High School Sports
UW hopes big fish can lure followers

By Greg Bishop and Matt Peterson
Seattle Times staff reporters

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Lorenzo Romar clings to the vision, one where every local blue-chip player sees his options through purple-colored glasses, where the Washington men's basketball program no longer has to answer for the ones that got away.

One player.

Sometimes, that's all it takes to turn mediocre into magnificent. Hook a big fish and the others follow.

One class.

Much like the local class of 2005, a group of six blue-chip prospects who live within 40 miles of the Washington campus. Hook just one big fish, and change the culture.

One word.

Sometimes, that's all it takes to change the meaning of the question.

Once: "Why Washington?"

One player later: "Why not Washington?"
 
"We can get accomplished in Seattle what anyone else can accomplish around the country," Romar said. "It just takes a few kids to believe in that and join in what we're doing."

All true, sure, but two questions linger. Is it realistic to expect Washington to fight off powerhouses for local blue-chip talent? And, more important, can Romar do it?

Martell Webster, Jon Brockman and Mitch Johnson, a trio of coveted recruits, are intrigued by the possibility. Look at their lists — Duke, North Carolina, Maryland, Arizona, Oklahoma, Stanford, UCLA. And UW.

According to Johnson, UCLA and Washington are looking into a package deal. "If that worked out (at UW) that would be a great thing for us and the city," he said.

Jim Marsh, who coaches the trio on the Friends of Hoop AAU team, has visions of his own. He has known Romar for years. And like several recruiting analysts, Marsh says that if anybody can tug UW out of mediocrity, it's Romar.

"If he gets the right kids every year, you won't find a seat in that house," Marsh said. "If he gets two or three kids in this class, it starts now. It's going to be two days of students out waiting for tickets and Romar will be serving donuts to them in line."

If. Big ifs. What ifs.

It hasn't worked out well so far. From Quin Snyder (Mercer Island, class of 1985) to Marvin Williams (Bremerton, 2004), many blue chips have chosen to go elsewhere.

That doesn't mean that local players always leave, just the vast majority of blue chips. Ten of 17 players on the current roster are from this state.

Last season's late spurt may be a sign that things are looking up, but at least some in the coveted 2005 class aren't convinced.

First case in point: Rainier Beach guard Terrence Williams, who last month committed to Louisville: "They say, 'We're going to be this. We're going to be that.' You don't want to wait for when you're going to be this or when you're going to be that. OK, they had half a good season. Good. You just have to watch and see."

Second case in point: Bothell forward Micah Downs, who committed to Kansas in May: "They were (a factor). But then these bigger schools started coming in and that kind of bumped them off a little bit."

Of the six blue chips, three are headed elsewhere. The above two already gave oral commitments, while Roosevelt guard Marcus Williams said he wants to play out of state.

Ed Pepple, the winningest high-school coach in state history, sent numerous players to Washington. He sees the potential. He also sees the pitfalls.

"If these kids from Washington are being recruited by the normal D-I schools, that would be one thing," he said. "But we're talking Kansas, Duke, North Carolina, Arizona. Those (schools) have figured it out — they come up here and recruit the heck out of the best ones."

In two seasons, Romar has been successful in changing the perception of the program. And landing an NCAA tournament bid for the first time since 1999 in his second season didn't hurt.

Recruits are taking a second look. Or a second chance. Stanwood graduate Ryan Appleby returned to UW, for instance, after trying one season at Florida.

"Remember, Romar wasn't there when UW was losing those guys," said Dave Telep, a recruiting analyst for TheInsiders network. "This will be a real big litmus test for Washington. There's a ton of talent in that city. It's time to lock some of those guys up."

Romar's trying. But, at this point in the development of his program, is it realistic?

Depends on who you talk to. Marsh thinks so, along with the recruits that still have the Huskies on their respective radar screens.

Former assistant coach Al Hairston, who worked under Bob Bender, doesn't think so.

"The challenge at the UW is to build a program to the point where you have national recognition, and then you can start recruiting nationally," he said. "Right now, they have to recruit regionally.

"When they start winning, when they start playing for Final Fours, when they start playing for national championships, yeah, all of a sudden kids are interested. It's all tied to success."

Romar answered the question with an analogy that fell somewhere between yes and no. He first compared Washington to a start-up business and later to new television programming.

"When I was younger, every fall, I remember looking forward to what new sitcoms came out," Romar said. "You had your 'Andy Griffith Show', your 'Gilligan's Island' — your regulars that came on. The new sitcoms, sometimes they took a while to catch on because you're used to the old ones. Maybe we're kind of new and it will take time to catch on. But I feel the word is spreading."

One player. One class. One word.

Can he do it?

"I have a passion for us to do well," Romar said. "If kids could somehow believe the vision that we have for this program, they wouldn't hesitate. They'd be here. Because we believe it's going to be pretty special."