Mark Few and Gonzaga usually know how to land the players they want. The Bulldogs miss on elite talent here and there, sure, but more often than not, when Gonzaga makes a real push, the program ends up closing the deal.
California has been a different story.
That trend got another jolt on Saturday when 4-star guard Gene Roebuck chose Cal, just a week after taking an official visit to Spokane for Kraziness in the Kennel. It was the latest reminder that the Golden State has become a stubborn recruiting roadblock for the Zags, even though it’s one of the deepest talent pools in the country.
The numbers back it up. Since 2018, Gonzaga has offered 17 players from California a scholarship, according to 247Sports, and only three have ended up in Spokane: Dominick Harris in 2020, Dusty Stromer in 2023, and Parker Jefferson in 2026. That works out to a 17.6% success rate.
Jefferson’s path was a little unusual, though. He originally committed to Minnesota in the Big Ten, then reopened things after a coaching change and eventually landed at Gonzaga ahead of last season.
The biggest miss in that span came with 5-star forward Nik Khamenia in the 2025 class. The 6'8 forward from Harvard-Westlake High School visited Gonzaga twice, but when the decision came, he went to Duke instead of the Zags or UCLA, which had long been seen as his top two choices.
Some of the other losses were less shocking. Jared McCain went to Duke and Carter Bryant chose Arizona, both landing at heavyweight programs that had been in the mix all along. But Gonzaga also took painful hits with Khamenia and Trent Perry, who went to UCLA.
Roebuck fits the same California pattern, along with Perry, David Singleton, and Max Agbonkpolo, all of whom stayed in-state.
That said, the issue isn’t as simple as Gonzaga just losing every California battle to local schools. A lot of the prospects the Bulldogs have targeted have also been chased by some of the biggest names in the sport, which makes those recruiting wars especially tough.
And Gonzaga has had some success in California, even if the returns haven’t always been perfect. Harris and Stromer didn’t quite meet expectations in Spokane, but Austin Daye came from Irvine, CA, and gave Gonzaga two strong seasons before becoming the first Zag to leave for the NBA draft as an underclassmen in 2009.
The next test is already on the board. Gonzaga has an offer out to Jordan Mize, a 5-star guard in the 2028 class at Sierra Canyon High School in California. The question now is whether the 6'5 guard will be the one to buck the trend, or whether he becomes another frustrating miss for Few and his staff from the Golden State.
In Other News...
Gonzagas 2027 Class Just Took A Hit At Guard
Gonzagas 2027 guard board took a turn this week when four-star Gene Roebuck made his college choice, leaving the Bulldogs to keep working deeper into the class. Roebuck had been one of the names in the mix after visiting Spokane and checking out other schools, but the decision now trims one of the more familiar guard options from Gonzagas early recruiting picture.
That leaves Gonzaga with a class that still centers on five-star guard Dooney Johnson, its lone commitment so far in 2027. The next big name to watch is five-star combo guard Jalen Davis, who is set to come to Spokane for a home game, giving the Bulldogs another swing at adding a headline guard to a class that could use one. [Read more 🡒]