Ian Boyd from Inside Texas & SB Nation's Football Study Hall just did a piece on how the 2015 recruiting class fit into our schemes:
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The Gameplan: Finding fits in 2015
February 5, 2015 by Ian Boyd
Now that signing day is over, we can at last take a few deep breathes and look back at Charlie’s first full recruiting haul. It was a big one, and necessarily so after “the purge” that took place in the offseason, the failure of Mack to recruit and develop depth at key spots, and Strong’s general desire to get his own selections into the program.
Going off our handy guides for recruiting to the current offensive and defensive systems, we’re going to dive fully into the 2015 Texas recruiting class and talk about where all these kids fit in Charlie Strong’s master plan to conquer the Big 12.
I’ve listed individual players’ star rating by 247 but I have my own thoughts and I’m going to give positional groups grades based on whether each unit presents a good chance of filling the team’s needs provided they are well developed.
THE OFFENSIVE CLASS
Some of the “Texas is going spread!” talk can be demonstrated as overblown by just examining the class Strong signed on offense. If every player pans out, Texas will be multiple in the formations they can bring with excellent pro-style and spread fits in the fold.
Interestingly, there could be amazing potential for this group as an up-tempo, pro-style offense that can pound the ball on the ground or throw it around as teams desperately try to adjust to all the big, fast people Texas will put on the field. It’s an athletic group but size is the name of the game with only Ryan Newsome standing out as a smaller player. Everyone else has a good chance of being larger than the defender across from them, some of them will be faster as well.
Quarterback
Kai Locksley, 6’3” 190. 4****
Baltimore, MD (Gilman)
If I can find complete games online later, I’ll dive into them but for now I think it’s clear enough what Texas has here, which is a great athlete with a strong arm but questionable fit within a pro-style scheme. His arm strength is good, and he does a good job of making the simple progressions asked of him in his high school’s Wing-T style offense.
He’s shown an ability to kill with the option run game on both zone and power read schemes as well as a few others and is just a natural ball-carrier. He’s also great in play-action with good touch and strength throwing deep bombs, he’s only solid in the rollout game that is a key at Texas. Locksley has little experience in the quick passing game that Watson teaches but it would be silly to rule out the possibility of him mastering it.
If Locksley proves less capable of managing the game as the QB in this system, he’s still exceptionally fluid, has great hands, and has already shown a serious aptitude for WR, which is where he was most likely to end up at FSU with several other QBs recruited over him.
Fit: Spread-option trigger-man/wide receiver
Matthew Merrick, 6’3” 185. 3***
Irving, TX (Cistercian Prep)
Merrick is Shawn Watson’s personal hedge fund if the raw, athletic quarterbacks on campus don’t pan out. He has Big 12-average arm strength and athleticism with some ability to find receivers on the run and good accuracy when doing so.
If he can learn the system and how to manage games he could become an important figure in Texas football history should the Texas OL and run game get going in the future. It’s easy to see him developing enough mastery of the Watson passing game to at least be a serviceable option here.
Fit: Pro-style game manager
There are several external factors that are hard to overlook here. One is that the state of Texas produced blue-chippers Kyler Murray and Jarrett Stidham but Texas whiffed on both, losing out to the state’s premier offensive powers Texas A&M and Baylor. Also concerning, the state produced some other prospects like Quinten Dormady and Ben Hicks that the staff ignored in order to secure OOS prospect Zach Gentry (inevitably lost to another OOS power in Harbaugh’s Michigan).
Another is that Texas needs immediate help at the position, which is generally impossible to find at the high school level, and now must come in the form of a grad transfer. Really the staff should get an “Incomplete” here since the need for a transfer is so high and they could get a failing grade if you wanted to punish them for allowing yet more of the state’s bountiful QB prospects to go elsewhere.
Grade: B-
At the end of the day, the staff took two players with upside as potential starters, and if there are problems down the line, it won’t be due to lack of raw talent but instead fit or lack of development.
Offensive Line
Ronnie “Buck” Major, 6’6” 290. 4****
Huntsville, TX (Huntsville)
Major is a big-time grades risk, which is a shame because he’s one of the most promising recruits in the entire class. He’s fairly raw as a prospect but has the knee-bend and athleticism to be a great tackle along with the will to dominate on the edge. Major has the quickness and length to handle the athletic demands of Wickline’s zone schemes and could be a downright menace climbing up to linebackers on power.
Fit: Right tackle
Connor Williams, 6-5, 285. 3***
Coppell, TX (Coppell) (Early Enrollee)
Williams has fantastic athleticism and might be the best OL in the class even if Buck doesn’t have to go the JUCO route. Great knee bend and mobility, when he’s a veteran at 300 pounds, he’ll be tough to get past and likely a terror in the run game.
Fit: Left tackle
Tristan Nickelson, 6-9, 319. 2**
Corsicana, TX (Navarro College) (Early Enrollee)
Nickelson already has the ability to hook or ride defensive ends in zone schemes thanks to improving footwork combined with impossible length and mass. He’s solid climbing to the next level or playing pass protection as well but is best when he can get his big mitts on one defender and then bully them. There’s no getting through him with his size and going around can be tricky because of the range of his punches, opponents will have try and get inside of him.
There’s a good chance Nickelson makes an immediate impact for Texas due to the fact that only ends with explosive speed will be able to attack him.
Fit: Right tackle
Brandon Hodges, 6-5, 295. 3***
Scooba, MS (East Mississippi C.C.) (Early Enrollee)
Hodges is a big body that can kick-step and drop step without getting put on skates, which makes him valuable to Texas’ OL depth chart. Like most college linemen, he can be confused by stunts and might have the highest ceiling at guard, but he has quick feet and represents a likely upgrade at either tackle position barring big improvement from Texas’ younger OL.
Fit: Left tackle
Patrick Vahe, 6-3, 300. 4****
Euless, TX (Trinity)
Vahe is the rare sub 6-foot-4 interior OL who isn’t just a fast and heady player that teams trust to make line calls at center. He’s actually very powerful as well and is pure murder when pulling thanks to his nasty disposition and the terrifying combination of his upper body strength and overall agility and speed.
Barring football IQ and leadership that makes him a great candidate to make line calls as center, you want this guy in a spot where he can pull and lead for your running back, left guard is best since you often have bigger maulers on the right side that can cave in a defensive line before that puller arrives. His challenge will be not allowing penetration on zone.
Fit: Left guard
Garrett Thomas, 6-5, 306. 3***
Many, LA (Many) (Early Enrollee)
Most of Garrett Thomas’ power is in his base, which is actually a good thing for an OL, and his upper body strength will surely improve as he lifts with Moorer. Thomas is decently quick but this is perhaps your best fit at center, a player has the size and length to grabble with and control d-tackles or steadily climb up to the next level and screen linebackers off the ball. He’ll fit somewhere inside where his length will allow him to cover up DL and prevent penetration.
Fit: Center
Grade: B+
The likely combined loss of Major in addition to Weathersby will decrease the overall athleticism of this group but each player has at least one fit and Williams might end up becoming a star. There’s also the fact that Wickline has a proven track record with players of these types, this is the kind of clay he loves to mold.
Running backs
Tristian Houston, 5-11, 195. 3***
Houston, TX (North Shore)
Initially a questionable take, Houston’s senior tape reveals that the North Shore back actually excels at reading linebacker leverage and cutting up field with acceleration. This trait is the key to executing Wickline’s schemes, which often ask the RB to threaten the cutback at the hand-off and guide linebackers into the waiting arms of the Texas OL and lead blockers. His 10.88 track speed clearly translates in pads and he also adds a willingness to punish opponents at the end of runs.
If he can pick up protection duties and catch out of the backfield, he may surprise.
Fit: Change of pace runner, potential feature-back
Chris Warren, 6’2”, 235. 4****
Rockwall, TX (Rockwall)
Warren is the feature back of Strong’s dreams; a big, punishing runner who can also pull away from defenders at the 2nd level. Warren can win the edge on zone, jump-step into a cutback lane and then accelerate, he can break tackles and punish tacklers or he can just burn them if he hits a crease.
With his soft hands and capable blocking, he’s the total package as a running back.
Fit: Feature-back
Grade: A-
Soso Jamabo is one of the best athletes in the state, but it’s hard to do better than a player who fits the scheme while offering homerun speed along combined with a potential war-horse.
Tight Ends
Devonaire Clarington, 6’5”, 238. 4****
Miami, FL (Booker T. Washington)
Clarington is currently a pure receiver with fluidity comparable to Burt or Johnson but less top speed…of course he’s not going to play receiver at Texas. Instead, his ability to high point the ball and run routes at 6-foot-5 are going to be put to use at tight end, where he could be a killer in this league.
Even worse for Big 12 opponents, Clarington was one of the better pass-rushing ends in Florida last year and has a willingness to mix it up in the trenches, although not yet the size, to become a punishing blocker on the edge with time. This is the best tight end prospect Texas has taken since JerMichael Finley.
Fit: Tight End
DeAndre McNeal, 6’2”, 228. 4****
Mesquite, TX (Poteet)
McNeal could become the ideal H-back who can line up in the backfield as a sort of winger/fullback, flex out and run routes as a slot receiver, line up as an outside receiver, or perhaps even play as an in-line tight end. The key will be if he’s willing to become a punishing blocker who traps and leads like a fullback when he’s not flexing out to run routes against over-matched linebackers. If he accepts this role, McNeal could be a constantly motioning piece that puts tremendous stress on defenses so that they can no longer function. It’s hard to overstate how much value he could have.
Fit: H-back
Grade: A+
Tight end had been a wasteland at Texas for too long, Greg Davis included TEs in his base offense but Texas often just hoped some big receivers would spin down and become effective blockers. Harsin desperately tried to stock up on big bodies who could allow him to move blockers around and attack the edges, now Strong has at last found some players who are likely to thrive in both roles.
Wide Receivers
John Burt, 6’2”, 180. 4****
Tallahassee, FL (Lincoln)
You can’t help but be reminded by John Harris watching Burt’s tape. He’s big and smooth on the outside and will probably enjoy playing with Swoopes, whether that occurs on the practice field or on Saturdays. The difference is that while Harris didn’t run by people often and often had to fight through defenders, Burt has some good speed to go along with his size. Burt should grow into a nightmare on the edge that many defensive backfields will have to double in order to control.
Fit: X receiver
Gilbert Johnson, 6’2”, 190. 3***
Atlanta, GA (Georgia Prep Sports Academy)
There’s very little difference in my eyes between Johnson and Burt other than Gilbert being a possible grades casualty. Gilbert has great fluidity, great hands, and some pull away speed that could make him another great vertical threat. Texas is looking for players outside that can beat up smaller corners on timing routes or over the top.
Fit: X or Z receiver
Ryan Newsome, 5’8”, 170. 4****
Aledo, TX (Aledo)
Newsome is a great athlete with great hands who’s role at Texas could range from “kick returner” to “slot weapon” to “outside receiver” depending on how his route running and skills develop. He has some Quan Cosby in him, who used his quickness and great hands to win battles on the outside, but he’ll more likely play in the slot and catch quick timing routes and screen passes when opponents try to outnumber the run. His breakaway speed will make that a risky proposition.
Fit: H or Y (slot receiver)
Grade: B-
The class loses a couple of points for missing out on a more explosive outside receiver as well as the fact that Gilbert Johnson might not make it. Nevertheless, Texas got players who are good, valuable fits.
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