Knights at the top for Washington

UCF is already No. 1 on the list for one of Orlando's top juniors.

Devin Washington of Jones High School has been a regular visitor to campus the last few months. The 6-foot-3 defensive end has attended both home games, several practices and was even at Fan Day.

"UCF is probably the first school that contacted me," Washington said. "I really like the school. I've got a good relationship with Coach (Sean) Beckton and Coach (David) Kelly. They're recruiting me the hardest of all the schools."

Washington, who attended East River as a sophomore, plays a little bit of tight end in addition to defensive end. He recorded 43 tackles, 9.5 sacks and seven tackles for loss a year ago.

"I think my best skill is my motor," Washington said. "I never give up. I play first quarter to fourth quarter and to the last whistle. I'm real good in pass rushing and third down situations."

The letters are now flooding in.

"Recruiting is starting to ramp up pretty fast since Sept. 1 hit," Washington said. "I'm getting a bunch of letters from schools like UF, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Miami, FSU, Utah and NC State just to name a few. The recruiting process is going real good, especially at UCF. I like it over there."

UCF hasn't offered quite yet, but it's been indicated he's very high on their board for the Class of 2013.

"They're probably the only school that's stuck with defensive end for me," Washington said. "They haven't told me they'd change me (to linebacker) and I like that a lot. They told me I could play defensive end if I went there. That's good to hear."

Washington says he really enjoyed being in attendance for UCF's 30-3 win against Boston College.

"I really liked it," Washington said. "They've got a real good defense. It seems like they all play fast and play with intensity. I like the way they play as a team. They looked real good. I was real impressed with the defensive line. You can tell they've all got real good motors and they play football to their full potential. I went to some of their practices. They work real hard out there and it shows on the field.

"I loved the atmosphere too. The fans are real rowdy and wild. It gets you into the game. I really like the atmosphere. It was all good."

Washington is already good friends with UCF wide receiver Quincy McDuffie.

"I've visited their dorms and that's helped out a lot, being able to see the campus," Washington said. "I love the academics at UCF. My first priority when I choose a college is academics and I love the campus atmosphere. I live like 10 minutes away so that's good. I usually drive around there a lot. I like the scenery and everything. The campus is real nice out there."

He'll take a closer look at Florida State this Saturday when he goes up to Tallahassee to watch their big game against Oklahoma. He also plans to attend the Florida-Alabama game in Gainesville on Oct. 1.

Early favorites?

"I really like UCF," Washington said. "They're first pretty much. I like FSU a lot. UF is real good. Hopefully I hear from Stanford. Once again, academics are first for me. I like Miami and USF. That's pretty much my tops right now."

"The most important factors to me are going to be the atmosphere and playing time. I just want to go somewhere that's right for my family. Once again, academics. I really want to major in medical administration. Hopefully they've got a good program there. I heard UCF does. That's another good thing."

Jones is 0-2 so far, but Washington says things are beginning to come together with such a young team. They play Gainesville-Eastside this Friday.