Earlier today, we looked at the Big 12 Signing classes so far from afar. Where in this post, I’ll be breaking down each team’s class with the cream of the crop, a hidden gem. As well as an overall impression of each team and how those recruits can help them further down the line. If you want a player to watch out for your favorite team, this is the post for it.
Baylor:
Crown Jewel of the Class: ATH Peyton Powell
This position could’ve gone to Powell or 4 Star QB Jacob Zeno out of John Jay High School in San Antonio. The 6’2 Athlete from Odessa, TX shows versatility to play multiple positions as he could play DB, WR, or QB. According to Baylor, he is listed as a QB and will stay there until further notice. With a 4.45 40 time, expect Powell to be a huge difference maker whenever his name is called.
Underrated Player: TE Sam Snyder
Snyder is a middle of the road 3 Star according to 247. But the product out of Orange Park, FL has intangibles and speed you just can’t teach. Snyder is 6’5 215 and runs 4.5 40 time. To put that into perspective, those numbers are on par with Baylor WR Jalen Hurd. Snyder had offers from Louisville, Missouri, and Florida State. Snyder was Committed to Louisville at one point, but decommitted early in December and signed with the Bears on Signing Day.
Overview of the rest:
Baylor finished with the 4th ranked class in the Big 12 and 36th nationally, according to 247. The Bears addressed DE heavy as they took 4 DE’s as well as a couple of LB/S Hybrids. Other players to watch out for in this class is Army All-American WR Jaylen Ellis, RB Qualan Jones, and ATH Jonah White. All in all, this was a solid class that has some pieces that can bring Baylor back to a yearly bowl team. Class Grade: B+
Iowa State:
Crown Jewel of the Class: RB Jirehl Brock
Brock is the 2nd highest rated player in Iowa State history (Behind WR Allen Lazard). So there is a good reason to pick Brock for this position. Brock put up absurd numbers in the state of Illinois, finishing with 2,158 Yards and 33 Touchdowns and finished as the #1 Running Back in the state. Brock held offers from Minnesota, Northwestern, Illinois, and Iowa. Brock for the most part stayed firm with Iowa State throughout the entire process. With David Montgomery declaring for the NFL, expect Brock to play early in his career.
Underrated Player: ATH Leonard Glass
Glass has a limited amount of offers from just Colorado State, Fresno State, Hawaii, and Nevada. Glass for the most part is used as a RB, but uses the receiving game to his advantage. Screens and catches from out of the backfield can help Glass and he could potentially move to WR pretty soon.
Overview of the rest:
Iowa State went RB heavy with their top 2 players as well as Glass being RB’s in this class. They finished 5th in the big 12 and 43th nationally as it’s an above average class. Iowa State went O-Line heavy with 4 commits and a couple of DE’s to help out the pass rush that was slightly below average in 2018. Class Ranking: B
Kansas:
Crown Jewel of the class: DE Malcolm Lee
Lee is your prototypical 6-5, 250 DE that like many Jayhawks, is a JUCO product from Bellevue, NE. Lee committed to Kansas over FAU, Houston, Iowa, and Iowa State. Lee is more of a Run stopping DE that finished with 10 TFL and 5 sacks. Lee is looking to fill a hole that Kansas hasn’t had since DE Dorance Armstrong Jr. Lee will get a chance to play right away and has a chance to be a starter and an impact player further down the line.
Underrated player: WR Andrew Parchment
Kansas went out to Iowa Central CC in Fort Lauderdale and snagged one of the better JUCO WR’s in Parchment. He had offers from Hawaii, UNLV, and Arkansas State and his frame may keep him on the field. Parchment is 6-3, 185 and on his highlights, shows he can high point the football and has above average hands. With how thin Kansas is at WR, Parchment has a chance to play immediately.
Overview of the rest:
Kansas continues to recruit the JUCO ranks as 6 of their 10 commits are JUCO. Les Miles has a lot to work with this program and through the early signing period, has only 10 Commits. Kansas is 116th in this class and no players above the 88 rating. 30% of the class is D-Line and looks to be the focus in this class. If KU grabs a couple more commits, they could push for the 9th spot in the Big 12. But for now, this looks to be a dud of a class for the Jayhawks. Class Ranking: D-
Kansas State:
Crown Jewel of the class: ATH Chris Herron
Herron was the most pursued commit of the class as he had 14 offers. Herron committed to Kansas State over Baylor, TCU, Nebraska, Indiana, and Kansas. Herron will play QB and is your prototypical K-State QB. Not a great passer, but an excellent runner. Herron reminds me of a faster Daniel Sams. Herron had an excellent Junior season with 1,800 Passing Yards and 17 touchdowns. With 1,240 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns. He transitioned to a bit of receiver his senior year as his Passing and Rushing went down by quite a bit, but caught 3 touchdowns. Herron should be a impact player immediately if he isn’t a QB.
Underrated player: LB Khalid Duke
This is definitely the guy to watch out for in this class. Duke is from Riverside Military Academy and held offers from Army, Air Force as well as Charleston Southern. Duke has excellent size in 6-4, 225 and is a tackling machine. Duke finished with 142 tackles, 17 TFL’s and 7 sacks his senior year. Due to being from a Military Academy, he wasn’t scouted or rated as highly outside of Army and Air Force. Duke has the combo of size and numbers that you’re looking for and he could be the best player in this entire class.
Overview of the rest:
Another note is that KSU did get another QB in Jaren Lewis, so it will be interesting who will have the upper hand once 2019 rolls around. Other notable players to keep an eye on is RB Joe Ervin, CB Logan Wilson, and Konner Fox (Wilson and Fox are from Texas). Kansas State is not quite finished with this class with just 13 commits. Kansas State never recruits great, but always finds ways to stay relevant, so I wouldn’t be too worried about the low ranking. Class Ranking: D+
Oklahoma:
Crown Jewel of the class: WR Jadon Haselwood
The highest rated player from any team in the Big 12 made his big announcement during the Army All-America Game. Haselwood committed to OU over Florida State, Georgia, Miami and a host of other powerhouse schools. Haselwood is the #1 WR in the nation and the 6th overall. At 6-2, with 4.58 speed and a catch radius that is crazy, Haselwood should find his way onto the field with just athletic ability alone. Haselwood was originally committed to Georgia before decommitting in October. Haselwood was named to First Team All-America according to MaxPreps and Second Team according to USA Today.
Underrated player: ATH Ty DeArman
It’s hard to find a underrated player when over 85% of their class is full of 4 and 5 stars. But DeArman is the definition of an Iron Man. In 2017, DeArman had 483 Passing Yards, 344 Rushing Yards, 121 Receiving Yards. That’s just on offense. DeArman also had 64 Tackles with 2 Forced Fumbles, and 3 Interceptions. DeArman’s versatility could get him a spot on the field and at the very least, be a solid special teams player.
Overview of the rest:
Oklahoma has the best trio of receivers in the entire nation with Haselwood, 5 Star Theo Wease, and High 4 Star Trejan Bridges. Add that with the #1 QB in the nation in Spencer Rattler and OU shows that they will be lethal on offense for at least 4 more years with this amount of talent. With the #4 ranking in the entire nation and curenlty #1 in the Big 12, there’s no doubt that OU will contend for another title. Class Ranking: A+
Oklahoma State:
Crown Jewel of the class: WR Langston Anderson
Langston was a deadline pickup for the Cowboys as Okie State had to fend off Baylor as well as Arizona State, Ole Miss, and Arizona for the top 250 player in the nation. Anderson improved his stock quite a bit in 2018 with 1,291 yards and 18 TD’s. With 4.57 speed and a near 40 inch vertical, Anderson can go up high to get the football. Anderson is wearing #88 hoping to live up to the name of former Cowboy, Dez Bryant.
Underrated player: CB Xavier Player
The product out Cibolo Steele had to wait his time as other D1 players got more praise. This past year, it was Baylor S J.T. Woods and Texas S Caden Sterns that got the attention. Xavier was under the radar and Okie State was his only Power 5 offer. Xavier is a little undersized at 5-11, but has 4.58 speed and plays as a physical corner, so he hads a blend of speed and lockdown ability. He’s your ideal slot corner that you’d want once he’s a junior or senior.
Overview of the rest:
Okie State addressed both sides of the line as half of the recruiting class is OL and DL. TE Grayson Boomer is the highest rated player in the class, but Anderson should have more of an impact in his Okie State career. This overall is an above average class with some players that could be impact player immediately. But for the most part, this class needs redshirts. Class Ranking: B-.
TCU:
Crown Jewel of the class: RB Daimarqua Foster
The TCU RB situation is a little bit weird in Fort Worth with 2 stud’s not signing their letters of intent yet. The Newton High School boys of Tamauzia Brown and Darwin Barlow committed on the same day back in August, but yet to have sign their LOI. Maybe they are waiting till February or looking at new schools, but if those two sign it should do wonders for the position. Daimarqua is an undersized 5-10 RB that relies on his quick speed and agility. Foster dominated at Hirschi High School in Wichita Falls with 2,800 Yards and an amazing 41 TD’s. Foster is also very good in the special teams game. For Horned Frog fans, the best comparison to Foster would be RB BJ Cataloun (except not quite as big yet). With Sewo being the lone main back, Foster could compete for playing time early.
Underrated player: OLB Wyatt Harris
Harris is an interesting story on a guy that started out at a different position, but ended up getting an P5 offer from another. Harris started out at Aledo High as a DB as he had 6 INT’s in his first 2 seasons and had 100+ tackles as a Sophomore. He made the switch to LB his senior year and had 10 TFL’s a sack and an interception. Harris has the experience of playing DB, so the chances of him going back is interesting.
Overview of the rest:
TCU got a really good blend of Offense and Defensive players among the Lines. With Sean Robinson transferring to Missouri and Justin Rogers still recovering from the leg injury, 4 Star Max Duggan has a chance to step in and do some work in the spring and battle for the starting spot. Other players like CB Donovan Collins, WR Mikel Barkley and ATH Josh Foster could be breakout players.
Texas:
Crown Jewel of the class: WR Jordan Whittington
If Haselwood is the best receiver in the class, Whittington is right up there near him. The 6-1 Monster from Cuero, TX committed way back in March and has held true throughout. He holds 30 offers, including Alabama, Texas A&M, Florida, LSU, Ohio State, and Oklahoma. Whittington eclipsed former RB Johnathon Gray’s all-time rushing record with 334 Rushing Yards and 6 Touchdowns to go along with 11 tackles in Cuero’s State Championship win. Whether he plays WR or RB, just remember the name and know he will be on everyone’s game plan.
Underrated player: S Tyler Owens
Caden Sterns was the huge breakout freshman in 2018, replacing the ball hawking Deshone Elliot. This year, it might be Tyler Owens that surprises a ton of people. Tyler Owens wasn’t rated coming into the season, but by the end of the year, he was an all-around 4 Star with offers from Texas, Baylor, Nebraska, Kansas State, UCLA, and Vanderbilt, among others. Owens committed back in September and has been a lock ever since. Owens story is really good and his career should be the same.
Overview of the class:
The class that ranks in the Top 10 in the nation is stacked and loaded with talent from top to bottom. Similar to OU, UT picked up 3 high quality receivers with Whittington, Jake Smith, and Marcus Washington. A notable guy to watch for later down the line is QB Roschon Johnson. Once Ehlinger leaves, Johnson will have a chance to play. Class Ranking: A+
Texas Tech:
Crown Jewel of the class: DE Gilbert Ibeneme
The highest rated player in the class held offers from Texas A&M, Houston, Arkansas, Minnesota, among others. At 6-3, 255 he has the potential to slide in and play some DT as well. In a spot where Texas Tech isn’t necessarily known for, Gilbert can provide an immediate impact and climb up the depth chart rather quickly.
Underrated player: OT Landon Peterson
The O-Lineman from Odessa Permian was once committed to Baylor back in June, but decided to back out in October. He would commit to Tech a week before signing day, then would sign. His other 2 D-1 teammates at Baylor in DE Matt Jones and QB/ATH Peyton Powell. Peterson is a Tackle all the way with his 6-6 265 frame and specializes in his run blocking ability. If Peterson can show out, he could start further down the line. A project for now though.
Overview of the class:
Texas Tech never recruits extremely well. Whether that be due to not being a championship contender or proximity to home to some kids, but this class’s quality is not good right now. Tech also has 5 players that haven’t signed their LOI, but are signed, so this class will take a bit more form whether all those guys sign or not. With 1 or 2 more signings, this class could be something. But for now, it’s a bit underwhelming. Class Ranking: C
West Virginia:
Crown Jewel of the class: S Osita Smith
The 6-2 hard hitter out of Columbia, MD committed to WVU over Cincinnati, UConn, Indiana, and others. West Virginia is known for having hard hitters and Safeties that can cover. Smith fits the criteria for both as he is a run supporting safety that can cover like a CB. Brian Dohn of 247 has Smith as a comparison to Tampa Bay’s Chris Conte and I could not agree more. Will be the next best Safety once he’s an upperclassmen.
Underrated player: WR Ali Jennings
Jennings doesn’t have a loaded offer list and didn’t put up the biggest numbers in HS. Similar to Khalid Duke, he finished with offers from Air Force and Army. But Jennings have depictive speed and is a red zone threat, finishing with 13 TD’s his senior season. Jennings will be a project, but once he redshirts and gets a year or two under him, he could emerge and start.
Overview of the rest:
With Dana Holgerson gone, it will be interesting how this class finishes up. But for now, the class he put together is just average so far. WVU stacked up on DB as well as OL as they took 4 in this class. The best WVU team in the Big 12 finished 4th in the conference and with a lot of guys leaving, WV needed a better class than this. But it is serviceable for now. Class Ranking: C+
Image Credit: https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2013/7/22/4545148/new-big-12-logo
