UW's Recruiting Class of '07 Already Taking Hits?

Everything was great back on Signing Day 2007. UW had it's best class in years, and certainly Ty Willingham's best class at UW. Many services had UW ranked in the top-30 in the country, including 29th at Scout.com and 4th out of 10 in the conference. But that was back in February. It's a whole different story in July.

UW is on the brink of losing two WR recruits for the 2007 season in Devin Aguilar and Anthony Boyles. Both players came in under the minimum requirement on their last round of ACT test scores, so they are likely out for this fall. Likely is the key word here, as both players are planning on retaking the test in mid-September, and should either player achieve a passing score, they could still enroll at UW.

However, as Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports, both players will likely redshirt, even if they do achieve their qualifying test score.

Aguilar was a bit of a sleeper in the 2007 class, a three-star recruit with decent speed (reportedly 4.45 in the 40), and was named the Colorado state player of the year while grabbing18 touchdowns. But Boyles was widely considered as the top overall recruit for Willingham's '07 class, and there were high hopes that he could come in and play immediately as a true freshman. Boyles himself mentioned in interviews leading up to signing day that he wasn't really interested in red-shirting and was looking for the opportunity to play immediately. That opportunity likely had a hand in Boyles choosing Washington over Oregon and Colorado among others.

So the bigger question for UW fans is where does this leave the WR depth chart? While news like this is never great, this actually might not be too big a hit for 2007. There is a lot of experience at the position, including five seniors that will all see significant action next year. Wide receivers like Corey Williams and Marcel Reece had really strong spring practices and look ready to have a strong finish to their careers. While it's a whole new world in NCAA football and frosh tend to play more and more these days, it's still hard to know what UW would get out of either player as a first-timer or even if they would have seen the field in more than garbage time situations.

Maybe in the end this could be a blessing for UW and for the players involved. Aguilar is already saying as much right now in the Seattle Times:

"This was a wake-up call," he said. "But I got it that I've got to get back on the books again and handle my business."

A larger issue to worry about is if either player doesn't actually qualify. Then they cannot enroll, and they could ultimately choose the JC football route. If that happens, then they are opened back up in the recruiting mix and are completely fair game for any program in America to stroll in and snatch them away. Stay tuned.

Previously on FanHouse:

Willingham Inks 27 for '07