Talking Playoffs and Recruiting with Oregon 2016 Safety Commitment Brady Breeze

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

Central Catholic High School in Portland is at it again in 2015. The Rams steamrolled through the 2014 season with one loss to California powerhouse St. John Bosco but sliced through all Oregon high school competition on the way to a 13-1 record and a second consecutive state title. The Rams lost their first two games of the 2015 season but are now 7-2 looking sharp heading into the first round of the playoffs with a date against McNary (7-6 – Keizer, OR) Friday night.

One of the staples of the team’s success over the last two gridiron campaigns has been safety/wide receiver/running back Brady Breeze. Breeze, listed at 6’0”, 195 pounds, has made himself available to head coach Steve Pyne however needed. In 2014 Breeze finished with eight receptions for 172 yards and six scores on offense. The Rams do not release stats in-season preferring to keep the focus on team play instead of individual numbers but Breeze already has 9-10 touchdowns and one pick on defense in two opportunities as the opposition continues to shy away from the Oregon Ducks 2016 safety verbal commit.

In a Recruiting News Guru exclusive interview, I caught up with Brady right after a Rams’ practice in preparation for McNary and a run at a third straight state title to find out how his regular season went, got a quick scouting report on McNary, and received a recruiting news update.

Interview

Brady, you guys face McNary tomorrow in the first game of the playoffs have you faced them over the last two years?

“No, we faced them two years ago (in the playoffs winning 62-7.”

How does the matchup look for you guys verses the Celtics Friday night?

“It should be sweet. They have a good quarterback. He’s a scrambler.”

What are the key things the Rams need to do on defense to shut down McNary’s offense?

“We need to make sure we contain their quarterback and keep him in the pocket. We need to make sure no one gets behind us. When the quarterback scrambles we can lose sight of the wide receivers along them to break long for a big play. Their receivers will sneak behind the secondary so we have to watch for that. We can’t give up the big play on a play where the quarterback should have been sacked.”

How has the 2015 season gone for you personally?

“It has gone pretty well. I’m not getting a lot of chances to make plays on defense. The teams are passing on the opposite side and running to the other side. I’ve done well on offense. I have nine or 10 touchdowns so far. I only have one interception but I’ve only had two chances. They throw away from me on every play. The other teams will line up in trips (three wide receivers to one side) and then run to the other side.”

I know you are a hard commit to Oregon but are other teams still making a run at you trying to flip you?

“UCLA definitely is. They’ve been sending me 3-4 letters every week, asking me to take a big visit down there to check them out. I thought about going but I want to stay solid with my commitment to Oregon. UCLA keeps coming at me even after turning down all the opportunities and even if I don’t respond.”

Are there any other schools besides UCLA still trying to work on you with recruiting?

“Washing State is probably the only other school. UCLA is hitting it hard. They picked me up in the summer with recruiting and they’ve been sending me letters ever since.”

I often do you go to Oregon for an unofficial visit?

“I go to every home game.”

Are you helping recruiting others to join you at Oregon?

“A little bit. I make sure I’m talking to the guys and try to get to the know them. I make sure they are having a good time.”

You have a lot of passion for your home state school, how do you talk to other recruits about Oregon so they have an insight to the program?

“I always bring up the facilities. I bring that up because other schools cannot compete with Oregon on facilities. I also let them know about the tradition at Oregon and how all the coaches are like family. The coaches treat all their players with respect. They go out of their way to make sure we are having a good time. They make sure to say hi and good bye. I just let the guys know they don’t have to worry about Oregon coaches being jerks if they come here to play ball.”

Photo credit: Brady Breeze; Brady at Oregon games.

Photo credit: ducksportsauthority.com; Brady with Oregon recruits pregame.