Solomon Koehler, the 6-foot-2, 304-pound four-star defensive tackle from Castle High School in Kaneohe, Hawaii, has six scholarship offers but one school stands out above the rest.
Koehler said he now favors Arizona solidly over Hawaii, San Diego State and Oregon State and all four have offered, as well as Colorado and Toledo. "I'm still a little open, but I don't want to wait until the end to make a decision," Koehler said. "There's probably a 75-80 percent chance that I'm gonna choose them."
He took an official visit to Arizona on Nov. 17, the weekend of the Oregon game. "I love the atmosphere there," he said. "The team is like a family and I love all the defensive coaches. They have a great relationship with the players and are really tight knit. They don't get down on you and are there to help you and make you better."
Koehler, Scout.com's No. 6 defensive tackle, had an in-home visit from Wildcats defensive line coach Mike Tuiasosopo last week. "I liked how he talked about how hard I'd have to work to earn my spot and didn't promise anything," he said. "He seemed straight up with me and I thought that if he's being this honest when recruiting me, he'll probably be that honest with me when I'm on the team. I like that."
In addition to liking the coaches, Koehler says he thinks the Wildcats future is bright. "I think towards the end of this season the (Arizona) offense really started coming around and I think it's a good opportunity for me to come in and make an impact on the defense."
Despite Arizona's solid advantage, Koehler still plans to take an official visit to San Diego State on Dec. 14 and says the Aztec coaches were at his house last week. "I really like (offensive line) coach Jonathan Himebauch," he said. "He's been recruiting me since my junior year. I also know a few guys there already and they say how much they like it."
Growing up, Koehler says he followed in-state Hawaii closely. "It's always been my favorite team," he said. "They just always seem to have a good time and they are a great team. It's also a really exciting time for them now. You can sense all the excitement this year and this season they've really made a lot of fans. The school and football means a lot to the people of Hawaii, especially this year."
Another school where Koehler feels connected is Oregon State. "They're recruiting Hawaii a lot and I know some guys there too," he said. "They have a big Polynesian population there too."
Koehler says he can bench an impressive 435-pounds and squats 550. He also claims to run a 5.0 forty yard dash and has a 39-inch vertical jump. "I don't get pushed back on double teams and can hold down the line well," he said. "I play really aggressively and am tough. I play to represent my family and my school and that's important to me.
"I still need to work on my overall technique," he said. "All the little things like my hands, my feet...that's what I'm working on."
Castle High finished this season 3-6.
Koehler professes not to know his core GPA, but says he scored an 860 two-part SAT, which he is retaking on Jan. 26.