William Buzzard, W.F. West offensive lineman, follows in All-American father's footsteps, commits to Eastern Washington Eagles

It's rare for rising high school football prospects to commit to FCS programs in the spring of their junior years.

But in the case of W.F. West High School (Washington) offensive lineman William Buzzard, his commitment to Eastern Washington on Wednesday was anything but surprising:

His father, Jim Buzzard, was a first-team All-American right tackle at Eastern Washington in 1997, and as a youngster, William grew up with wardrobe full of Eagles gear.

So, when a recent rise in his recruiting stock led to an offer from Eastern Washington, his commitment seemed inevitable. 

“Through this last few months of camps, I’ve gained a lot of momentum and they gave me an offer," Buzzard said. "It was a dream school, so it couldn’t get much better in my mind. They are a perennial FCS national title contender.”

Turns out, Jim felt similarly.

"(I'm) on cloud-nine right now,” he said. “It’s an excuse to go over to the other side of the mountain. I’m already looking at season tickets.”

 Buzzard took a visit to Cheney recently, and that proved to be the final piece of evidence he needed to know Eastern Washington was going to be his future home. 

“The culture and listening to the coaches and players interact with each other, everyone seems like a go-getter," he said. "You can just tell. It’s different than other schools. It’s very different at Eastern. It’s something special.”

The 6-foot-3, 241-pound two-way lineman plays tackle at the high school level, but is planning to attend EWU as a versatile offensive lineman who could develop into a contributor at any of the five spots up front.

“I play tackle now, but who knows? I might end up playing guard or center," Buzzard said. "My dad played right tackle in college and actually grew half an inch in college, so I may still have a growth spurt coming. I'm actually still growing now." 

Having blossomed into a college football prospect, Buzzard is following in his father's footsteps.

Just as he'd always dreamed.