Dramatic: that is the best possible way to describe my weekend. It started off with the homecoming game in Lubbock, raging fans everywhere as Tech put up points on the board and the special teams made me almost go insane. Then came Sunday afternoon when my Patriots faced the undefeated Saints, matching point for point until the end when the Saints were ahead by 4 and Brady threw a pick with 2.5 mins left. Brady was Brady however and won the game with 5 secs remaining. Then at night, the Red Sox were being no hit against a good Tigers team, and down by 4, in the 8th, with 2 outs, Papi took a first pitch for a game tying grand slam, followed by a walk off by Salty the following inning. What a weekend.
Also a big weekend for Tech recruits, as many JUCO guys visited, 2015 studs and gems looked on, and the core of our 2014 class grew even closer to the Red Raiders. We'll start off today by taking a look at two of the JUCO guys who visited, Josh Keys and Fahn Cooper, and one highly ranked recruit in Terrell Clinkscales. Put a lot work into this week, so let's get started.
Josh Keys - Cornerback, Safety (Gulf Coast CC, Perkinston, MS)
Height: 6'2" Weight: 190 lbs 40: 4.45 secs
Ratings: 89 by 247 / NR by ESPN / 5.6 by Rivals
Interest: Arkansas (Warm), Texas Tech (Warm), Auburn (Warm), Georgia (Warm)
I haven't paid much attention to him because of his offer list and lack of interest shown towards the Red Raiders, however a visit to Lubbock for homecoming changed all of that and Texas Tech is very much in the race. Appartently, Keys is down to his top 4, and Tech is on the list. I'm pretty sure Arkansas also made the list, but outside of them, I don't know who the other 2 are. Anyway, his film is right here (hudl) and what I like is his combination of speed and length provides a good coverage on receivers. The NFL is changing it's DBs around big guys, the college is transforming into that too. He can mirror a receiver and make a ball on the ball when needed. Also he can deliver a huge hit on the receivers when they aren't expecting it. Now 247 ranks show that Josh's reaction time, recovery speed and change of direction aren't stellar, but I did not see much problem here. One play he was a little slow to stop, but still made it the receiver in time. Another, he read the play well and was able to make a play without a need of speed or reactions, so I don't believe that is a huge issue. If Keys decides to become a Red Raider, he would be the 5th DB in the 2014 class, and 3rd JUCO.
Fahn Cooper - Offensive Linemen (College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, IL)
Height: 6'5" Weight: 315 lbs
Ratings: NR by 247 (70 in HS) / NR by ESPN (68 in HS) / NR by Rivals (5.4 in HS)
Interest: Texas Tech (Warm), Oklahoma* (Warm), Texas A&M* (Warm), Arizona St (Cool)
This kid was not very highly ranked out of high school or at the JUCO level. Out of High School he was a low rated recruit that signed on to play at Bowling Green. There he redshirted his first year and started his whole freshmen year, but did not return for whatever reason. He visited Tech last weekend and his highly considering them for next year. Here is his film right here (hudl). I myself am not a huge fan of his game, but there are positives. He seems to be primarily a pass defender based on the way he holds guys up throughout the play. A couple times on running plays, guys that are good enough would've been able to disrupt the rusher, where Cooper seems to twist guys down. There is no doubt that he is big and has the measurable to be able to become a good linemen with good coaching and strength. I don't think Tech should go hard after him with our 5 OL already signed on and impressive 2013 OL class. The only OL I would take at this point would be Dominquie Roberson and Sebastian Tertola. All in all, Kingsbury is the coach, I am not, so I can't say too much. That's just my opinion about this kid.
Terrell Clinkscales - Defensive Tackle, Monster (Dodge City CC, Dodge City, KS)
Height: 6'4" Weight: 310 lbs
Ratings: 96 by 247 / NR by ESPN / 5.7 by Rivals
Interest: Iowa State (Warmer), Kansas St. (Warm), Texas Tech (Warm), Auburn (Warm)
No you didn't read that wrong, 96 rating by 247. He is the 5th ranked JUCO and 1st DT according to 247, and Tech is very much a player for him. Right now Iowa State has an advantage because he visited there a couple weekends ago (10/5), but has already scheduled a visit with Kansas State (11/15) and Texas Tech (1/10). And this kid isn't a fluke (hudl). Terrell's favorite move is the bull rush, and I don't blame him with unreal strength like he has. Constantly he is pushing back O-linemen, knocking guys out of the way and pummeling running backs. One example is about 3-4 minutes into the first video, where Terrell breaks through 3 (yes 3) guys to place a hard hit on the RB. He causes several fumbles in the video from hits alone. The only downside according to 247 is his hand speed, but he always has his hands at the right place at the right time, so it doesn't effect much. I really hope Kliff goes hard after him, he doesn't seem to get as much attention as he should and he would be a huge boost to our soon-to-be depleted DL.
Here are some other updates:
2014 Football:
- Will Coleman committed to Mississippi State last week (missed the news). He was leaning towards the Red Raiders at one point, and then a WVU offer came, and Coleman started slowly fading away. Tech still needs another DL or LB in class, so far the count is 3 total.
- Owen Williams enjoyed his official visit to Lubbock this weekend, and his highly considering the Red Raiders for his services. Auburn and Tennessee have also shown interest in Williams recently, but Tech is his only offer thus far.
- Patrick Mahomes and Ian Sadler both visited Tech over the weekend for the homecoming game. Both liked what they saw are still firmly committed to Texas Tech. Hope to see a Mahomes to Sadler connection in the future.
- Speaking of Mahomes, he is still recruiting out in East Texas. He is trying to persuade on-the-fence Zaycoven Henderson and Baylor commit KD Cannon to join the Red Raiders out in West Texas. Go get'em.
- Ivan Thomas is looking to come down for the OKST game on 11/2. Last time he came down to Lubbock was 6/20, and he brought along 5-star OG Jalin Barnett and his head coach. Will he do so again?
- If anyone noticed this last night, Josh Abbott was talking up recruits and what he thinks of them. Knows a lot more about Texas Tech recruiting than you expect, even got Ivan so reply and tell him when he's visiting (from above). Props to him.
2014 Basketball:
- Mitch Solomon had his commitment to Oklahoma State over the weekend. He visited OKST a couple weekends ago and officially committed there on Saturday. Tech was 2nd in the race.
- Javon Bess is a busy man. Michigan St offered 10/2, then he visited them 10/5, Wisconsin had a coach visit 10/7, He officially visited Kansas State 10/12, Kansas State had a coach visit on 10/14, and this weekend he's taking his official visit to Michigan State on 10/18. To make things simple, he's probably not coming to Tech.
- Satchel Pierce has a offer from Marquette, Pittsburgh and Miami, along with a coach visit from Miami and official visit to Pittsburgh this past week. Tech looks to be pushed out of the race for him too. Tech doesn't have any more ranked options if these two go else where, which is a drop off from the number of highly ranked guys we were pursuing.
- Jeff Newberry was going to come to the Tech Homecoming game, but couldn't get a ride here. He committed to OKST a few weeks ago and was interested in seeing us. He is going to OKST's homecoming next week.
2015+ Football:
- Jarrett Stidham was a visitor at homecoming this weekend and was very impressed by the "new energy" in Lubbock. Jarrett resides in Stephenville (home of Cody Davis) and is one of the top dual threat QB's for 2015. Not a clear leader so far in recruiting however.
- Jaylon Lane was also at homecoming this weekend, and I think Kliff Kingsbury may have found a hidden gem. He is a 6'2", 180 lb Cornerback/Kick Returner that has incredible speed. I'll do a analysis over him at some point, but he is a highlight reel. Here is his hudl if anyone wants to check him out now.
- Christian Philpott was offered by the Red Raiders yesterday, along with Northwestern and Penn State. He is an 88 ranked WR from Tallahassee that likes Florida State right now but is exploring his options.
Something else that happened a few weeks back that I didn't mention is how the Texas Tech baseball recruiting went. According to the Texas Tech Athletics website, Tech ranked 27th overall in recruiting this past year. Hats off to Tim Tadlock, and I will be looking forward to watching Red Raider baseball for a first time this year.
Update: Keenan Evans, a 3-star PG, has committed to Texas Tech. He doesn't have a profile on 247, but is 3-star on Rivals and a 68 on ESPN. Has a height of 6'1", weight of 170 lbs from L.V. Berkner High School in Richardson, TX.