The Bay Area has been kind to Washington during the 2025 recruiting cycle. Now, the Huskies have landed one of the top prospects in the region and one of the highest-rated recruits in northern California.
Four-star wide receiver Chris Lawson out of Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco committed to Washington on Sunday. He’s the third-highest rated recruit in UW’s 2025 recruiting class according to the 247Sports composite rankings and the 21st high school player to announce a public commitment to Washington and coach Jedd Fisch.
The Huskies currently have the No. 21 recruiting class in the country following Lawson’s commitment.
Lawson, listed at 6-foot-1, 175 pounds, chose Washington out of a final three that also included Oregon and California. He also held offers from Arkansas, Auburn, BYU, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oregon State, Penn State, UCLA, USC, Utah and Washington State among others. He took an official visit to UW on May 31.
The Bay Area native is considered the No. 23 player in California and the No. 32 wide receiver in the country, according to 247Sports composite rankings. Lawson is the No. 247 player in the country.
Only Spanaway linebacker Zaydrius Rainey-Sale and Southern California tight end Vander Ploog are rated higher than Lawson among UW’s current commitments. Greg Biggins, 247Sports national recruiting analyst, wrote Lawson “has been one of the top players in the NorCal region since his freshman year.”
“Shows plenty of burst and explosiveness after the catch and can routinely take a short hitch or slant, make multiple defenders miss and take it to the house,” Biggins wrote in his evaluation on June 4. “Can stop and start on a dime and change direction without having to gear down or lose much top end speed. Is natural catching the football and doesn’t need to slow down or fight it which allows him to quickly get up the field.”
“Has the speed to outrun a defense and had an impressive track season this spring with personal bests of 10.96-100m and 22.46-200m.”
He finished the 2023 season with 68 catches for 969 yards and 11 touchdowns, according to the Mercury News.
“Shows the versatility to play out wide or in the slot and should get opportunities in the return game as well,” Biggins wrote. “Has a really nice all around game and has a very high ceiling. Has the talent to play for any program in the country and has an NFL upside to him as well.”
Lawson is the fourth wide receiver to join Washington’s 2025 recruiting class. The Huskies earned an early commitment from Raiden Vines-Bright, a 247Sports composite four-star recruit from IMG Academy in Florida who began his high school career at Corona Del Sol High School in Tempe, Ariz., on April 15.
The Huskies also hold pledges from three-star athletes Dezmen Roebuck and Deji Ajose. Roebuck is a 5-foot-10, 170-pound standout from Marana, Ariz. Ajose, listed at 6-foot-2, 170 pounds, hails from Bishop O’Dowd High School across the bay from Lawson in Oakland, Calif.
Roebuck and Ajose are both two-way stars at their respective high schools, but were primarily recruited by UW wide receivers coach Kevin Cummings so they’ll likely start their collegiate careers on offense.
Lawson is also Washington’s fifth Bay-area pledge. Along with Ajose, the Huskies also have commitments from four-star offensive lineman Champ Taulealea from Valley Christian High School in San Jose, Calif., three-star edge rusher Devin Hyde out of Menlo-Atherton High School in Menlo Park, Calif. and three-star running back Julian McMahan, a Monte Vista High School standout from Danville, Calif.
Washington’s only expected to lose two wide receivers during the 2024 season: former California transfer Jeremiah Hunter and sixth-year contributor Giles Jackson.
The seven other receivers have minimal experience, combining for 17 catches and 193 yards. A majority of those stats come from sophomore wide receiver Kevin Green Jr., a spring transfer portal addition who reunited with Fisch and Cummings after spending the past two seasons at Arizona.
Sophomore Denzel Boston and redshirt freshman Rashid Williams enjoyed standout spring practices, and will likely contribute during the upcoming season. Redshirt freshman Keith Reynolds and true freshmen Justice Williams and Jason Robinson Jr. are Kalen DeBoer holdovers while true freshman Audric Harris, a Las Vegas native and Bishop Gorman High School standout, transferred to UW before spring practices after initially signing with Arizona.
Extra point
- While the Huskies added Lawson on Sunday, they missed out on four-star wide receiver Donovan Olugbode, a teammate of Vines-Bright at IMG Academy, who committed to Missouri on Friday over a final five which also included Washington, USC, Florida and Oregon. Olugbode would’ve been the highest-rated high school wide receiver to commit to Washington since Jalen McMillan in 2020.