'10 CA S Dietrich Riley (Official Offer)

[GoRU]

'10 CA S Dietrich Riley



Safety
La Canada (CA)

Ht: 6-foot-1
Wt: 180 lbs
Forty: 4.57 secs
Class: 2010 (High School)

Football: Sophomore Dietrich Riley picks up first offer -- and it's from USC | Varsity Times Insider | Los Angeles Times

Dietrich Riley of La Canada St. Francis is one of the premier athletes in the Southland. Don't believe me? Ask USC coach Pete Carroll, who on Saturday offered Riley a scholarship.

"USC recruits athletes and that's about all I can say about Riley," said St. Francis coach Jim Bonds, who on Monday night confirmed the offer. "He's an athlete."

Riley is a special of speed and power. He finished last season with 840 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 124 carries and had 48 tackles, two sacks and one interception. He played running back, wide receiver, defensive back and even lined up at quarterback.

According to his profile on Scout, Riley is being looked at by all the big dogs-- Texas, Notre Dame, Florida and USC are all interested-- but USC is the first one to make an offer. Usually kids have offers from other schools before the Trojans get in the mix, but USC made a rare exception for the 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore. Riley hasn't said yes yet, but more on that later.

“For USC to be the first offer the kid gets, that’s saying something," Bonds said. Yeah, it says he's freaking awesome. Which, I told you so back in September.

Bonds said Riley, pictured, impressed the Trojans' coaching staff on Saturday during a camp held on the USC campus. Riley lined up at corner back and didn't allow a catch during one-on-one drills.

"He was unbelievable from what I hear," said Bonds, who was not present at the camp.

A person who was at the camp told me Riley was truly spectacular. His athleticism and strength had the coaches drooling all over the place. After the camp was over, Riley was taken to Carroll's office and received an offer. According to the fan site WeAreSC.com, Gardena JSerra wide receiver Robert Woods, a sophomore as well, also got an offer on Saturday.

"Dietrich is super excited," said Bonds about Riley, who seems to be looking to remain in the area. “He's already told me he would like to pick between USC and UCLA."

It's amazing Riley didn't say yes right on the spot, but Bonds said Riley doesn't want to rush his decision. "He doesn't want to make any decisions before, at least, this season is over."

[GoRU]

ESPN - West Recruiting Blog

2010 ESPNU 150 Watch List member Dietrich Riley (La Canada, Calif./St. Francis) picked up two early offers but look for that total to rise dramatically in the coming weeks.

Riley, one of the most versatile players in the state, camped at two schools last summer and both offered scholarships. Riley first attended the USC Rising Stars camp and was offered a few days later as a defensive back.

Riley then camped with UCLA and was offered as an athlete. At 6-2, 195 pounds, Riley plays safety and running back but according to St. Francis coach Jim Bonds, he could move to linebacker in college.

"He has a big frame and is only going to get bigger," Bonds said. "He's our most physical player and was probably our most physical player last year as a sophomore. He loves to come up and hit so I think playing weak side 'backer might be ideal for him.

"He loves running back too and honestly, he really doesn't care where he plays. At the USC camp, they worked him out a lot at corner and Pete Carroll told me he thinks he could play there because of how athletic he is and he loves those big corners."

Bonds said every Pac 10 school along with several national programs have Riley high on their list and he hasn't even gotten his junior film out yet.

"That's the crazy part," Bonds said. "He's going to explode when the colleges see the tape. Notre Dame was here last Friday, watched three plays and said they had seen enough and were going to go on him.

"Arizona is coming by today and Rick (Neuheisal) was already here this morning. Even though they already offered, Rick just wanted to make sure they were still in it and wanted Dietrich to know how bad they want him."

Coach Neuheisal was Bonds' quarterback coach at UCLA back in the late 80s and the two have a close friendship.

"He graduated in '83 so he's only a few years older than me," Bonds said. "So when he was my quarterback coach, we got along real well because there wasn't much of an age difference.

"Still, that won't play a role in what Dietrich does. I'm not going to push a player anywhere and will always let them make their own decision. Right now, he's open to anyone. He comes from a single family home, just him and his mom so he may want to stay local but I think if a school like Notre Dame, Florida or LSU were to get involved, he would definitely look at them."