Recruiting is everything in college sports.
With this in mind, some were were questioning why the Arizona Wildcats decide to hire Sean Miller as their new head coach in April of 2009. Given where he had grown up (Beaver County, Pennsylvania), his alma mater (University of Pittsburgh) and his previous coaching jobs (Wisconsin, Miami of Ohio, Pitt, NC State and Xavier), one could argue that he wouldn’t be able to recruit West Coast players because, well, he’s never been on the West Coast before.
But if you have watched the video above, you now know that not to be true.
Not only was Miller the man responsible for luring recent No. 2 overall NBA draft pick Derrick Williams to the desert, he is also the guy who convinced Brandon Ashley—the No. 4-ranked recruit in the 2012 class—to come play for Arizona.
As can be seen in the video, the 6’8” Ashley is a man amongst boys during his high school games, and will surely strike the same fear in the hearts of Pac-12 opponents once he reaches the big show.
Not only has Miller proved he can recruit, he’s actually gaining traction, making Arizona one of the top recruiting schools in the country.
His first recruiting class (2009) resulted in the aforementioned Williams, who went on to lead the team to an Elite Eight. In his 2010 recruiting class, Miller pulled in two more West Coast players (Jordin Mayes and Daniel Bejarano), plus Jesse Perry, a mid-western JuCo player. And this year’s incoming freshman class, which is ranked No. 7, includes top point guard Josiah Turner.
If Miller continues this trend of luring the best West Coast players in the country (most of whom come from California), expect the Wildcats to be a force to be reckoned with in the Pac-12 for many years to come.
