Bay Area's top RB Turner picks Utah State over bigger schools
CONCORD >> Three hats, representing Yale, Air Force and Utah State, rested in front of Mt. Diablo senior Herschel Turner as he sat at a table on the school's stage.
The 5-foot-10 recordbreaker paused for dramatic effect, mulling over his options, before grabbing the gray Utah State cap as cheers erupted from family, friends, coaches and classmates.
And then, for one final flourish, the player who rushed for a NCS regular season-record 2,957 yards as a senior, pulled off his coat to reveal that he was wearing an Aggies sweatshirt all along.
Why pick Utah State, a Mountain West Conference team that went 6-7 in 2023, over offers from Air Force, Ivy League power Yale, the SEC's Missouri and a host of other programs?
Mt. Diablo's Herschel Turner dons a Utah State cap and sweatshirt Wednesday.
“I could've chosen the best football school, but this was the best place for me personally,” Turner told the Bay Area News Group on Wednesday. “They have the major I want, the type of coaches I'm looking for, team atmosphere and type of school I was looking for. They checked all the boxes.”
Turner, who wants to be a detective after his football career is over, said he plans on studying forensic science at Utah State.
Mt. Diablo principal Dr. Markell McCain believed Turner was Mt. Diablo's first football player to commit to a Division I program since Jerry Reese signed with San Jose State in 1991.
Turner, who played at Freedom for three years before transferring to Mt. Diablo as a senior, was historically productive as he carried the Red Devils to the section playoffs.
He was named offensive MVP for the Diablo Athletic League Valley Division. Turner finished the year with 3,027 rushing yards and 42 TDs on the ground. He ran for six touchdowns in a game twice during his senior year.
“On my first day, my mom asked me if I liked it, and I said, `No, I want to go back (to Freedom),'” Turner said. “I'm glad I stuck it out here. I met a lot of new people and had a great senior year. The perfect senior year.”
The senior also had offers from Army, North Texas, Portland State, UNLV, Utah, Washington State and Wayne State.