O.C. walk-on earns Arizona scholarship

Servite graduate Blake Brady, a walk-on at Arizona, has been offered a football scholarship by new coach Rich Rodriguez.

"I just worked hard in the weight room and really studied plays and film and just tried to get better," Brady said.

In his senior year at Servite, Brady was a part of the No. 1 ranked team in California; No. 3 in the country. His only year on varsity, Brady made 10 tackles in just two games.

He didn't think a football scholarship was likely, until after he joined the Wildcats.

"I thought I proved that I could play and that I had been working hard and I had been paying my dues," Brady said.

The Anaheim native is joined on the team by eight other Orange County football standouts including Stephen Ascher (Corona del Mar), Sean Willet (Santa Margarita), Brian Chacon (Cypress), Faitele Faafoi (Tustin), Kyle Kelley (Woodbridge), Willie Mobley (Orange Coast College), Shaquille Richardson (Los Alamitos) and Kirifi Taula, Brady's teammate at Servite.

Brady said he believes that being a scholarship athlete will not change anything, but he acknowledges that being a walk-on helped him work harder. The redshirt sophomore played seven games last season for the Wildcats as a reserve safety.

For the 2012 season, Brady will compete with established Wildcat safeties Adam Hall, Mark Watley and Marquis Flowers for playing time.

Brady will be working not only with a new coach but also a new safeties coach in Tony Gibson. Two-a-days don't start until August, but Brady is excited for the upcoming season.

"Everybody has been working real hard so I hope it pays off," Brady said.

The Wildcats were 4-8 in 2011.