West breaks down extended Stanford visit

Stanford hosted one of the nation's top 2018 quarterbacks, Alabama standout Jack West, for an extended on-campus visit last week.

West was already familiar with some aspects of the Cardinal football program and university from his two previous trips to The Farm, but his most recent visit - which was easily his longest to Stanford - provided a far more comprehensive experience.

"It went really well," West said. "It was amazing to get out there and really get to spend time with all of the coaches and get to spend time with players and stay the night in the dorm and see how that life is. Getting to meet certain people like Dr. Rice and Karl Eikenberry, we went to have lunch with him as well. Getting to hear their advice, it was something you can't get anywhere else with those kind of people. It was great."

Although they are obviously at very different stages in life, West and Rice do share some similarities. Both are Alabama natives who grew up with an affinity for Crimson Tide football. And both have an interest in politics.

Rice advised West to keep his options open as he progresses through then next years of his life.

"Getting to talk to her was such a blessing," West said. "She's such a busy person - I think there was another person she was meeting with as soon as we left. But she told me kind of what Coach Shaw conveyed. I think they're two very similar people. I think what she was really trying to portray is taking your time with everything. And be broad. Maybe right now you are so focused on one thing that you don't realize that you're pretty good at other things as well, off the field, obviously. I have an interest in politics, but she was like, 'It's great to have an interest in one thing, but at the same time be broad, because you never know what connections you can make.'"

There was also plenty of football discussion and activity on the trip.

"I got to spend an extended amount of time with Coach Taylor," West said. "He's the guy who recruits my area and about 10 minutes up the road from me is where he played high school football. We got to spend a lot more time just getting to know each other. Obviously I got to spend a lot of time with Coach Pritchard and Coach Bloomgren. Their message to me was just like Dr. Rice, pretty much - take your time.

"We got to work out... It was really good to see how they approach working their quarterbacks and how they practice. Basically what we did was a simulated warm up that they do and drills that they do. So it was really cool to be a part of that."

Cardinal offensive lineman Brandon Fanaika hosted West on part of the visit. The four-star standout also got to know several other current players during his trip.

"The main one was Brandon Fanaika," West said. "He is a great guy. We got to hang out in his dorm. He had sheets and a pillow for me and everything as soon as I walked in there, and that's just how the people are there. That's what I really believe sets Stanford apart from everybody else, is just the people. Everybody is in for the same reason and really just bettering everybody else around them. But meeting people like Michael Rector as well - I got to have lunch with him one day. Alijah Holder. Jack Dreyer - he's a true freshman there who showed me and told me how the transition is. He's only a true freshman, so he had been in a boat where he was getting used to everything. It was cool to hear his take on things."

Given that the trip marked West's first extended visit to Stanford, the Saraland High School standout said there were plenty of unexpected occurrences. Among the most memorable was his meeting with Karl Eikenberry, the retired lieutenant general and former United States ambassador to Afghanistan.

"There's just so many amazing people out at Stanford," West said. "The coolest thing is I didn't know I was going to meet with Lt. General Eikenberry. He's a guy that commanded troops in Afghanistan, is close friends with the president and all this. He took time out of his day to meet with me. That was probably the coolest thing in my opinion, and also meeting with Dr. Rice, obviously. Those were two of the coolest things and probably most surprising things I got to do."

All told, West's biggest takeaway from the trip did not pertain to any single meeting or conversation with someone from Stanford. Rather, he was impressed with the mindset and lofty expectations held by those inside the Cardinal program.

"I think the mentality of those guys (was my biggest takeaway), of the players and the coaches," West said. "They win the Rose Bowl, and that's the Grandaddy of Them All. But their mentality is kind of that they're tired of winning Rose Bowls. They want to win a national championship. I think that was the biggest thing that I took away was their mentality. That they want to win and they believe they can."

With his trip to The Farm behind him, West does not currently have a timeline for making his college choice. But he admits the Cardinal made a strong impression. Alabama remains a contender as well.

"This trip really opened up a lot of things for me," West said. "I got to see everything I needed to see. The past couple of visits (to Stanford) - I believe I said it before, it was kind of a day and I'd throw and then we'd go home. But on this visit in particular I got to meet with Dr. Rice and meet with all of those people and really see a day in the life of a Stanford kid. Stanford's an amazing place. It speaks for itself. I'm not going to put anything out there on decision timetables or anything like that. I love the University of Alabama. There's no decision timetable."