SAN JOSE – Danny Scudero’s name had been in the transfer portal for less than an hour when he got the first call: it was San Jose State on the line.
The San Jose native and former Archbishop Mitty High star took notice.
“It was really quick and that’s how I knew these guys really wanted me,” said Scudero, who had just completed his first full season at Sacramento State. “It put SJSU pretty high on my board.”
Scudero had been on the Spartans’ radar for some time. Once the 5-foot-9, 174-pound wide receiver entered the portal, SJSU offensive coordinator Craig Stutzmann sprang into action. His first call was to Mitty High coach Danny Sullivan.
“(I told Craig) reach out to him. It’s a possibility for him to play at home,” said Sullivan, who that spring first suggested to Stutzmann that he keep an eye on Scudero. “We both agreed he would be a tremendous fit for their offense.”
San Jose State also happens to be his parents’ alma mater. Scudero’s homecoming could not have gone much better heading into the Spartans’ game Saturday at Wyoming.
Through his first five games at SJSU (2-3, 1-0 Mountain West), Scudero leads the nation in receiving yards (665) and receiving yards per game (133). He’s caught a team-best 40 passes and scored four touchdowns.
Scudero is putting up numbers similar to Nick Nash, who last season led the nation in the regular season in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns and was a Biletnikoff Award finalist to help the Spartans reach a bowl game for a third straight season.
Not bad for a guy who received just one college scholarship offer out of high school and is relatively new to the sport.
Scudero played center field on the Mitty High baseball team as a freshman and didn’t even turn out for football.
“I was a baseball kid,” Scudero said. “That was my first love of sports.”
Scudero played baseball for four seasons with the Monarchs, helping lead Mitty to CCS and NorCal championships as a junior.
Scudero tried out for the football team as a sophomore despite some pushback from his mom. He got the OK on the condition that he would only play for junior varsity. That was the fall of 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Scudero didn’t tell his mom that Mitty called up all of its sophomores just to be able to field a varsity team and cancelled its JV season.
“I kind of lied a little bit,” Scudero said. “She wasn’t too happy, but that was the start of my football journey and I never looked back.”
Sullivan said the moment he knew Scudero would be a star was on a play against Bellarmine during his junior year. Mitty called a fly sweep to the left for Scudero and there was no opening, so he reversed to the right and turned a nothing play into a 45-yard gain.
“I remember looking down the sideline and all of his coaches were just wide-eyed,” Sullivan said. “That was a one-of-one kind of play and that was the first one where I was like, ‘This kid has a chance to be scary.’”
Scudero fully reached his potential as a senior, catching 19 touchdown passes on top of 1,900 receiving yards and was a major reason Mitty reached the 2022 D1 CCS championship game. The Monarchs lost 41-14 to Serra, but it was a remarkable turnaround for a team that went 1-9 the previous year.
After that season, Scudero decided football was the sport for him, and Sacramento State offered him a scholarship.
Scudero joined the Hornets and redshirted during the 2023 season. He played in the redshirt maximum of four games which included making appearances in both FCS playoff games and scoring a touchdown on his first career touch on a 16-yard rush during a 42-30 loss to Montana State.
As Scudero was preparing for his 2024 season at Sacramento State, Stutzmann took a trip to the Mitty campus to scout potential prospects.
Sullivan had a player in mind that would be a perfect fit for Stutzmann’s pass-heavy “Spread and Shred” offense. However, it wasn’t any of the players on the Monarchs’ active roster, it was Scudero.
“I was like ‘Where is he? Is he a senior or is he still available? Then he tells me he’s at Sacramento State and I’m like, ‘Great, we can’t touch him,’” Stutzmann said. “It was one of those things where you keep an eye on him and if he hits the transfer portal, we take Danny Sullivan’s word for it.”
Not only did Sullivan give a strong recommendation of Scudero, Sullivan also said Scudero would be tough to handle as SJSU was slated to play Sacramento State for its 2024 season opener.
“I told him, hey, by the way, Danny Scudero is going to catch a touchdown against you guys and we’re going to have a conversation that night going ‘I told you so,’” Sullivan said. “And we literally did.”
Sure enough, Scudero caught a 20-yard touchdown in the third quarter of SJSU’s 42-24 victory over Sacramento State.
His performance in the 2024 season, plus Sullivan’s recommendation, made it a no-brainer for the Spartans to reach out to Scudero as soon as he entered the transfer portal.
“As soon as he jumped in the portal, we had to get him,” Stutzmann said. “We have to go ahead and put our best foot forward to get this guy because he is a game-changer for us.”
Scudero’s FBS leading numbers are exciting for him but he has other things on his mind.
“It’s cool to look at but it doesn’t mean anything right now. It’s Week 6,” Scudero said. “At the end of the day what really matters is winning.”
Not only is Scudero playing Division I football, he’s shining as a top receiver in the FBS in his hometown.
“It’s a dream come true, both of my parents are SJSU alumni,” Scudero said. “I’m blessed to play at the same school they went to and play for my hometown. It’s always something I wanted to do.”