ORANGE, California — Offensive lineman Elishah Jackett has been working through his recruitment this spring while recovering from an offseason injury. He’s currently not able to work out, so he wasn’t on the field Thursday when his team at El Modena High School (Orange, California) hosted a college showcase with a few other local schools.

However, he was still on hand to support his teammates and see which coaches made it out to watch the event. It was the culmination of a big day for the 6-foot-7 prospect, who narrowed his list to just five schools on Thursday.

Cal, UCLA, Washington, Ole Miss and Texas A&M are the schools now in focus for Jackett, who has three official visits set up over the next two months. He will open his official visit schedule with a trip to UCLA next weekend while Cal and Washington will get him on campus again in June.

Getting to this point wasn’t as difficult as it could have been for Jackett as he simply zeroed in on the schools that have been most active in his recruitment to create his list of top five schools.

“They’re kind of the schools that put in the most effort to show me they want me, and I think those are my best fits,” Jackett said of his top group. “... It wasn’t really that hard, because I chose the schools that I have the best connection with. Who I’ve been keeping in touch with from when I got offered to now.

“Some of the other schools, I got offered by them but the connection. I didn’t talk a lot with them. That’s pretty much it.”

Jackett previously visited Cal on an unofficial trip earlier in the spring, and the trek up to Berkeley gave him some confidence about his potential fit with the program.

Offensive line coach Angus McClure has played a big role in the attraction to the Bears for the high three-star recruit, and that has been important to Jackett as he evaluates his options. The 2023 recruit says he and McClure “click very well” giving him a good feeling about the future of that relationship.