and the team culture is great, as well. The coaches have shown me a lot of love and I’ve made some great relationships with them. Their academics are also something I really look for in a school."
Cal LB coach Peter Sirmon is leading the charge for the Bears with Nicholas and done what's necessary to ensure he feels like a priority.
"He (Sirmon) came down to my school for a visit and then a short time later he called with my 1st Division 1 offer to play football on scholarship," said Nicholas. "I definitely feel like a priority by their staff. They’ve been great to me and have taken a lot of time to tell me all about their program, especially their defense and linebacker play."
We asked Ozzie if were to choose Cal what would be the reason for his choice considering all of the options available to him.
"Cal's academics are something that not many schools have. They have a really good team to go along with a difficult school that could give me many options after my football career. Also, Sirmon is an excellent coach that would make me an even better player."
Another Pac-12 school that's captured the attention of Nicholas is Arizona.
"The University of Arizona was also very impressive when I went to visit recently," he said. "Their facilities were great and talking with the coaches gave me a great idea of how their program is run. It was an awesome experience all around and it exceeded my expectations by a lot. It has an atmosphere that any football player would want to be in."
Nicholas talked about a few other schools he's looking at.
"The facilities were amazing at Washington St. along with a great team culture," Nicholas said. "I could tell they make great football players and work hard on building a winning team. I haven’t been to Boise, but I know a lot about their school and the football players they produce. They’re a dominant team that would be great to play for. Utah State is another school that produces great linebackers and is an excellent program.
"Princeton is a school I really like due to their obviously amazing academics and that they are a winning program. Their coaches have given me a lot of information on the school and the way their program is run."
As of now, Nicholas doesn't have plans for more visits, but he does plan on taking some official visits soon. Once he's able to decide on those visits, he plans to announce them on social media.
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