Possible Red Raiders: A Weekly Recruiting Update - 10/13/2014

Brandon Pertile - Offensive Tackle (Mesa Community College, Mesa, AZ)

Ratings: 79 by 247 (70 in HS) / NR by ESPN / 5.6 by Rivals / 3-star by Scout (2-star in HS)

Interest: Oklahoma State (Committed), Texas Tech (Cool), Louisville (Cool), East Carolina

We first learned about Brandon Pertile last week when Texas Tech offered the JUCO OT. Brandon was a low rated recruit out of high school that committed to play OT at Georgia State. He played his freshmen season at Georgia State before transferring to Mesa Community College the following season. I'm not sure why he transferred, but I think discipline could be the reason. Brandon was suspended times during his freshmen campaign for numerous issues of conduct, although I don't know what exactly he did. During the summer, Brandon received an offer and committed to the Cowboys before the season started. He's been offered by Louisville and Texas Tech since then, who remain in the hunt. His only official visit thus far is to Stillwater October 24th, but hopefully he'll consider visiting Lubbock for either the Texas or Oklahoma game. Now let's take a look at what Brandon Pertile can do on the field. What I like about Brandon is the size advantage he brings on the offensive line. He has a big frame, which means that he has a bigger frame and is able to guard bigger players. It's good when your tackles have a large frame because it's harder for defensive ends and outside rushers to get around them. It gives the QB a bigger pocket to throw the football. I also like Brandon's mobility and ability to pull defenders. This can open up the running game and give the offense more plays to work with. Finally, Brandon is physical and nasty. He uses all his force the knock his opposition to the ground and move on to the next defender. When your tackle can block more than one guy, good things happen. He's someone I could see in a Red Raider uniform in 2015, and hopefully he'll take a closer look at Texas Tech.

Dede Westbrook - Wide Receiver (Blinn College, Brenham, TX)

Ratings: 89 by 247 (79 in HS) / NR by ESPN (77 in HS) / 5.5 by Rivals / NR by Scout (3-star in HS)

Interest: Utah (Warm), Texas Tech (Warm), Baylor (Warm), Texas A&M *(Warm)

I'm not sure when Texas Tech offered DeDe Westbrook or how long he's had a scholarship offer, but Westbrook isn't necessarily a new name to Texas Tech. The Red Raiders offered Westbrook back in 2011, but he choose to go to Texas State instead of Texas Tech. He transferred from Texas State after one year there (not sure why he transferred, likely got redshirted) and headed to Blinn college in Brenham. He formed a deadly one-two punch with Kyle Fulks to create one of the best offenses in junior college. While at Blinn, he has received three offers from Utah, Texas Tech and Baylor. He only school he has visited thus far is Utah, who recently got a commitment from Kyle Fulks, on September 26th. He hasn't planned any other visits yet, but hopefully he'll look at Lubbock before he decides to commit somewhere. Now let's look at what DeDe Westbrook can do. The first thing I noticed is the speed Westbrook had. I'm not quite sure if it's 4.38 like his hudl says, but he is incredibly fast and blazes by defenders. If he sees an open field in front of him, watch out. Another aspect I like is his ability to make guys miss. He cuts quickly and accelerates fast, which makes opponents miss their tackles and have to change direction quickly to catch him. He works successfully on screen passes and can also go deep down the field. What Westbrook also does well and keep his balance. When defenders are trying to bring him down by his legs, he keeps his feet under him and recovers, gaining extra yards. DeDe Westbrook is a good WR prospect that Texas Tech would be lucky to have.

Here are some more updates:

Football 2015:

• Courtney Wallace, 83 rated DT, committed to Texas Tech late Saturday night. His teammate announced via Twitter Saturday and then he tweeted that he committed Sunday morning. He becomes the 3rd Defensive linemen in this class
• Jarrett Stidham, 98 rated QB commit, was visiting Texas Tech last weekend, and as expected, was sitting next to and recruiting Tyron Johnson.
• Tyron Johnson, 97 rated WR, seemed to enjoy his time in Lubbock this weekend. He tweeted a picture of him with a new helmet and expressed his excitement on twitter.
• Christian Taylor, 85 rated S, also looked like he enjoyed his visit. He tweeted out that he was sad to see his visit end. Taylor had Texas Tech on Top before his visit.
• KeKe Coutee, 87 rated ATH, announced via Twitter that he will visit Texas Tech for the Texas game. He's been a long time Tech target that I haven't talked a whole lot about. Adds his name to an already impressive list of visitors for that weekend.
• Davon Crookshank, 88 rated RB, is receiving interest from Texas Tech according to Evan Flood of 247sports. He is currently committed to Wisconsin.
• Arden Key, 95 rated DE, will be taking an official visit to Texas Tech sometime this season. Key is currently committed to South Carolina but is still taking his official visits. This is the first I've mentioned of Key
• Brandon Pertile, 79 rated JUCO OT, has received an offer from Texas Tech. He currently committed to Oklahoma State, but the Red Raiders are still pursuing him.
• Reggie Walker, 87 rated OLB/DE, has a Top 3 of Kansas State, Texas Tech and Arkansas currently. It was down to Arky and Tech at one point, but it appears the Wildcats are in the chase for him.
• Kyle Fulks, NR JC WR, committed to Utah yesterday. Tech offered the JUCO WR a while back, and are currently going after his teammate in Westbrook.
• Semisi Uluave, 91 rated OG, has told Scout that his Top 3 consist of Texas Tech, UCLA and Oregon, but Oregon and UCLA are on top so far. The reason is because UCLA and Oregon have been recruiting him longer. Texas Tech started talking to Uluave last spring, while both schools have been talking to him since last fall. He so far has one visit planned to Oregon (Nov. 1st), but plans to visit Texas Tech as of now.
• Arthur McGinnis, 86 rated OLB, will take an official visit to Texas Tech at some point according to Rivals. Arthur is a teammate of Tyron Johnson and has been looking at Texas Tech for a while now.
• Jalen Bates, 89 rated DE, committed to Arizona State on Tuesday. He visited Tech for the Arkansas game, but it appeared that Tech was losing ground close to his commitment date.

Basketball 2015:

• Jordan Jackson, 84 rated PG, committed to Texas Tech on Sunday. He visited Tech over the weekend and loved it enough to commit to the Red Raiders (Texas Tech has one scholarship left to use). He is currently recruiting Kaiser Gates and trying to get him to commit to the Red Raiders.
• Kaiser Gates, 93 rated SF, visited Texas Tech last weekend. He told @TexasTechHoopsFans that he loved his visit. Also, Daniel Paulling of 247sports reported that Gates could be close to committing to Tech (behind a paywall). Something to keep an eye on.
• Wendell Mitchell, 88 rated SG, will be taking his official visit to Texas Tech this weekend for the Kansas game, He listed Tech in his Top 5 roughly a month or two ago.
• CJ Williamson, 87 rated SF, removed Missouri from his list and is down to Virginia Tech and Texas Tech. He visits Texas Tech this weekend and Virginia Tech the week after that. He plans to decide where to go on October 27th at 8pm. Should be noted that he has a teammate committed to Virginia Tech, but Virginia Tech did just get a commitment from a PG, leaving one scholarship left.

Football 2016+:

• Michael Johnson, NR 2016 DE, has received his first offer from the Red Raiders on Monday. He currently unranked, but is getting looked at by several big programs.
• Isaiah Grahm, 90 rated 2016 WR, received an offer from Texas Tech this past Monday. Graham is added to the list of top WRs already offered in the 2016 class. This is his 5th offer according to 247sports.
• Amani Bledsoe, 88 rated 2016 DE, has received his 5th offer this week from Texas Tech. Ohio State and Oklahoma offered a day later.
• Gerald Wilbon, NR 2016 DT, received his first offer from Texas Tech this past week. He is teammates of current Tech targets Kirk Merritt and Brandon Scott.
• McKinley Mitchell, 88 rated OLB/S, currently list Texas Tech on Top according to Ryan Bartow of 247sports. McKinley visited Tech for the Arkansas game and also has a brother (Mike Mitchell) at Tech.
• Jack Anderson, 90 rated C, visited Texas Tech this past weekend. He loved the O-line play and everything about Lubbock. Also found out on Scout that he is a Tech Legacy.

Basketball 2016+:

• Daniel Mading, NR 2017 SF, received an offer from Texas Tech this past week. Mading recently moved from Australia and has been making noise on the recruiting front due to his length and athleticism.
• Tre Jones, NR 2018 PG, received his first offer from Texas Tech on Tuesday, This is Tre's first offer and Tech's first offer for the 2018 class. He hasn't even played high school ball yet. He was likely offered after Joe Eposito's trip to Minnesota last week. This week he is headed west, including a stop in Phoenix.

Baseball:

Texas Tech received another 2015 commit last week, this time from Cisco JC SS/RHP Robert Dugger. Dugger was a 4A State Champion for his High School squad and won the MVP in their championship match. During his senior year at Tomball HS, Dugger put up very good numbers. On the offensive end, Robert hit .400 in 90 plate appearances, getting 34 hits, 29 RBIs and a HR. He also had 13 K's, 5 walks, 6 doubles and 2 triples. On the defensive end, Robert  had a 1.22 ERA with a 7-2 record. He allowed 21 walks, but threw 83 strikeouts. His fastball is 88 mph, while his CB and CH are both 76 mph. Dugger's stats while at Cisco JC weren't great (5-5, 5.40 ERA with 45 K's), but it appears that he still has his stuff. Stats in junior college often aren't accurate, so I Tadlock knows what he's doing.

Now for some unfortunate news. Current Texas Tech commit Cody Farhet (OF from Plano) torn his ACL during a football game last weekend. Thoughts and prayers to him while he recovers from that injury.

How did the 2014 Commits do?

How did the 2015 Commits do?