Tag: Texas high school football

Purdue recruits 3-star QB prospect from Texas for their class of 2025

Anderson (6-foot-0, 180 pounds) also had offers from 24 other schools.

The 2024 recruiting cycle has slowed down a great deal in recent days as programs begin to focus on the start of the college football season. Several schools have added three-star recruits this week, including a young quarterback prospect for Purdue.

Here’s how Parish Episcopal School (Texas) three-star quarterback Sawyer Anderson announced his commitment to the Boilermakers on Tuesday.

Anderson (6-foot-0, 180 pounds) had offers from 24 other schools, including Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Colorado, Duke, Memphis, Miami, NC State and Wisconsin.

Purdue will be getting what Parish Epsicopal head coach Daniel Novakov calls the best QB he’s ever seen at getting the ball out of his hands quickly, per Dub Jellison at Rivals.

“He’s a gunslinger. He’s the best quarterback I’ve ever seen at getting the ball out of his hand quickly… He’s a deadly accurate passer. He’s the best passer I’ve ever seen. I mean, that doesn’t mean he’s got the strongest arm I’ve ever seen, but his arm is ridiculously strong. His hands are huge. The way he just is able to flick that ball and put it where he wants to put it. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Rivals has Anderson ranked No. 25 at quarterback and No. 62 in the state of Texas. Meanwhile, On3 and 247Sports have him ranked lower.

Anderson is the second commit of Purdue’s class of 2025. The other is DeSoto (Texas) three-star edge Keylan Abrams.

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4-star WR Taz Williams Jr. from Texas ‘open to going anywhere’ at next level

So far he has 43 college offers.

Wide receivers are arguably the second-most important position group in the modern game after quarterbacks. It should come as no surprise then that some of the hottest recruits in the 2024 cycle are receivers. One prospect we’ll have an eye on over the coming weeks and months is Red Oak (Texas) four-star wideout Taz Williams Jr.

Coming out of last weekend’s wide receiver skills clinic in Dallas, it sounds like Williams’ recruitment is wide open and he’s open to playing anywhere, per Cole Patterson at Rivals.

“The Red Oak playmaker has notched more than 40 offers, with the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Texas among the programs in pursuit. Williams has seen several campuses this summer as he gets more of a feel of what he is looking for in a school. Originally from Pennsylvania, Williams is open to going anywhere for the next level. He will be at LSU at the end of the month as the Tigers make a push.”

Williams (5-foot-11, 165 pounds) has no shortage of choices. So far, he has 43 college offers. None of them are considered “hot” for his commitment by 247Sports’ account, though.

That mirrors what On3’s prediction model says, which has no clear favorite at this time. At the moment, Texas is out in front at 23.1%, followed by TCU at 15.3%, then SMU at 8.9% and Ohio State at 7.4%.

Rivals is highest on Williams among the four major recruiting services. They have him ranked No. 21 among wide receivers in his class and No. 135 nationally.

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Recruitment for 5-star edge Colin Simmons appears to be a ‘two-team race’

Simmons appears to be narrowing his choices down to two schools.

Ohio State stunned the recruiting world on Sunday night when they got a commitment from St. Ignatius (Ill.) standout Justin Scott, one of several five-star defensive line recruits in the class of 2024. The best of them has yet to decide on his college, though.

That would be Duncanville (Texas) five-star edge Colin Simmons, who is ranked No. 1 at his position by Rivals and ESPN and in the top five at 247Sports and On3.

Simmons appears to be narrowing his choices down to two schools. Adam Gorney at Rivals says it’s a two-team race between Texas and LSU to get his commitment.

“There have been significant rumors especially in the last few weeks that Texas has emerged as the front-runner in this recruitment after months of Simmons liking LSU a whole lot. Throughout his recruitment, the five-star defensive end from Duncanville, Texas has been complimentary of many teams but as it gets closer this one feels like a two-team race with the Longhorns pulling ahead.”

Gorney is projecting that Simmons will eventually settle on Texas. That’s also what On3’s prediction model has, with the Longhorns the favorites at 58.5% and LSU at 21.1%.

Texas finished at No. 3 in the nation in the 2023 recruiting cycle, but right now, they’re lagging at No. 32 nationally in the class of 2024. Meanwhile, LSU is in the top 10.

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Former HS football coach leads new team to Texas state title in BBQ

The barbeque competition is sponsored by Goodstock, owned by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan.

In Texas, they take their high school football seriously. One of the rare things that might take precedence is barbecue—which is actually a sport in the state. And at least one coach has managed to find success in coaching both.

According to Dave Wilson at ESPN, former Rockwell varsity football coach Sean Hill has led his team to a 2023 Texas HS BBQ State Championship.

“Just three years after his change of careers, Hill coached a team to his elusive first state championship. His 205 Pitmasters Team Smoke, representing Rockwall Independent School District’s Dr. Gene Burton College and Career Academy, was named grand champion out of 92 teams at the 2023 Texas High School BBQ State Championship on May 6.”

The barbecue competition is sponsored by Goodstock, owned by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan.

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Lake Belton 4-star CB Selman Bridges: ‘I really like Texas’

One of the hottest cornerbacks in the class of 2024 is Selman Bridges from Lake Belton (Texas).

One of the hottest cornerbacks in the class of 2024 is Selman Bridges from Lake Belton (Texas).

So far, Bridges has offers from 26 different programs, including Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, Cal, Duke, Houston, LSU, Miami, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Prairie View A&M, SMU, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, USC, UTSA, Vanderbilt and Washington.

Bridges (6-foot-3, 170 pounds) has visited the Longhorns twice in the last couple of weeks, though – raising speculation that Texas is the school to beat in his recruitment. Bridges told Nick Harris at Rivals he really likes the school and credits his relationship with head coach Steve Sarkisian.

“I really like Texas, I’ll definitely go back… Coach Sark is a good person to be around, we talk almost every week and just talk about life. It’s not just a football relationship with him, he wants to know what I want to be and what I want to do after football. It’s heart-to-heart conversation with him.”

Bridges has several more official visits scheduled, so his recruitment is far from settled. However, On3’s prediction model has Texas as the overwhelming favorite to get his commitment at 93.1%.

Going by the composite rankings, Bridges is ranked No. 6 among 2024 cornerbacks, No. 57 in the nation and No. 9 overall in the state of Texas.

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Texas 4-star QB Marcos Davila picks Purdue over 23 other offers

Midland Legacy (Texas) four-star quarterback Marcos Davila announces commitment to Purdue.

The Purdue Boilermakers have found their quarterback for the 2024 recruiting cycle.

On Monday, Midland (Texas) four-star QB Marcos Davila announced his commitment to Purdue on Twitter.

Davila had offers from 23 other programs, including TCU, Colorado and Miami. As to why he picked Purdue? Davila’s recent comments to Nick Harris at Rivals about head coach Graham Harrell are a solid clue.

“Just his character… He’s been really great to me and my family. I feel like he’s one of the most honest recruiters I talk to. He shows me a lot of love all the time.”

Davila also credited the opportunity that he will have to play at Purdue.

Going by the composite rankings, Davila (6-foot-3, 217 pounds) is ranked No. 20 among quarterbacks in his class, No. 52 overall in Texas and No. 315 nationally.

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3 Texas schools in the lead for 4-star Longview RB Taylor Tatum

While that list includes schools as far away as USC, Oregon and Washington it sounds like Tatum will be staying in-state.

Longview (Texas) four-star running back Taylor Tatum has no shortage of colleges to choose from. According to 247Sports, he’s received offers from 37 different programs so far.

While that list includes schools as far away as USC, Oregon and Washington, it sounds like Tatum will be staying in-state. On3’s prediction model currently has Baylor with a narrow lead to get his commitment at 21.5%. Texas A&M is next at 18.8%, followed by Texas at 16.1%.

Whoever gets Tatum (5-foot-10, 195 pounds) will be landing one of the top running backs in the class of 2024. He ranks No. 3 at his position, No. 6 overall in the state and No. 36 in the nation.

Last season at Longview, he racked up 1,891 rushing yards and scored 33 touchdowns. Here’s a look at some of his high school highlights.

According to Rivals, Tatum has spring visits set for Ohio State, Georgia and Oregon.

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Watch: Highlights for 5-star Duncanville EDGE Colin Simmons

The No. 1 ranked Edge defender in the recruiting class of 2024 is Colin Simmons from Duncanville (Texas).

The No. 1 ranked Edge defender in the recruiting class of 2024 is Colin Simmons from Duncanville (Texas).

On Tuesday, MaxPreps National Football Editor Zack Poff shared some highlights from Simmons’ remarkable body of work, including some absolutely ridiculous numbers from his Junior season.

Simmons (6-foot-3, 225 pounds) is ranked No. 5 overall in the class of 2024.

Thirty-nine different schools have made offers, according to On3, but their prediction model has LSU (88.4%) as the heavy favorite.

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Patrick Mahomes’ high school classmate predicted he’d win a Super Bowl

At least one person saw Mahomes’ awesome potential, though.

Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback on the planet, and whoever is in second place isn’t very close behind. Yesterday Mahomes won his second Super Bowl ring in his just fifth season as the starting quarterback for the Chiefs. At just 27 years old, Mahomes has plenty of time to add more to his collection – setting him up to be in the Greatest of all Time conversation someday.

At first, it wasn’t clear to everybody that Mahomes was special. Back in high school (Whitehouse, Texas), he was only ranked No. 398 in his recruiting class and 21 other pro-style quarterbacks were ranked ahead of him.

At least one person saw Mahomes’ awesome potential, though. One of his high school classmates wrote in their yearbook that the thing he was most excited about at their class reunion was seeing Mahomes’ Super Bowl ring:

Not bad.

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Watch: 4-star safety Warren Roberson flips his commitment from TCU to Texas

The Texas Longhorns have added yet another significant piece to their already-elite recruiting class of 2023.

The Texas Longhorns have added yet another significant piece to their already-elite recruiting class of 2023.

This morning, Red Oak (Texas) four-star safety Warren Roberson announced that he’s flipped his commitment from TCU to Texas. He did it in dramatic fashion, surrounded by his teammates and friends.

Roberson (6-foot-0, 180 pounds) is ranked No. 22 at safety in his class and No. 47 overall in the state. He comes with ball skills and is a pick-six threat, but he’s much more than just a DB with sticky hands. He’s made an impact in all three phases over the last two years, totaling six interceptions, 1,020 receiving yards, 12 touchdown catches and 462 total return yards.

Texas ranks No. 3 in the 2023 cycle, led by the nation’s No. 1 overall recruit, quarterback Arch Manning and the top-ranked running back Cedric Baxter Jr.

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