Chacho Ulloa Commits to Stanford: Academics Won Over Versatile DB

For Corona, California, safety Chacho Ulloa, playing college football at a place that valued academics as much as it did athletics was a priority.

So when a recruiting battle came down to Notre Dame and Stanford, Ulloa went with his gut—and his gut told him to choose closer to home.

Ulloa publicly announced his verbal commitment to Stanford Tuesday evening by way of social media. The 3-star defensive back had been silently committed to the Cardinal for a couple weeks but made the public aware of his decision via Twitter.

"

Thank God for this amazing opportunity. I'm Excited to Say I'm Committed to Stanford University  #CardClass16 pic.twitter.com/3EvIeI50i1

— Chacho Ulloa (@_Chacho13_) October 14, 2015"

"It's been a toss-up between [Stanford] and Notre Dame, and I just felt that Stanford was a better fit for me," Ulloa said. "Notre Dame is a lot farther from home, and playing at Stanford means my family will get a chance to see me play.

"I like the style of defense they play at Stanford. I think I really fit in there. Plus, the academics there, I really couldn't pass it up."

Being a silent commitment, Ulloa said he's been in a group message chat with a few Stanford commits for a few days. He said the group, in addition to further getting to know each other, talk about the expectations for the next few years. 

"We're already getting acquainted with each other. From an athletic standpoint, we're all real excited," Ulloa said. "A lot of the kids in the group from California, I've played against already. We all kind of know each other already.

"I feel like our class is going to get stronger and stronger. It's going to be a great couple of years for Stanford football."

Ulloa is Stanford's 17th commit overall. He was recruited by Stanford special teams coordinator Pete Alamar and also has built good relationships with head coach David Shaw and defensive backs coach Duane Akina.

Ulloa chose to announce on Tuesday because the date was Oct. 13. Ulloa's favorite number is 13, and he said he would make his commitment public on the date he considers a "lucky number."

"I was born Aug. 13," he told Bleacher Report late last month. "It's my lucky number, even though a lot of people associate it with an unlucky number."

For Stanford, the number proved to be very lucky Tuesday. The Cardinal will get a versatile safety who, at 6'0", 190 pounds, can play the strong safety, free safety or nickel positions in college. He has two reported interceptions, according to MaxPreps.com, and has been involved with more than two dozen turnovers—either as someone who made an interception, forced a fumble with a jarring hit or recovered a loose ball.

Ulloa is one to watch athletically and academically. In the classroom, he has a cumulative 3.5 grade-point average, including a 4.0 semester average. He currently is taking AP courses in statistics, government/economics and psychology.

"There aren't a lot of schools that can compete with Stanford academically," said Ulloa, who is looking at majoring in business or engineering. "I know Stanford and Notre Dame are pretty similar in academics, but I feel way better going to Stanford. I feel like I'll be more successful there."

Ulloa will join Malik Antoine as a safety commit and David Long, Treyjohn Butler and Nygel Edmonds as members of the secondary for Stanford's 2016 class. It's a decision he has high expectations about.

"It's a winning program, and I feel Coach Shaw won't be leaving any time soon," he said. "The foundation is set there. I feel comfortable with everything."

Damon Sayles is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand. All player ratings are courtesy of 247Sports' composite ratings. Follow Damon via Twitter: @DamonSayles