The Washington Huskies’ incoming freshman class is set to take a massive hit.
Adam Jude of the Seattle Times reported Thursday that five-star linebacker Ale Kaho, who was the highest-rated recruit ever landed by head coach Chris Petersen, has formally requested to be released from his NLI to Washington.
Jude notes in his report that Kaho, a native of Reno, Nev., is dealing with a number of personal issues — an aunt and an uncle died suddenly in July, his parents are going through a divorce, and family members have expressed concern about Kaho’s health after he reportedly lost 20 pounds recently.
“He had so much stuff going on right now,” an anonymous family member was quoted as saying. “Football is not even our concern right now. He does not look right. He does not act right. He’s not the same bubbly kid we know.”
Kaho, who is listed at 6-foot-1 and 218 pounds, is the top-rated inside linebacker recruit for the 2018 class, per 247Sports.
As for the Huskies, who were Pac-12 North co-champs last year and earned a Fiesta Bowl berth, they recently made a large commitment to their defense. For the time being though, they will be forced to turn to other players to make an impact on that side of the ball.
