A Big 12 Analysis of New ESPN 300

ESPN's RecruitNation released their first ESPN 300 rankings earlier today.  David Ubben also had a post today in which he put together a list of all the Big 12 prospects included on the list along with a couple of his thoughts.  Below is that list.

No. 74: Davion Hall, ATH, Baylor
No. 79: Derick Roberson, DE, Texas
No. 97: Justice Hansen, QB-DT, Oklahoma
No. 103: Kyron Watson, LB, Kansas
No. 138: Jerrod Heard, QB-DT, Texas
No. 162: Mason Rudolph, QB-PP, Oklahoma State
No. 165: Jermaine Roberts, CB, Texas
No. 172: Otaro Alaka, OLB, Texas
No. 199: Dallis Todd, WR, Oklahoma
No. 202: Devon Thomas, RB, Oklahoma State
No. 214: Gyasi Akem, OLB, Oklahoma State
No. 222: Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma
No. 224: Allen Lazard, WR, Iowa State
No. 231: James David, OLB, Baylor
No. 237: Lorenzo Joe, ATH, Texas
No. 247: Donald Catalon, RB, Texas
No. 282: Carson Meier, TE-Y, Oklahoma

• Not surprised with Davion Hall being on top of this list.  He's pretty much at or near the top according to the other recruiting services.
• Justice Hansen is higher on this list that almost all the others.
• Rivals is MUCH higher on WR Allen Lazard than all other services.  They have him almost 200 spots higher at #25 overall and the top recevier in the nation.
• Kyron Watson is pretty high on this list too, he's in the 300s on the 247Composite.
• I had both Donald "Duke" Catalon and Kansas commit Traevohn Wrench (who isn't on the list) #1 and #2 on my RB rankings ahead of Devon Thomas and Samaje Perine.
• Baylor has two really good LB commits in James David (#231 on ESPN) and T'Kevian Rockwell (#230 on Top247).

Recapping the Weekend's Commitments

New ISU commit Orion Salters

• Iowa State added 2-star ATH Orion Salters.  Salters rushed and caught for over 1200 combined yards and 19 TDs last year.  While he has no other offers, Salters has been on ISU's radar for quite a while.
• West Virginia gained the commitment of hometown OL Amanii Brown.  Brown is a 3-star prospect by 247Sports who also didn't have any offers at the time.  While he wasn't heavily recruited, he was rated by 247Sports as the top prospect in the state this year.
• To nobody's surprise, WR Emanuel Porter committed to Texas on Saturday.  Emanuel attended a camp held by the Longhorns earlier this month and decommitted from TCU a day after.  Porter is a 3-star prospect by both Rivals and 247Sports.
• Another commitment that many recruitniks saw coming was OG Robert Castaneda to Texas Tech.  He entered the weekend committed to Kansas State, but after attending a Tech camp, he is now a Red Raider.  Like I said, there were signs and talk pointing toward this, so it's not a big surprise.  Tough loss for KSU.
• 3-star DE Jordan Brailford committed to the home state Cowboys on Saturday.  A top 10 prospect overall in the state, Brailford had offers from Baylor, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Tulsa, and more.  Here is what he had to say to OKState247 about the decision:   “Oklahoma State showed me the most love recently, we talked a lot and that made my decision easier,” Brailford said. “Coach Mike Gundy and his staff, I think they are going to treat me right when I'm there.''  He's #11 for the Pokes.
• JUCO TE John Thomas committed to the Longhorns over an offer from Auburn.  He visited Austin on Saturday without a Texas offer, but got one and pulled the trigger.  Here is a good writeup by BurntOrangeNation.com on his commitment.

WR Dorian Leonard is #16 for Texas

(h/t news-journal.com)

Longview wideout Dorian Leonard committed to the Texas Longhorns earlier today.  As the title states, this is the 16th overall commit for the Horns and the fourth WR in this year's class.  According to 247Sports, Leonard has other offers from Florida State, Oregon State, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma (the school many experts thought he was going to go to).  The 6'4/200 WR caught 21 passes last year for over 400 yards and 4 TDs.  Both Rivals and 247Sports list Leonard as a 3-star prospect and both have him as a top 5 receiver in the state of Texas.  In an interview with HornsNation.com, Leonard described what kind of player Texas is getting:

“I'm a big, physical receiver,” Leonard said. “I'm a big target to get to, and I have good hands. It feels real good to know I'm a Texas commit and I have a college to go to. I wanted to get committed so I can go back to working hard on the field.”

As I mentioned, this is already the fourth receiver in the class (third if Garret Gray moves to TE), but as the linked article mentions, the Horns will still continue recruiting Armanti Foreman and Emanuel Porter.

2014 Big 12 Recruiting Rankings: June

(h/t BaylorLariat.com)

Below is the fifth set of rankings for the 2014 cycle.  I'm hopeful that I can do a new set of rankings about once or twice every month with new analysis.  The rankings aren't scientific and are based on a number of factors including talent (obviously), class size, potential for growth, and others.  Agree or disagree?  Leave a comment below or tweet me @Big12Recruit.

1. Baylor:  I have to do it.  With Baylor absolutely rolling right now, I'm putting them on top of the conference.  They have 19 recruits (the largest class in the nation), they're getting some of the best receviers avaiable, and they're stealing recruits away from powerhouses like Texas.  They're not going to be here in February, but for now, Art Briles is killing it and deserves to be here.

2. Texas:  If you're a Texas fan and you're putting a lot of weight into these rankings, step back.  The Horns probably don't deserve to be here and will very, very likely have the best class in the end.  However, it's Baylor's moment right now.

3. Texas Tech:  Obviously overshadowed by Texas and Baylor, Texas Tech has put together a nice run since the middle of April as 10 out of their 13 commitments have come during that time.  They lack top-end talent, but when you have 13 commitments already, especially not at a recruiting powerhouse, you're doing something right.

4. Oklahoma:  The Sooners haven't had a new commitment in a couple of weeks, but they still have a top 25 class nationally according to 247Sports.  Justice Hansen and Dallis Todd may be the best QB-WR combo in the Big 12 this year.

5. Oklahoma State:  The Pokes missed out on the Kyle Allen sweepstakes, but still managed to find their QB for the future in Mason Rudolph earlier this month.  RB Devon Thomas and LB Gyasi Akem are pretty good too.

6. Kansas State:  K-State is also in the midst of a drought, having no new commitments since late April.  Still, with their hot start, they still have 7 right now in their class.

7. Iowa State:  Iowa State has picked up the pace, gaining 5 commitments since the beginning of May.  All-American Allen Lazard is the obvious class headliner, but the Clones also seem to be in good position for Rivals250 RB Jeff Jones.

8. TCU:  After losing a pair of commitments, it certainly hasn't been a good week for TCU.  They're currently at 4 right now and are falling behind in the state of Texas.

9. Kansas:  For being Kansas, Charlie Weis has already got some impressive talent in the class with RB Traevohn Wrench and LB Kyron Watson.  The probelm for Kansas is that don't have enough of it yet.  Only 3 commits for Weis so far.

10. West Virginia:  It's got to be a little troubling for Mountaineer fans that they only have a pair of commits right now.  However, there are a lot of prospects with interest in WVU, so that should change.

ULTRA MEGA BIG 12 RECRUITING WEEKEND WRAP-UP THREAD

It's been VERY busy in Big 12 land recruiting-wise over the past couple of days.  So much has happened and Big 12 Recruit has only covered a small portion of it.  Below is what has all happened (I think) with links to some of the stories.  Comment below for any discussion points or questions.

• NEW UPDATE:  Texas landed 3-star WR Garret Gray who had offers from Iowa State, Iowa, Houston, Cal, and others.  At 6'5/205+, he's got nice size and great speed (4.45) with potential to play tight end in Austin.
• NEW UPDATE:  Baylor picked up yet another commit in LB James David.  David, a 3-star prospect, chose the Bears over TCU, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Washington, and Houston.
• Baylor's recruiting being hot is an understatement.  Art Briles picked up FOUR commitments over the weekend.  The headliner being 4-star OLB/S T'Kevian Rockwell with the others being ATH Jourdan Blake, DT Ira Lewis, and DT Andrew Morris.  Baylor now has the largest class in the country along with a top 10 nationally ranked class at the moment.
• Texas gained three 2015 commitments over the weekend including now former TCU safety commit Johnny Shaw.  The other two are ATH Keke Coutee and OT Connor Lanfear.  That's now seven total commits for UT's 2015 class which is larger than TCU, Iowa State, Kansas, and West Virginia's 2014 classes.
• Speaking of Texas stealing TCU commits, Emanuel Porter decommitted from the Frogs a day after receiving an offer from Texas.  Porter signing with Texas seems very likely right now.
• Oklahoma State picked up a pair of commitments on Sunday at their camp.  Edna Karr teammates (New Orleans) DT Joyan Williams and CB Juwan Offray are the two new Cowboys.
• Offensive tackle Justin Murphy is #13 for Kliff Kingsbury and Texas Tech.
• Iowa State WR commit Allen Lazard and Texas QB Jerrod Heard competed this weekend at the Rivals 5-star Challenge.  Expect a post about that tomorrow.

OT Justin Murphy Joins Texas Tech's Class

(h/t DallasNews.com)

Texas Tech picked up #13 this afternoon in Belton, TX offensive tackle Justin Murphy.  Murphy is considered a 3-star prospect by 247Sports, a 2-star by Rivals, and hasn't been ranked yet by Scout.com.  Besides Tech, Murphy had offers from SMU, North Texas, New Mexico, Rice, along with others.  The 6'6/275 prospect seems pretty happy about his commitment to Tech per an interview with RedRaidersSports.com($):

"I've known in my heart that I've wanted to commit for a long time. Texas Tech is where I want to be as an offensive lineman. It's crazy. I wanted to commit because I know there are a limited number of spots, and I know that's where I want to be. I just had to talk it over. I talked to the coaches, my mom, my dad, my grandparents, and I guess that today is as good of a day as any.

And his announcement via Twitter:

Officially a Texas Tech Raider. Committed to the University of Texas Tech! #redraider #commit #gunsup
— Justin Murphy (@JMurphy_73) June 10, 2013

I'm short on time because of all the other Big 12 recruiting news, but check Viva The Matadors later today as I'm sure they'll have a much more detailed post.

Baylor Continues Hot Streak, DT Ira Lewis Commits

(h/t Fansided.com)

Baylor is on fire.

Baylor picked up their 12th commitment since the start of May in Houston DT Ira Lewis today.  Lewis was once committed to the hometown Cougars, but switched to Baylor today, two weeks after they offered.  Besides Houston and Baylor, the 6'3/260 prospect has offers from Boise State, Tulsa, SMU, and New Mexico State.  Last year, he totaled 12 sacks for Houston Lamar.  Because I'm short on time, below is what he had to say to SicEmSports.com($) about Baylor:

"I like how they rotate defensive players and how fast they play,'' Lewis said. "They want their guys to be fresh against these spread offenses. But everything really changed when I saw them at the camp, I really got see what they do and got a great feel with how the coaches get after their players. They challenge them. I loved seeing how coach Chris Achuff worked.''

Safety Johnny Shaw Flips Commitment From TCU to the Texas Longhorns

New Texas commit Johnny Shaw (h/t @KDG1974)

Mack Brown's day has been busy to say the least having picked up three 2015 commitments today (more on that later).  Perhaps the biggest and most surprising is that of safety Johnny Shaw.  The talented safety had committed to TCU in the middle of May, but flipped his commitment to Texas today.  Although this there's a long time until National Signing Day 2015, this is big for the Longhorns.  Below is what I had to say about Shaw after he committed to the Horned Frogs.

Right now, Shaw is a top 20 player in the state of Texas for 2015 (#18 in the '15 LSR). The 6'2/190 prospect is destined to be one of the best safeties, if not the best, to sign with a Big 12 school in 20 months, if he's still committed to TCU (that's a long time). As a sophomore last year, Shaw totaled 88 tackles, 5 INTs, and 2 forced fumbles according to ETSN.fm.

Lousiana Teammates DT Joyan Willians and CB Juwan Offray Commit to Oklahoma State

(h/t seaoforange.com)

Late last night, Oklahoma State added their seventh and eighth commitments in their 2014 class.  New Orleans high school (Edna Karr) teammates DT Joyan Williams and DB Juwan Offray were in Stillwater for camp and they both left town committed.

Williams is a 6'3/255, 3-star DT prospect that had other offers from Georgia Tech, Miami, Oklahoma, and Mississippi State along with some other schools.  He has always been on the Cowboys' radar and was once thought to be committed to Okie State, which didn't turn out to be the case.  Juwan Offray didn't have an Oklahoma State offer until he had an impressive showing at OSU's camp($) yesterday.  Offray isn't ranked, but does hold an offer from Nebraska, which is pretty impressive for a prospect that isn't on many people's radars.  Below is an excerpt from an interview with Nola.com:

“It feels good,” Offray said, “It’s a lot of pressure off my shoulders, I’m just worried about getting through my senior season now. The teammate I committed with, I’ve been playing ball with him all my life. We have a brother-like relationship so it feels good to be able to commit with him.”

 

4-star OLB T'Kevian Rockwell Commits to Baylor

(h/t BleachReport.com)

Baylor continues their hot streak on the recruiting trail, this time it's on the defensive side of the ball.  4-star prospect T'Kevian Rockwell committed to the Baylor Bears late Friday night.  This is a big time get for Baylor as Rockwell is considered a top 250 prospect overall by both Rivals and 247Sports.  He also had a nice offer list including Texas Tech, West Virginia, Nebraska, Kansas, and even Michigan.  Rockwell possesses great speed for his size (6'0/205) which may lead to him playing safety in Waco.  I'll leave you with two reports on Rockwell.

Jason Howell, Rivals($):

"He has the frame to get bigger and while he is projected by many to be an outside linebacker he has the ability to spin up to safety and be a terrorizing figure as a big safety," Rivals Southwest regional analyst Jason Howell said. "He has legitimate track speed and covers a lot of ground very quickly. In the pass happy Big 12 he's the kind of guy who can be an every day player and has the potential to be used in a variety of ways.''

Scout.com:

Looks like he is shot out of cannon as he closes in on ball carriers. He closes ground quickly and relentlessly and does not slow down to impact. He makes good form tackles and explodes through the ball carrier. May be a little undersized, but a prospect can either play football or he can’t -- that’s the bottom line -- and Rockwell can play with the best of them. He is very physically gifted, one of the more impressive specimens in the DFW.

Handicapping DB Arrion Springs's Recruitment

(h/t studentsports.com)

Arrion Springs's recruitment is really starting to heat up.  Springs is a talented 4-star defensive back that has offers from some of the top programs in the country.  He's one of the best uncommitted DBs in the country, making him a key recruit for several programs especially the ones below.

Oregon:  Springs finally received a long awaited offer from Oregon a couple weeks ago.  The Ducks have seemed to be the favorite throughout the whole process.  Many believe that he'll commit to Oregon when he's in the state for The Opening (a camp for elite players) later this month.  Right now, Oregon has to be the favorite.  60%

Texas:  While the Ducks have probably been the leader throughout the process, Texas has quickly closed the gap.  Texas has been the most popular choice for recruiting analysts on 247Sports' Crystal Ball feature.  He attended UT's camp last weekend too.  35%

Florida State:  It once was Miami who was seen as a third option, but Florida State has now moved into that position.  They offered earlier this week, but Texas and Oregon are both way ahead of FSU when it comes to Springs.  There's a chance, but not really.  5%

QB Mason Rudolph Commits to Oklahoma State

(h/t AP)

The Pokes missed out on the Kyle Allen sweepstakes earlier this month, Oklahoma State now has their quarterback.  South Carolina QB Mason Rudolph announced via Twitter today that he has committed to Oklahoma State.  A 3-star prospect by 247Sports and a consensus top 25 pro-style QB, Rudolph chose OSU over offers from top programs including LSU, Virginia, Louisville, Ole Miss, and Virginia Tech.  At 6'4/210, he has a nice build for a pro-style QB which helped him throw for over 4000 yards and 41 TDs last year.  For a little more detailed post, check out Pistol Firing's analysis of Rudolph's commitment.

Big 12's Best Available Recruits: Running Back

Jeff Jones (h/t Scout.com)

We continue our series looking at the best prospects avaiable at each position today with running backs.  Many backs have already committed to Big 12 programs, so the talent available isn't elite.  If you can think of other RB prospects still available, leave a comment below because I have a feeling I left someone off the list.

Joe Mixon:  Mixon is one of the best backs in the country.  While he's from California and USC seems to be the favorite, Oklahoma is still in the mix.  According to 247Sports, he'll take a visit to Norman in October.

Jeff Jones:  Jones is another top 150 player overall who is committed to Minnesota right now.  However, his commitment isn't that strong and he's definitely looking around right now.  Iowa State is perhaps the favorite right now and JC Shurburtt of 247Sports today predicted that he'll sign with ISU.

Vic Enwere:  Isn't ranked in the top 50 at his position, but has plenty of offers including Michigan and Cal.  He doesn't have any offers from Big 12 programs, but I would expect that to change.

Larenzo Stewart:  A 3-star prospect from Spring, TX with an offer from Baylor, the school most recruiting experts see him going to.

Samuel Stewart:  A Cypress, TX native that holds offers from Texas Tech and Iowa State among other teams.

Robert Martin:  Martin rushed for 1800 yards and 18 TDs last year for Harrisburg HS in Pennsylvania last year.  West Virginia and Rutgers are the two favorites for Martin's services.

Best available prospects at other positions:

• Offensive Linemen
• Quarterbacks
• Wide Receivers

Baylor Ends Weekend With a Pair of Commitments

(h/t zimbio.com)

Baylor is the hottest team on the recruiting trail right now in the Big 12.  They added two more prospects over the weekend at their first summer camp, making it now 14 commitments for the 2014 class, the most in the Big 12.  With the verbal commitments of OG Blake Blackmar and CB Chad Adams, Baylor's class is now just outside the top 10 nationally according to 247Sports' rankings.  Below is quick breakdown of Baylor's two new commits.

OG Blake Blackmar

Blackmar was the first out of the pair to commit to Baylor.  This is really nice pickup for Art Briles and company considering I included him on my best available offensive linemen list almost a week ago.  Blackmar is a 3-star prospect and had offers from Mizzou, Minnesota, Kansas State (who were thought to be one of the leaders), Texas Tech, Washington State and others.

CB Chad Adams

Adams is another 3-star prospect with offers from across the country including UCONN, Kansas, Washington, Arizona State, and others.  Adams totaled 98 tackles and 2 interceptions last year with state champions Allen Eagles.  Baylor is getting yet another speedster for their 2014 class as Adams runs multiple events on the Allen track team.