'09 NV DE Keenan Graham (UCLA Verbal)

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Las Vegas (NV) Silverado

Ht: 6-foot-3
Wt: 208 lbs
Forty: 4.59 secs
Vertical: 32 inches
Shuttle: 4.42 secs
GPA: 2.8
SAT: 1300
Class: 2009 (High School)


Scout $

4/23

By B Huffman. Oklahoma and UCLA have offered, and join Wisconsin, Colorado, Utah, Boise State, and Arizona in his top 7.

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Rivals $

6/3

From NevadaPrepReport...picked up offers from Southern Cal, Michigan and Virginia Tech. Plans to visit UM in a few weeks. Also has offers from Cal, Colorado, Oregon, Oregon State, UCLA, UNLV, Utah and Wisconsin.

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6/14

From the Michigan site. Graham came away very impressed with his visit to Michigan, and talks about his interaction with the coaches. He says the visit to Michigan may have moved them ahead of UCLA, but that Michigan and USC are close (which are his top 3).

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7/25

From the Tennessee site. Graham says his favorites are USC, UCLA, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee (all offered). Academics, playing time and the coaching staff will all be important factors in his choice.

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Scout Video: D-End Keenan Graham (FREE)

VIDEO: D-End Keenan Graham By Brandon Huffman
West Recruiting Manager
Posted Jul 29, 2008



Las Vegas (Nev.) Silverado defensive end Keenan Graham, the #1-ranked player in Nevada and one of the elite defensive end prospects nationally, is seen here in clips from his junior season...

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Rivals $

8/11

From TheWolverine...has two visits for sure and those are to UCLA and Virginia Tech...also consider officials to Hawaii, Michigan, Colorado or others. Talks about his interest in UM and his comfort level with the staff.

[GoRU]

ESPN - West Recruiting Blog

On the recruiting front, Graham has a handful of favorites and has really cut his list down to a workable five or six schools.

"UCLA is my top school right now. I really like them a lot but I want to take all my visits before I commit anywhere," he said. "Once I'm done with my trips, I can weight all the schools together and decide where the best fit for me is."

Graham, who says he enjoyed his trip to USC in April, will again unofficially visit USC this weekend for the Ohio State game.

He has set official visits for Wisconsin on Oct. 11 and Colorado Oct. 18 and plans to visit UCLA, Virginia Tech and either Hawaii or Tennessee.

[wadc45]

ESPN - West Recruiting Blog

Elite defensive end Keenan Graham (Las Vegas/Silverado) took his second official visit of the year to Wisconsin this past weekend. Graham visited Nebraska back in September.

"I really liked it a lot at Wisconsin," Graham said. "I got along great with the players on the team and the other recruits that were there visiting. I talked with David Gilbert who already committed to Wisconsin and basically just picked his brain about what he liked and why he chose Wisconsin.

"The game atmosphere was great and even though the team didn't do too well, it was still a fun environment to be a part of. I don't think any game atmosphere can compare to Nebraska because that's really the only game in town and the fans are crazy there but overall, I loved Wisconsin a lot."

Continued...

[Bernini]

Silverado's Graham headed to UCLA - Las Vegas Sun

11-3

Silverado senior defensive end Keenan Graham could have played football for virtually any college he desired.

In the end it was a springtime trip to UCLA that swayed the top recruit as Graham verbally committed to the Bruins on Monday morning.

With programs like Oklahoma, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Kansas, Arizona, Washington State, Utah, Maryland, Colorado, and Vanderbilt beating down his door, Graham said it was an unofficial visit to UCLA this spring and the relationship with the Bruins coaches that helped him make up his mind.

"I went to visit the campus and (head coach) Rich Neuheisel took me on a tour of the school," Graham said. "That meant a lot to me. I had a real good feel for the school and the program. Even with all the other great schools I went to, I still had this connection to UCLA. It just felt right."

Graham began to gain national interest at the Long Beach Nike Combine on March 15 where he posted a time of 4.59 seconds in the 40-yard dash, the fastest time for any lineman and faster than several smaller athletes in attendance.

The 6-foot, 3-inch, 208-pounder amassed 72 tackles and 15 sacks last year, including a sack in eight of 10 games and nine in a four-game span. He continued to punish offenses this year with 73 tackles, seven sacks and three fumble recoveries and even flashed his speed with a 78-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

"He's definitely got the frame and speed for the next level," Silverado coach Andy Ostolaza said. "He's a good student and a real hard worker. He's real easy going. Coaches will like him and being coachable just adds to what he'll bring to UCLA."

Graham was initially recruited to make the transition to linebacker but after discussions with the UCLA coaching staff, they agreed to let him start out as a defensive end and see how his body develops as he continues to grow.

"I just told them how much I like being a defensive end and they said that was OK with them," Graham said. "I understand it depends on my growth. If they eventually have to move me to linebacker, that's fine with me. I'll do whatever's best for the team."

Graham's announcement comes on the heels of teammate Michael Wadsworth's commitment to Hawaii on Oct. 29. The defensive back who has shined for the Hawks as a punt and kickoff returner will be reunited with former Silverado defensive coordinator Tony Tuioti, now the director of football player personnel for the Warriors