It's early yet, and my opinions will likely change, but I wanted to throw out some initial thoughts after looking at film, talking to people whom I respect, and studying the entrails of a slaughtered dragonfly.
This 2010 class has a massive imbalance of elite talent in the DFW area. I don't know why the rest of the state plays Connecticut-style football this year, but there it is. The state tilts North this year, so our staff needs to bust out the shiny shirts and blond tip their hair. A DFW battle ground will have some interesting implications for us.
First, we'll be seeing far more straight-up Oklahoma battles than we typically do - getting that battle over before it even begins is crucial.
Second, when Texas and OU go head-to-head, each school can and will muddy the waters for the other (the runner an uncle pushes OU, Mama pushes Texas) such that a high-profile third party OOS compromise school can enter the picture. This year those schools will be USC, LSU, and Florida. Seeing UCLA or ND scratch around wouldn't shock me either.
Grouped by geography, here are my 12 most coveted recruits on our radar:
DE Jackson Jeffcoat DFW
DT Taylor Bible DFW
DE Reggie Wilson DFW
LB Corey Nelson DFW
LB Aaron Benson DFW
WR Mike Davis DFW
WR Darius White DFW
LB Shaun Lewis Houston-ish
WR DeAndrew White Houston-ish
RB Lache Seastrunk CenTex
WR DeMarco Cobbs Tulsa, OK
CB Trovon Reed Thibodaux, LA
These are all realistic guys. Give me those 12 and you can round out the rest of the class by randomly dropping scholarships from a dirigible during a 5A playoff game.
Jeffcoat, Bible & Wilson are the three best DL in the state. All three will be National Top 50 guys. At the risk of having a Bob Knight Damon Bailey moment, Jeffcoat is better as a junior than Okafor is now; Wilson trails slightly only because he hasn't been as thoroughly coached up. Bible is the best DT prospect I've seen in the state since...? Every recruting service not run by schoolchildren will have Bible in the Top 10 in the state rather soon.
Nelson, Benson and Lewis represent an elite LB group in a year that goes 10 deep with quality. I hope we gorge ourselves with at least four scholarships. The three aforementioned are smallish, lightning quick, and perfect for what we're trying to do on defense. I probably have their raw ability level in order there as well. Shaun Lewis has some concerns as he's 6' 195 and doesn't have blinding measurables, but when you see him play, you'll rapidly gain an appreciation for his ouevre and whatnot. We should get Aaron Benson and we need to turn Nelson around from the Dark Side.
Darius White is my priority WR in-state. Size, speed, ball skills. He's also a track guy and a damn good basketball player. DeAndrew White is a personal favorite that I first noticed as a junior when I was watching Rivals film of 2009 GPNS QB Ohio St commit Kenny Guiton. No, I didn't. I first noticed Kenny Guiton from watching Greg Timmons at Ike. Sorry, I'm channeling Jerry Scarbrough - the perils of multi-tasking DeAndrew is a 21.8 200 meters, 24 foot long jump kid as a junior who is as quick as he is fast and he is creative with the ball in his hands; not just a track guy deep threat. I love him. I'm ignorant of his grades/character though. People are pimping Mike Davis from Skyline - rightfully - but I defy you to watch film of White and argue that they're not on the same level, dawg.
Lache Seastrunk - we all know the deal. Explosive speed, extra gear, should be an interesting recruitment with lots of turns and twists. I like him as a 10-12 touch per game change up back and a special teams dominator. This is the kind of game-changer we need and sorely lack.
Look to Cobbs and Reed as my most coveted OOS guys who are actually realistic gets. Cobbs is from Oklahoma, true, but he loves Texas. He's a national recruit. High school option QB, but projects to be a powerful Anquan Boldin-style WR. Trovon Reed is a silky smooth glider that Akina would have a fistfight with Bobby Kennedy over. A damn good WR; I think he'd be a multi-millionaire if he played CB. He also has a qualifying ACT score as a junior - a certifiable miracle for a rural Louisiana kid.
I like some other guys as well:
QB Connor Wood (Strikes me as a traditional play action, deep pocket, strong armed passer - is this our offense?)
LB Jordan Hicks (Ohio guy that like UT, probably slots in with Nelson/Benson as a pure talent) edit: a friend just sent me some more Hicks tape and this guy is phenomenal - consider him on my coveted list
CB Adrian White (good CB in an area of need)
CB Carrington Byndom (great academics, will fill out; admittedly, not a finished product)
S Ahmad Dixon (elite guy at S, but not a pressing need like CB)
WR Darius Terrell (like him as only a potential TE)
As for QB, we have to take two. Wood and McCoy seems fait accompli, but I'd like to look around and kick some other tires.
Connor Wood is rated as the state's best passer and I like his physical maturity and arm strength, but I wonder about his compatibility with our offense (odd, slow delivery) and his private school competition. Sorry, just had a Matt Nordgren flash. He was king of all of the camps, though.
Case McCoy seems destined for a 'ship, but I'm not entirely impressed by the argument "Well, Colt panned out real good and no one expected much from him. This guy is his BROTHER!" That's the logic of a fucktard and the internet is full of them. You evaluate players based on what you see and can logically project. He throws a really nice ball, but he has a fragile frame and that concerns me.
I'd like to learn more about Scotty Young from Denton and some other dudes before we go pulling triggers on both. We won't.
I'm actually not displeased that we're holding off on OL a bit though not inviting any to this Junior Day raised an eyebrow. I'm curious to see what we've got brewing there. Some of the OL listed in the state Top 50 curently are wildly overrated and speculative; but I hope we don't wait too long to decide if we're going take a couple. OL aren't primadonnas - they'll commit early to any viable program if you can promise them food, co-ed sex, and a sense of belonging.
This year a has a lot of quality depth - good news for A&M, OU, Arkansas, Okie State, Kansas, Nebrasky.
Your thoughts?