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300-pound defensive tackle joins teammates in commiting to Arizona

Rich Rodriguez has done his share of celebrating this weekend with five commitments. Photo by J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Rich Rodriguez has done his share of celebrating this weekend with five commitments. Photo by J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Wildcats entered Sunday morning with a Pac-12 high 18 commitments, but none from a high school defensive tackle, an area of need.

That changed when 300-pounder Sharif Williams joined a pair of teammates from Central East High in Fresno, Calif. — running back Nick Wilson and safety Devon Brewer — in pledging to be a Wildcat.

Arizona fans won’t have to wait long to see them in action. ESPN2 will broadcast Central’s season-opener at Valor Christian of Highland Ranch, Colo., on Aug. 24.

Arizona was the first school to offer a scholarship to Williams this spring. The three-star recruit also picked up reported offers from Fresno State, San Diego State, Houston, San Jose State and Nevada, with SDSU liking him for the offensive line.

You can watch his junior-year highlights at hudl.com.

Williams is the fifth player to commit to Arizona on or immediately after the program’s red-carpet event to showcase its new Lowell-Stevens Football Facility to about 35 recruits this weekend. Stay tuned for more.

As the Wildcats round out their class, they will need linebackers and offensive linemen.

Here are the players Arizona has in its 2014 class, with rankings from the major recruiting services:

Player Pos. Ht. Wt. School 247 Rivals Scout
Devon Brewer S 6-0 175 Central East, Fresno, Calif. 2 3 3
Rodney Carr DB 6-0 185 Salesian High, Los Angeles 4 3 3
Darrell Cloy TE 6-3 220 La Habra (Calif.) High 3 3 3
Jerod Cody DE 6-3 265 Glendale (Ariz.) Community College 3 NR 2
Brandon Dawkins QB 6-3 205 Oaks Christian, Thousand Oaks, Calif. 3 3 3
Cameron Denson WR 6-1 170 Salpointe Catholic, Tucson 4 4 4
Tony Ellison WR 5-11 170 Granite Bay (Calif.) High 3 2 2
Patrick Glover CB 6-1 181 Scottsdale C.C. NR NR 2
Jonathan Haden RB 5-8 189 Friendship Collegiate Academy, Washington D.C. 3 3 3
Naijiel Hale CB 5-11 170 St. John Bosco High, Bellflower, Calif. 4 3 4
J.R. Hunt S 6-3 190 Chandler High 3 3 3
Kaige Lawrence OL 6-4 290 Chaffey C.C., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. 3 3 2
Kwesi Mashack CB 5-10 190 Murrieta High, Vista, Calif. 3 NR 3
Jordan Morgan WR 6-2 200 Southridge High, Beaverton, Ore. 3 2 3
Josh Pollack P/K 5-11 165 Highland Park (Ill.) High NR 2 3
Jace Whittaker DB 5-9 150 Oceanside (Calif.) High 2 3 2
Sharif Williams DT 6-2 300 Central East, Fresno, Calif. 3 NR 3
Nick Wilson RB 6-0 191 Central East, Fresno, Calif. 4 4 4
Trevor Wood TE 6-5 235 Chaparral High, Scottsdale 3 3 3
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