| National Outlook | ||||
|
 It’s February, It Must Mean TexasAs the old recruiting season goes out and the new one comes in, one thing holds true, year after year: Texas owns the February recruiting news. The Longhorns held their first Junior Day and as a result, they have their usual boat load of commitments, which now stand at 14, nine of whom are on the ESPN 150 watch list. In February, Case McCoy, brother of former Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy, signed with Texas. Right out of the gate this year, Texas picked up a commitment from the brother of Colt’s favorite target. Jaxon Shipley is a 6-foot-0, 170-pounder from Brownwood, Texas who, like his brother Jordan, is a wide receiver. It is not a surprise that he runs great routes and has exceptional hands. Texas was clearly the favorite and no one else really got involved, knowing his inevitable choice. The Horns also landed their quarterback in David Ash from Belton, Texas. The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Ash has good size, a good arm, and though he can gain yards on the ground, it is more because of his power rather than his speed. Besides Texas, he had also been hearing from Texas A&M, Texas Tech, TCU, and Houston. Texas defensive coordinator and head coach in waiting Will Muschamp will get a few new weapons to unleash in the coming years. Desmond Jackson is a 6-foot-1, 273-pound defensive tackle from Houston. He appears very thin for an interior defensive lineman, but he is only a junior and has plenty of time to put on some pounds. He lined up on the nose for his Westfield High School team and his quickness will allow him to thrive as a tackle in the Texas 4-3. Texas A&M, Oklahoma, and Alabama were some of the schools showing early interest. The Texas staff also reeled a couple other Houston area products, including South High School cornerback Leroy Scott. The 5-foot-11, 180-pounder has it all: great strength to play press coverage, outstanding recovery speed, tremendous ball skills, and an exceptional awareness of the game. He is also not afraid to stick his nose in and help out in run support. LSU, Baylor, Houston, and TCU were some of Scott’s other offers. Just outside the Houston city limits is Missouri City, home to 6-foot-1, 175-pound defensive back Sheroid Evans. Evans is listed as a cornerback in the ESPN database, though he could also play free safety in college. The strength of his game is speed; he is one of the fastest high school track athletes in the country. LSU, USC, and TCU were some of the other programs interested in Evans. Ten days after the Texas Junior Day, 6-foot-2, 225-pound outside linebacker Steve Edmond from Daingerfield, Texas committed to the Longhorns. As a junior, Edmond had an astounding 182 tackles with 34 of those resulting in lost yardage. He also showed that he could drop into coverage by intercepting five passes. Like just about every other Texas commit, Edmond was also pursued by A&M and Texas Tech, as well as Oklahoma and Arkansas. The rest of the commits, like those mentioned, all hail from the Lone Star State. For the complete list of Texas commitments, please consult the Longhorns’ team page on the ESPN football recruiting website. When mentioning Texas, it is only natural to also mention Oklahoma, who had a Junior Day of their own. The Sooners picked up three 2011 pledges that day and all three come from Texas. Two of the three February commits are on the ESPN 150 watch list, including tight end Chris Barnett of Euless, Texas. Barnett is a fine athlete that excels on both sides of the ball, but Oklahoma is hoping that he becomes the next Jermaine Gresham. Miami, LSU, and Tennessee were other schools that had offered. Texas had not, but was showing considerable interest. The Sooners’ other two Junior Day commits are teammates at Stony Point High School in Round Rock. P.J. Lindley is a 6-foot-2, 205-pound linebacker that is on the ESPN 150 watch list. He had 90 tackles and four sacks this past fall. His other offers included Rice, SMU, and Houston while the other big Texas programs were watching him closely. In front of him, playing defensive tackle for Stony Point, is 6-foot-4, 280-pound Jordan Wade. While Wade is not on the ESPN 150 watch list, his offer list could be considered more impressive than Lindley’s. Baylor, Houston, and Texas A&M got their offers in early. The SEC West powers also are off to a quick start. Alabama has three early commitments from ESPN 150 watch list prospects, the most recent coming from 6-foot-0, 241-pound Shannon Brown from Adel, Ga. Brown is a prototypical middle linebacker with good athletic ability that is always looking to knock the opposing running back’s block off. Georgia, Tennessee, and Clemson were among the many schools that approached Brown. Auburn received a commitment from massive offensive lineman Spencer Region from Cullman, Ala. The 6-foot-5, 339-pound had privately committed to Alabama, the school that had long been considered the prohibitive favorite, but when it came time to announce his decision publicly, it was Auburn. He may still take visits to Florida State and Mississippi. Izauea Lanier also recently committed to Auburn head coach Gene Chizik. Lanier is a 6-foot-0, 190-pound safety from Gordo, Ala. that currently attends East Mississippi Community College. He had committed to Auburn out of high school and will now be suiting up for them in the fall of 2011. LSU kept pace by landing two solid recruits. Trevon Randle scored 12 touchdowns in 2009 as a running back at Clear Springs High School in League City, Texas. But LSU sees his future at linebacker, where he had 152 tackles in the fall. The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder is big, strong, and fast, a nasty combination for any linebacker. He picked LSU over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Nebraska. Alonzo Lewis, a 6-foot-3, 195-pound wide receiver from St. James, La., has decided to stay close to home and attend LSU. Lewis camped in Baton Rouge last summer and was offered at that time. The ESPN 150 watch list prospect had offers from Houston and Tulsa. He was the ninth player to commit to LSU for 2011. Two of Notre Dame’s rivals that are currently under the NCAA microscope accepted recent commitments. USC is the future home for 6-foot-1, 295-pound defensive tackle Antwaun Woods of Woodland Hills, Calif. Woods had offers from several prominent programs including Florida, Tennessee, California, and Washington. Meanwhile, Shawn Conway from Birmingham, Mich. committed to the Michigan Wolverines. The 6-foot-4, 185-pound wide receiver received his first offer at Michigan’s Junior Day and he accepted. |