Former four-star signee Thomas Toki will go the JUCO route

Thomas Toki, a former four-star defensive tackle who signed with the Washington State Cougars in the 2015 recruiting class, has confirmed he will be going the junior college route instead of joining the program this January.

The former Kirkland, Wash., Juanita standout told CougCenter last month that the staff was still holding a spot for him as a mid-year enrollee, however academic hurdles have forced Toki to explore other options.

According to a source, Toki, after transferring from Juanita to Mountain View, Calif., for his senior season, had to retake two classes online, though they were not added to his transcript as the NCAA Clearinghouse investigated. The source also indicated that Toki had previously been admitted to Washington State, though the two online classes muddied his eligibility.

Toki, as an academic non-qualifier, will need to obtain an AA degree at the junior college of his choice before making the jump to the next level. Toki tells CougCenter he'll be playing at College of San Mateo, a junior college program the staff has recruited heavily in recent years.

From a recruiting standpoint, Washington State was ready for this. With only two defensive linemen committed in the current class — Lyric Bartley and Garrett McBroom, a junior college defensive end who will arrive on campus this week — the Cougars will likely take at least one more lineman despite holding 26 commitments.

That will require some shuffling, which we're sure to see in the coming weeks, especially with the recruiting dead period ending on January 13.

To get caught up with the latest Washington State recruiting news, check out the CougCenter Big Board.