Good article on Jake Locker deciding to stay for his Senior year.
I think having Sarkisian as his coach instead of Willingham for his Junior and Senior years will be a huge plus for him.
Many think he'll be the number one pick in next year's NFL draft.
http://www.omaha.com/article/20100429/SPORTS/704299736
Quarterback Jake Locker thrived in 2009 after Washington hired
Steve Sarkisian, the offensive coordinator at Southern Cal, as head
coach.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published Thursday April 29, 2010</span>
<h1 id="articleContainer">College Football: Locker passes on NFL</h1>
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SEATTLE â€" It was before the NFL draft, a night when some thought
that Jake Locker would become the No. 1 overall pick and sign a contract
worth something toward $50 million in guaranteed money.
His name
was called.
"Hey, Jake Locker!"Â someone shouted. But it was not
that of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, and Locker was not at New York's
Radio City Music Hall.
It was just a sunny spring day on the
campus of the University of Washington. Locker was on his way to Smith
Hall for History 212: Military History of the United States. The voice
belonged to a fan asking to take a picture with the strapping star
quarterback.
When the draft began last week, Locker was finishing another spring
practice with the Huskies. He planned to watch and listen for his name
not to be called.
Just who does Jake Locker think he is? What kind
of 21-year-old turns down millions of dollars to sit through another
lecture on battle formations during the Civil War, to live with two
buddies in a well-worn bungalow, to sleep in a bunk bed in a room shared
with the dog bowl, to sweat through months of preparation and risk his
professional career for a team that went 5-7 last season?
"Don't
get me wrong,"Â Locker said. "I really look forward to the NFL. But it's
not going anywhere. You can never go back and play college football."Â
So,
with simple reasoning and a stiff-arm to presumptions, Locker will
return for his senior year and try to lead the rebuilding Huskies to
respectability. One of those steps will be a Sept. 18 home game with
Nebraska, a team that finished 10-4 last season and pounded the Pac-10
Conference's Arizona Wildcats 33-0 in the Holiday Bowl last December.
He
will take his chances in next year's draft and hope he does not need
the insurance policy he has that will pay him millions if he has a
career-ending injury with the Huskies.
"Let's just say I wouldn't
have to worry about anything for the rest of my life,"Â Locker said,
declining to disclose the possible payout.
Carefree and
strong-armed, Locker is doing what he wants to be doing, ignoring those
who second-guessed his decision the moment he made it.
"I know
exactly why I didn't go to the NFL,"Â Locker said. "So it doesn't bother
me."Â
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Locker's style is often compared by
old-school observers to that of the fleet-footed Hall of Fame
quarterback Steve Young. A more contemporary comparison is to Florida's
Tim Tebow, who was selected by the Denver Broncos in the first round of
last week's NFL draft, but Locker has more speed and a superior right
arm. Someone in between, like Donovan McNabb, might be more apt.
Locker
had until Jan. 15 to declare for the draft. But more than a month
earlier, he drove his Chevy pickup to the football offices and ambled
into coach Steve Sarkisian's office. Offensive coordinator Doug
Nussmeier was there, too.
Glad you're both here, Locker said. He
wore his off-field uniform of jeans and a cap, and held his chocolate
Lab, Ten (for Locker's uniform number), on a leash. I'm staying, he
said.
"It was shocking, just the way he did it,"Â Nussmeier said.
"But that's Jake."Â
Sarkisian was ecstatic.
"Forget four- or
five-star recruits,"Â he said at the time. "We got a 10-star recruit
today."Â
Others were thrilled, if not floored, by Locker's quick
decision, too. Fans will have their favorite player to cheer. There was
an immediate spike in season-ticket requests. The marketing department
is working up a Heisman Trophy campaign.
"I had a smile from ear
to ear,"Â Athletic Director Scott Woodward said. "I wasn't surprised, but
I was very excited."Â
Locker has long had that effect in
Washington. He grew up in Ferndale, a town of about 11,000 north of
Seattle near the Canadian border. He led Ferndale High to the Class 3A
state championship in 2005. He threw 27 touchdown passes (and three
interceptions) and rushed for 24 touchdowns as a senior.
He was
the top recruit during former coach Ty Willingham's four seasons at
Washington. The university began selling No. 10 jerseys before Locker
arrived, and they instantly became the most popular. When Locker made
his debut, as a redshirt freshman in a game at Syracuse in 2007, some
fans who trekked there wore shirts that read, "Jake 3:16."Â Locker
completed 14 of 19 passes for 142 yards. He scored two touchdowns and
rushed for 89 yards. The Locker Era opened with a 42-12 victory.
Locker
hurt his thumb four games into the 2008 season. The Huskies went 0-12,
and Willingham was fired before the season ended. Last June, Locker was
drafted by baseball's Los Angeles Angels in the 10th round. He signed a
contract worth about $250,000, he said, that gives the Angels his
baseball-playing rights for six years, and there is some debate about
his obligation to play minor league ball this summer.
But Locker,
especially after last season, sees baseball as a fall-back option.
Football, no doubt, is the priority.
Washington hired Sarkisian,
the offensive coordinator at the University of Southern California, to
replace Willingham. Locker thrived.
Working mostly from under
center rather than the shotgun, he completed 58 percent of his passes
for 2,800 yards, with 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
He also
rushed for 388 yards and seven touchdowns. In September, he led the
Huskies past No. 3 Southern California with a dazzling game-winning
drive.
By the time of the season finale, Locker was being
projected atop the NFL draft boards. Washington beat ranked California,
42-10, as Locker completed 19 of 23 passes for 248 yards and three
touchdown passes. He ran for two scores.
Fans chanted "One more
year."Â Locker answered their prayer.
"I got to the point where I
put the money and all that stuff aside and said, ‘In 20 or 30 years,
what will I wish I did?'"Â Locker explained over a burger and a couple of
microbrews at The Ram, his favorite hangout near campus. "I always
would have wondered what we could have done my final year."Â
Nothing
gets Locker animated more than talking about growing up. Locker's
father, Scott, is a former football player at Western Washington (as are
three uncles) and earns a living as a drywall finisher. Locker's
mother, Anita, is an office manager for a plumbing company. Locker and
his two younger sisters grew up near grandparents, aunts, uncles and
cousins. Locker has no doubt he will live there again someday.
The
NFL draft will wait, although many have already penciled in Locker as
the first pick in 2011.
Sarkisian believes Locker will be much
better prepared for the NFL a year from now â€" better mechanically and
wiser in terms of understanding offenses and dissecting defenses.
"I
think they'll say, ‘This kid made a great decision,'" Sarkisian said.
Locker
has more immediate concerns.
"I think this team has a chance to
go to a bowl game,"Â Locker said. "It's up to us."Â
Edited by: Highlander 
