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Sam Merrill, a rising junior out of Bountiful High, received his first official offer on Monday from Utah State.
And while the shooting guard is certainly good enough to garner more recruiting attention, his particular recruitment may not last long.
Merrill, when reached by the Tribune on Tuesday, described Utah State as a program he "has been a fan of" for as long as he can remember.
His sister Molly played soccer for the Aggie, and Merrill gushed when talking about his offer.
"I'm pretty close to committing, to be honest," Merrill said. "It would be unreal. I mean, the Spectrum is one of the best places to play in the whole country."
Merrill is 6-foot-4, athletic, and a good shooter. Those in the know have described him as a more athletic version of Tyler Newbold, who spent four years as USU's starting shooting guard.
"Sam does a little bit of everything," said Peter Harrison, one of Merrill's AAU coaches at Utah Hoops. "He defends, he rebounds, he can shoot and he can really handle the ball. He serves as out back-up point guard. He has a baby-face, but he's a killer on the court. He will do anything it takes to win a game."
Merrill plans on serving an LDS Church Mission after playing his freshman season, wherever that may be. If he were to commit to USU, he would be a part of what is expected to be a recruiting class large in numbers.
For the class of 2014, Utah State has also offered Brekkott Chapman, a 6-8 junior out of Roy High, and Dalton Nixon, a 6-7 wing forward from Orem.
Tony Jones