Achayo commits to SDSU
With one weekend recruiting visit available heading into the dead period, three-star Derrick Achayo had pressure coming at him from every direction last week.
The 6-foot-4, 280-pound offensive tackle just finished up an official visit to Cincinnati and schools like Boise State, Purdue, San Diego State and Southern Mississippi were all vying to bring him in for a visit of their own this past weekend.
Junior college signing day, which is this Wednesday, was on the horizon and Achayo initially began to lean toward a Boise St. visit. He was still in the process of weighing his options, however.
Then he spoke with SDSU recruiting coordinator Tony White over the phone last Sunday, asking the Aztecs cornerbacks coach if he could have until Wednesday night to decide on which school he would use his final visit on.
White's response: Take your time. It's a big decision and you can let us know by Thursday night.
"When Coach White actually gave me until Thursday to decide that meant a lot because not a lot of coaches have that kind of patience," said Achayo. "Coach White basically said that my plane ticket was ready for me if I wanted it and everything else was waiting for me. The recruiting process was a little crazy and that helped calm me down."
To help their chances, SDSU linebackers coach Zach Arnett then cancelled one of his flights and made a detour to visit Achayo at his home on Wednesday.
"I was talking to my coach here at Sierra and he was telling me how [San Diego State] really, really wanted me and that attracted me a lot," Achayo said. "And then for Coach Arnett to change his morning flight and come meet my mom was important because whichever school I was going to, she wanted to meet one of the coaches first."
By the end of the in home visit, Achayo had his bags packed for San Diego. He returned back home on Sunday committed to the Aztecs.
"I'm signing there this week and I'm happy because I loved it out there. I loved everything, to be honest," he said. "The city is amazing. And just meeting the players and seeing how they talk about the program is exciting. My favorite part was seeing the whole city, meeting the players and watching the highlight tapes. Everybody there plays like dogs on offense and on defense. I would love to be in the midst of that and be like a hungry dog."
Achayo also came away excited about the coaching staff's vision for him as a lineman in the program.
"Coach [Mike] Schmidt said they love my athleticism and said I'm a very versatile player," he said. "They will teach me all the positions and they think I can be a great player at any of the spots. Basically, they want to use my athleticism to help the program wherever that may be. I'm willing to learn anything that will help the team. I look at myself as a tackle because that's all I've been playing but if they move me I'm willing to do it."
The Rocklin (Calif.) Sierra College standout was hosted by his former teammate, Sierra alum Austin Wyatt-Thayer - currently a linebacker for the Aztecs.
Thayer may have discreetly played the biggest role in Achayo's commitment to SDSU:
"I remember when he was here at Sierra he made plays just on natural ability and relied on his instincts. But when he came out to SDSU, he said they kicked his a** because he wasn't really looking forward to lifting and stuff like that. The strength coach, Coach [Adam] Hall, helped him realize that he wants to be better and now he's working hard to be better.
"He said that when he first came to San Diego, he didn't even look like a football player. But now he has a drive that I know he didn't have at Sierra and I think the coaches were a big reason for that. It's crazy because he kept telling me, 'I want to be get better, I want to be a real football player' and that's what this school and the coaches were doing for him.
"I'm not accustomed to Austin Thayer saying things like that so it was very good to hear."
People that know Achayo's background know he won't need any time to learn how to be self-driven. The Kenyan added 40 pounds to his body during his freshman season at Sierra, reaching as high as 280 lbs at one point.
That's an impressive spike considering he played the offensive tackle position at as high as 230 during his high school days. It's even more impressive when he shows natural athleticism on his JuCo film despite having much more weight to carry around.
"Gaining all that weight, that was just me by myself. I was eating right and working hard to get bigger and stronger," Achayo said. "So I'm really looking forward to having a college strength coach, a nutritionist and all the help I need. And because of that my goal is even higher and I want to get in the 295-300 range, and to have it all nice and clean - not just fat."
The more lean and mean, the better, according to Achayo, adding that he looks forward to all the challenges and demands he'll face at San Diego State. On Wednesday, when he signs with the school, he'll know exactly what he's getting himself into and he couldn't be happier about it.
"I did a lot of research on the program before I got there," Achayo said. "I knew they had a pro-style offense and I also liked how they are known for being tough and physical because they work so hard behind the scenes. Everyone there talked about how the program is run and I loved it."