Stowers, who is 6 feet 1, 205 pounds and runs the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds, visited Wisconsin this past weekend but turned down the Badgers after returning home. He also had drawn interest from Hawai'i, Michigan State, Oregon State and Washington State, although he said none of those schools made official scholarship offers.

Stowers visited Utah two weekends ago; the first day he can sign a letter of intent is Feb. 4.

"Coach (Urban) Meyer and his staff are great guys, and I was going to commit (during the visit) but they told me to take another trip and compare," Stowers said. "So I did and they were right — there was something about Utah that was a perfect fit. I really enjoyed myself on the trip; the people were nice and I liked the academics and the dorms. The coaches seem like people who would carry me along for four years. I could relate to them, and it felt something like home."

Stowers rushed for 545 yards and five touchdowns in just four Interscholastic League of Honolulu games this past season, averaging 8.3 yards per carry. He missed three games with a shoulder injury.

In 2002, Stowers rushed for 1,027 yards, becoming only the 16th player in the ILH's 93-year history to accomplish the feat. And he did it in just seven games, averaging 146.7 yards per game.

But Stowers, who can bench press 295 pounds, said he felt colleges backing off this season after he was injured in the Raiders' final non-league game on Sept. 12.

"I think it kind of shooed everyone away," Stowers said. "I didn't expect to get recruited hard after that; I thought it was kind of over."

But Stowers said Utah maintained interest, and the Utes offered an opportunity to compete for playing time right away.

"Their whole program is on the rise," Stowers said. "They run the exact same offense that we do at Iolani, so it wouldn't be a problem, I'd know what to expect. They're kind of low on running backs because they had two seniors. "

Iolani coach Wendell Look said Stowers developed from his sophomore year, when he primarily was an outside runner.

"He learned how to run inside, and he became really effective running between the tackles," Look said. "The other thing is he catches the ball real well. He's a big back who is athletic and versatile."

Stowers said his commitment was good news that was long overdue. Besides his injury, he also had to overcome tragedy when his girlfriend, Summer Takata, was killed in an automobile accident Nov. 9.

"I had a bad season and had some hard times," Stowers said. "But sometimes things bounce back and I'm grateful for that. Now the pressure's off and I can start training and move forward. To get these scholarship offers, I thank God."