Tyler Petite commits to Duke: 4-star TE picks Blue Devils over USC
It isn’t too often when USC loses a target it wants to an out of state program, and when it happens, it certainly doesn’t lose many targets to the Duke Blue Devils, but that’s what happened Wednesday afternoon when four-star tight end Tyler Petite (Moraga, Calif. Campolindo) picked the Blue Devils over the Trojans.
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The 6-5, 225-pound recruit is the nation’s No. 302 player regardless of position, the No. 12 tight end and the No. 38 player in the state of California.
“It was just too good to pass up for me. I know Duke isn’t a power house but they find ways to win some big games.”
Petite was all but a lock to head to USC based on the crystal ball predictions on 247Sports with 90 percent of the votes in favor of the in-state program, so why did he pick Duke as the place to play his college football?
“It was a tough decision, very tough decision, but in my gut and after talking to my family I decided to commit to Duke,” Petite told 247Sports. “I really couldn’t go wrong either way but coach (David Cutcliffe) ‘Cut’ was a big part of why I committed to Duke. He’s got a great resume, not only with Duke but with other programs.”
Excited to finally announce my commitment to Duke University! Thanks to all who helped along the way! #dukegang2015
— Tyler Petite (@TylerPetite) July 2, 2014
Petite was offered by Duke back in February, four days after attending USC’s junior day, but remained in contact with the coaches and players from Duke that he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to help them continue their recent success while receiving a world class education in the process.
This is a significant addition for Cutcliffe and Duke to land a player of Petite’s magnitude as he is now the team’s highest ranked commitment. With the commitment of Petite, Duke has 16 total commitments for the 2015 class and the nation’s No. 20 class overall, sixth in the ACC.
Petite recorded 24 receptions last year with nine of them going for a touchdown and had 495 yards as a junior.