I spoke with Easton Mascarenas last season about Arizona's interest in him and obviously a lot has changed since that time. The Wildcats had not offered him when I spoke with the junior linebacker from Orange County, but now they have. On Monday the Wildcats decided to jump in with the impressive middle linebacker from Mission Viejo High School – the alma mater of both Colin and Brenden Schooler. There's no prospect who I watched for the first time last season who impressed more more than Mascarenas. He was active, aggressive and controlled the field which are all things you want to see from a linebacker at any level.
He had an injury during his sophomore year that halted his recruitment for quite some time – especially in the spring evaluation period last year – so he had to prove to coaches what he is capable of during his junior season. The 6-foot-1 recruit was certainly impressive and he has gained plenty of attention and offers from programs across the country.
Mascarenas has some interesting ties to UA through his family as his mom, Toni, is one of the most accomplished softball players in Wildcats' history while his cousin, Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza, has been a key player for the UA softball team over the last several years. Another connection he has is that his older brother, Akili Arnold, is a defensive back at Oregon State and that could ultimately play a big part in the recruiting process for the standout linebacker.
When I watched him early in the 2019 season he finished the game with 11 tackles and looked like the most talented player on the field in a game that featured a number of impressive prospects.
"I'm just trying to show them just a good linebacker and that I can go to the ball," he said. "And, that my injury is not gonna stop me."
He is listed as an outside linebacker but he played inside during his junior year. He's got OK size for the position but he plays bigger than what he is and he could eventually play any number of linebacker spots at the next level. As Arizona continues to look for options to eventually replace Colin Schooler, Tony Fields II and Anthony Pandy after this season, the Southern California linebacker would be an intriguing option and he is someone I would certainly put a lot of effort into bringing to UA.
The issue is going to be the competition. It was clear to me when speaking with him that Arizona's previous staff wasn't putting too much emphasis into his recruitment so he wasn't as overly excited about the program as you would expect from someone with ties to the school. Oregon State is going to be a hurdle UA has to get over, but he also has plenty of interest in Washington, Notre Dame and Colorado are also going to factor into the equation as well.
I've seen a lot of prospects over the years so I feel confident saying he is going to be an impact player at the next level and I see in him a lot of the things I saw in both Schooler and Fields at the same age. To me it's a no-brainer type of offer and one the new UA staff had to make.
He had an injury during his sophomore year that halted his recruitment for quite some time – especially in the spring evaluation period last year – so he had to prove to coaches what he is capable of during his junior season. The 6-foot-1 recruit was certainly impressive and he has gained plenty of attention and offers from programs across the country.
Mascarenas has some interesting ties to UA through his family as his mom, Toni, is one of the most accomplished softball players in Wildcats' history while his cousin, Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza, has been a key player for the UA softball team over the last several years. Another connection he has is that his older brother, Akili Arnold, is a defensive back at Oregon State and that could ultimately play a big part in the recruiting process for the standout linebacker.
When I watched him early in the 2019 season he finished the game with 11 tackles and looked like the most talented player on the field in a game that featured a number of impressive prospects.
"I'm just trying to show them just a good linebacker and that I can go to the ball," he said. "And, that my injury is not gonna stop me."
He is listed as an outside linebacker but he played inside during his junior year. He's got OK size for the position but he plays bigger than what he is and he could eventually play any number of linebacker spots at the next level. As Arizona continues to look for options to eventually replace Colin Schooler, Tony Fields II and Anthony Pandy after this season, the Southern California linebacker would be an intriguing option and he is someone I would certainly put a lot of effort into bringing to UA.
The issue is going to be the competition. It was clear to me when speaking with him that Arizona's previous staff wasn't putting too much emphasis into his recruitment so he wasn't as overly excited about the program as you would expect from someone with ties to the school. Oregon State is going to be a hurdle UA has to get over, but he also has plenty of interest in Washington, Notre Dame and Colorado are also going to factor into the equation as well.
I've seen a lot of prospects over the years so I feel confident saying he is going to be an impact player at the next level and I see in him a lot of the things I saw in both Schooler and Fields at the same age. To me it's a no-brainer type of offer and one the new UA staff had to make.
