HOLLADAY — In late January, Olympus then-junior Cameron Latu took a trip to visit the University of Alabama and found himself standing next to Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban.
The defensive end/outside linebacker didn’t hold a scholarship offer from the Crimson Tide, but had become one of the hotter names in the country over the previous few weeks after decommitting from BYU and performing well at the U.S. Army All-America Combine in Texas.
Latu left Tuscaloosa with an offer, and has visited the campus two more times since then. On Friday, in a ceremony at Olympus High, he announced his commitment to the program. He was also considering Utah, USC, Washington and Nebraska, with the Utes being the primary challenger.
“The fact that I’ve been over there three times, I just felt really good with the (outside linebackers) coach there, Tosh Lupoi,” Latu said, noting that being coached by Lupoi was perhaps even a bigger draw than the program’s prestige. “I just felt like he’ll develop me into a great player, and I think that me being over there gave me my dream come true, and I think it’s a great fit for me.”
Although other schools will surely still try to sway the 6-foot-5, 234-pound Latu, who is a consensus top-160 prospect in the nation, he feels relieved to have committed after a process that has seen him receive 23 scholarship offers, mostly from Power 5 schools.
“It’s just a crazy experience, and I just feel like me committing is just all these burdens off my shoulders,” he said. “I feel like I can focus on my senior year, focus on my classes and big upcoming football season.”
A DE/OLB hybrid, Latu told the Deseret News that the plan is for him to play outside linebacker for the Crimson Tide.