
A photo of Zerek Sidney holding up an advance newspaper copy of him winning a 2024 Arizona 5A state championship has pretty much defined his football career over the past 14 months.
In 2025, the 4-star recruit was injured and limited to four games and 11 catches for 111 yards and a touchdown for Desert Edge High School in the Phoenix suburbs.
The headlines were few and far behind.
On Thursday, however, the 6-foot, 175-pound wide receiver was making news again when he chose the University of Washington over Oklahoma and Arizona State as his college destination.
It took a while with Sidney first unable to get his YouTube connection to work with 247Sports' Brandon Huffman, but after a long delay he made his announcement.
Sidney became the third Class of 2027 commitment for Jedd Fisch's staff, joining Sumner High School's Braylon Pope and Graham Kapowsin's Maurice Williams, all wide receivers.
He initially picked up an offer from Fisch and his coaches such as receivers coach Kevin Cummings when they were at Arizona.
"It felt like the perfect fit," Sidney said on his YouTube moment.
Goodyear (Ariz.) Desert Edge four-star receiver Zerek Sidney will announce his college commitment this week, live on the CBS Sports College Football YouTube channel. Arizona State, Oklahoma and Washington are the final three: https://t.co/spzTa3UmRV pic.twitter.com/hNgkRkxsHF
— Blair Angulo (@BlairAngulo) January 26, 2026
Sidney drew all everyone's attention after a highly productive sophomore season in which he caught 45 passes for 591 yards and 11 touchdowns over a dozen games.
He was a big reason that Desert Edge overcame a 6-4 start to run the table with four consecutive playoff victories and claim the 5A Arizona state championship in 2024.
The Huskies extended him a scholarship offer and arrangements were made to have him lanned to him visit on the weekend they faced Ohio State in Montlake.
Oklahoma got him to Norman that fall and the Sooners came on strong down the stretch. The Sooners had a pledge from Sidney’s high school teammate, three-star cornerback Mikyal Davis.
Sidney plays for one of the top high school football programs in Arizona. Last season, Desert Edge went 11-1 and finished as the No. 9 team in the state, per the Rivals Composite Rankings. The Scorpions’ 2025 roster featured eight ranked prospects.
Notre Dame and USC previously were finalists for the blue-chip pass-catcher. Sidney broke down his interest in what were his final three with Rivals' Adam Gorney.
On the Huskies, he said, “The U-Dub staff was the first to offer me, remained consistent and they play freshmen.”
Of his home state Arizona State, he said, “ASU would be a good look for my development and being the hometown kid could bring a lot of attention to my high school.”
On the Sooners, he offered, “Oklahoma’s goal for me to play inside and out and early is exciting, not to mention it’s in the SEC.”
Yet now the new headline will say that he's headed for Seattle and the Huskies.
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