Even though Jack Ressler was already offered by Arizona State’s previous coaching regime and has established a recruiting relationship with ASU’s first-year head coach Kenny Dillingham, a visit last Friday to the school was still an eye opener in every positive way for the 2024 Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei wide receiver.
“With coach Kenny Dillingham we go back from when he was at Oregon,” Ressler said. “He reached a lot to me, so we’re already close and have built that relationship. Coach Dillingham loves to throw that ball, and he loves his wide receivers. So I just feel like I’m a great fit for that program. I already thought that of him when he was at Oregon and when we chatted a bunch. He loves guys who catch the ball, know how to get open and have a high football IQ. I feel like I have all those traits. He stayed on me since he got to Arizona State. I love what they (ASU) have to offer right now. On the visit, I saw him, and I also met the offensive coordinator, coach (Beau) Baldwin. He’s a great guy and has a great offensive mind. That’s the type of guy that’s ready to win now. He loves throwing the ball, and more importantly, he wants to see your maturity grow and develop you the right way. You can go off to all these schools and get developed; some schools really develop you the right way to succeed at the next level and in life after football.
“(Wide Receivers) Coach Samples was out of town, but we’ve talked before on FaceTime. Coach samples is a great guy and is the same as with Coach Baldwin, just a coach ready to help you grow and succeed. This whole (ASU) staff is young staff and full of energy. They’re just ready to have fun but also know when it’s time to be serious. He (Samples) told me that he likes how I get my yards after the catch, my catch radius, and breaking separation at the line of scrimmage, and he said my football IQ is very high. Getting better at the top of the route is something I want to work on because it’s always important.”
As a junior, Ressler posted 534 yards and four touchdowns, placing third on the team in those categories, and this following a sophomore year where he had 310 yards and three touchdowns. Mater Dei finished 12-1 in 2022 and won the Trinity League championship with a 5-0 league record. The Monarchs’ lone loss on the year was to St. John Bosco 24-22 in the CIF Southern Section Division I championship game.
Ressler said that his familiarity with Dillingham naturally created a strong sense of comfort, but that was also a sentiment that describes the wide receiver’s feelings towards the Sun Devil program as a whole. Ressler admitted that the vibe he felt during his trip to Tempe was an unexpected pleasant surprise.
“I like the culture coach Dillingham is building there,” Ressler commented. “Like I said, they have a program that is ready to win now. The atmosphere that the team has is all about competition, and that’s what he’s building. He wants to build a player-run program and have guys be part of a brotherhood. He doesn’t want the coach who says everything and talks for everyone. He wants his to feel together because that’s what’s gonna matter when you’re on that football field.
“I just like the atmosphere of the city too. Being from California, I really got that California feel out there. I can play in any type of weather; it doesn’t matter to me. But that California weather is very nice, and I definitely got that feel out there. The vibe out there was just insane. It had that city feel, but also a college feel at the same time. It was really the best of both worlds, to be honest with you.”
Ressler, a Top-60 California player in his class, holds 18 power five offers and is certainly one the more coveted West Coast wide receivers in the 2024 class. He has unofficially visited schools such as Ole Miss and Notre Dame, and closer to home, he has been to Oregon multiple times and has been to USC and Utah. Later this month, he plans to visit TCU and Tennessee.
Ressler named ASU, Oregon, and Boise State as the schools who are recruiting him the hardest right now and feels that these are the schools who are assured of getting an official visit from him before his anticipated August commitment.
“The recruiting process has been great, and I have a lot of offers right now,” Ressler stated. “But I never take anything for granted. I’d be happy with just one offer. I honestly look to be recruited by people who are just genuine. Obviously, when you get recruited, the coaches’ job is to sell you. But now that I’m getting used to the recruiting process, you realize who’s genuine and who’s not. And I just want to play for someone who’s genuine. I’m willing to play wherever because my goal is to play on the biggest stage. But at the end of the day, I’m trying to get on the field. So, wherever that is, I’m willing to do that.”
Playing for a SoCal powerhouse prep program, Ressler and his teammates are in the spotlight, often experiencing a ‘championship of bust’ pressure environment that very few high schools in the region can relate to. It is also a level of scrutiny that can prepare him for the college level and potentially smooth out the acclimation process.
“I’ve been playing at a high level since sixth, seventh grade,” Ressler described, “and obviously, I have that in high school now. The more people I play in front of, the better I play. I just love the atmosphere, I love the energy, and I love having to be that player to make that play. I love stepping up when my number’s called.”
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