Huskies add Censere Gaylord, 4-star cornerback, to 2027 recruiting class

Back in May 2024, Jedd Fisch and secondary coach John Richardson sent a scholarship offer to a high school freshman in Southern California. 

Fisch and Richardson hadn’t coached a single game at Washington when they offered Censere Gaylord, a highly touted cornerback recruit who was still attending Bishop Alemany High in Mission Hills, Calif. They hadn’t sent Tacario Davis and Ephesians Prysock to the NFL yet. 

But it was an early sign of their investment. And on Saturday afternoon, their work paid dividends. 

“I’ll be committed to the University of Washington,” Gaylord said during a livestream on the CBS Sports YouTube channel.

Gaylord, a 6-foot, 165-pound cornerback out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., announced his pledge to join Washington during the livestream on Saturday. He’s the 24th player to pledge to join UW’s 2027 recruiting class and the second-highest-rated prospect behind only wide receiver Tre Moore according to the 247Sports composite ratings. 

“Smooth cover corner that’s tracking to exit IMG Academy as a rare three-year contributor,” Andrew Ivins, 247Sports director of scouting, wrote in an evaluation on Feb. 19. “Can mirror from both press-man and off-man alignments with his slick transitions.”

Gaylord, a composite four-star prospect, is considered the No. 19 cornerback, the No. 19 player from Florida and the No. 165 player nationally. He’s the 11th blue-chip prospect to join UW’s 2027 class, joining Moore; quarterback Blake Roskopf; wide receivers Braylon Pope and Dontay Tyson Jr.; defensive linemen Tevita Nonu and Jon Ioane; running back Jeremy Adeyanju; safeties Jaden Walk-Green and Isala Aisa Wily-Ava; and offensive lineman Gecova Doyal. 

He chose Washington out of a final group that also included Georgia and Georgia Tech. Gaylord held offers from 30 Power Four schools and Notre Dame. His offer from UW on May 13, 2024, was his fifth Power Four offer. He took an official visit to UW on June 5. 

“They’re getting a hard worker,” Gaylord said. “Somebody who’s going to take it all. Do it all for the team. Whatever the team needs me to do, I’m going to do it.”

Gaylord cited his relationship with Richardson, who is also from Southern California, and UW’s historic success producing defensive backs like Trent McDuffie as crucial parts of his decision to join the Huskies.

“A lot of NFL guys come from there,” Gaylord said. “You know. ‘DBU’ (Defensive Back University). A lot of DBs come from there.”

During two seasons at IMG Academy, Gaylord has produced 34 tackles, 10 pass breakups, seven interceptions and a forced fumble in 16 games according to 247Sports.

Gaylord’s commitment to Washington helps solidify the Huskies’ connections to IMG Academy. UW signed players from the highly touted high school program in two consecutive recruiting cycles: wide receiver Raiden Vines-Bright in 2025 and defensive back Ksani Jiles in 2026. 

Like Gaylord, Vines-Bright and Jiles had West Coast connections before moving to Florida to join IMG Academy. Vines-Bright, who transferred to Arizona State after one season at UW, spent his first three seasons of high school football at Corona Del Sol High in Tempe, Ariz., while Jiles grew up in Inglewood, Calif. 

And while Gaylord’s longtime affiliation with IMG Academy is notable, his Southern California roots are also key. During the 2022 recruiting cycle, Fisch landed a pair of Bishop Alemany prospects who’d eventually follow him to Washington. 

One was wide receiver Kevin Green Jr., who spent two seasons with the Huskies before entering the transfer portal. The other was Prysock, the former four-star recruit who developed into a three-year starter for Fisch and Richardson at Arizona and Washington. Prysock was recently drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL draft. 

Fisch also signed offensive lineman Siaosi “Rhino” Tapa’atoutai from Bishop Alemany during the 2023 recruiting cycle. But UW hadn’t signed a player with connections to the Mission Hills, Calif., program since Fisch’s arrival before the 2024 season. 

Gaylord’s commitment is also a notable recruiting win for Richardson. The Huskies have been more selective with cornerbacks in the 2027 cycle after taking four — Jiles, Mount Tahoma High standout and Washington Gatorade Player of the Year Elijah Durr, McClymonds High’s Rahsjon Duncan and Mission Viejo High’s Jeron Jones — in 2026. 

The Huskies landed an early pledge from local two-way standout Maurice Williams, now at Timberline High, in December. But they’d watched as several cornerbacks who’d visited campus during the official visit period like Crean Lutheran High’s Evan Mack and Bishop Gorman High’s Kamil Loud committed to Arizona and California, respectively. 

Gaylord, however, was the highest-rated cornerback of the trio. He’s the fourth blue-chip cornerback to sign with Richardson at UW, joining Dylan Robinson, Duncan and Jones. 

“Quick to turn his head and locate the football in the deeper third,” Ivins wrote about Gaylord. “Confident in run support and will look to sweep legs on the perimeter.”