The tweet from LAT's Eric Sondheimer says:
Big news for UCLA. Running back Malcolm Jones of Oaks Christian has picked the Bruins as his college choice
From Eric's colleague here is a blog post from Chris Foster in the LAT:
Westlake Village Oaks Christian’s Malcolm Jones has committed to UCLA. Jones, a 6-foot, 215-pound running back, is ranked fifth at his position by Rivals.com [...]
Jones, though, has size and speed to make him an effective runner. He was sought after by nearly every Pacific 10 Conference school, plus Oklahoma and Notre Dame. He had narrowed his choices to Stanford and UCLA.
It was Jon Gold who broke the story first on DN's Inside UCLA.
This is still a developing story. If this holds up it would be a This is a huge coup for Rick Neuheisel and UCLA football, beating out a surging Stanford program in the Pac-10. We will update this post through the day.
GO BRUINS.
UPDATE (N): The story is now confirmed via BruinReportOnline.com. Malcolm becomes the first 5 star committed recruit in UCLA's incoming class of 2010. To say that this class is shaping up methodically and nicely would be an understatement. GO BRUINS.
UPDATE II (R): The running back had narrowed his choices down to UCLA and Stanford a little bit back so you know education was important to him and that he is smart kid. There had been talk about whether he would play running back or linebacker at the next level, but I'm hearing that Jones was assured many times by the UCLA coaching staff that he would be in the backfield.
UPDATE IV (N): Story from ESPN:
"UCLA and Stanford were equal in a lot of ways but it came down to where I felt most comfortable. For me, that was always going to be the deciding factor and I just felt more comfortable down at UCLA and I think I just fit in better there."
"Both schools have great coaches and are on the rise. Both schools want to run the football and I would have fit in very well at Stanford for sure and both schools are obviously strong academically. Like I said, it was all about being comfortable and for me, that was at UCLA."
ESPN's Billy Tucker added, "This is a huge in-state land for UCLA as it has gained a top-10 back who fits right into Norm Chow's pro-style offense. Jones has a very good blend of size, speed and overall athleticism. He can earn you the tough downhill yards after contact and catches the ball well out of the backfield. Jones isn't overly flashy but is very well-rounded and is a guy who can excel in all three phases of the game. An ideal load-back who should develop into a productive every-down runner for the Bruins."
You can read ESPN's scouting report on Jones by going here. GO BRUINS.