Washington secured the top-ranked in-state recruit on Friday when defensive end Sav'ell Smalls announced his commitment to the Huskies.
Smalls is a five-star prospect, ranked No. 10 overall, and is the highest-ranked commitment for Washington since ESPN started its rankings in 2009. He is the No. 1-ranked recruit in Washington and the No. 5-ranked defensive end overall.
A 6-foot-3, 227-pound prospect from John F. Kennedy High School in Burien, Washington, Smalls had a top six consisting of Alabama, Florida State, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington and Washington State before announcing his commitment. It was believed at one time that Smalls was headed out of state with Alabama and Florida State heavily pursuing him, but coach Chris Petersen and his staff are now adding a big defensive prospect to their future roster.
Smalls gives Washington seven ESPN 300 commitments in the 2020 class, one fewer than the staff had in the entire 2019 class. He joins ESPN 300 offensive linemen Myles Murao, Georgian Hatchett and Roger Rosengarten, along with quarterback Ethan Garbers, receiver Jalen McMillan and running back Sam Adams in this class.