EFFECTS OF MANGINO'S "RESIGNATION" FROM KU
With Mark Mangino being forced out at Kansas, expect Texas Tech to make a strong push for Garland (Texas) defensive lineman Jeremiah Edwards. From what he's told us, he has spoken frequently with Red Raider outside receiver coach Lincoln Riley throughout the season -- even before there was any thought that Mangino was at risk of not being retained.
Earlier this week, before Mangino was officially out, Edwards told a source in the Rivals.com network that:
"If Mangino leaves Kansas, I'm going to call Texas Tech. I'm going to visit them."
We reached him briefly yesterday afternoon and asked him to describe the status of his commitment to the Jayhawks.
"I am just going to wait and see who is the head coach going to be before I make any changes," he said.
What is working in Kansas' favor in this situation is that wide receivers coach David Beatty was one of three assistant coaches that have been retained and given interim co-head coach responsibilities. So while Mangino is out, there is still someone on the Jayhawk staff -- for not, at least -- that he has a good, pre-existing relationship with.
Edwards hadn't scheduled a visit to check out the Red Raiders when we talked to him, but said that he plans to take his official visit to Kansas on December 18th.
PORTER SOLID?
There have been a lot of questions asked recently on the message board about the status of Midwest City (Okla.) Carl Albert defensive back Tre'Vante Porter. With the Titans set to take on Bixby in the Oklahoma Class 5A Championship Game on Saturday, Porter isn't spending much time focusing on recruiting.
"I'm still with Texas Tech," he said. "I'm just blocking off all the recruiting away so I can stay focused on this title game."
Does he consider himself solid with Mike Leach's program, or is he considering opening his recruitment back up after his season ends?
"I might just open it up a little bit, a little crack," Porter said, "but I'm still with the Red Raiders."
While that statement is probably a little more iffy than Red Raider fans would prefer, he told us that he talks with running backs coach Clay McGuire every week. In fact, during one of those conversations a month or so ago, Porter learned that Texas Tech might look to play him somewhere on offense.
"Early in the season, they told me I was going to play DB," Porter said. "They said, after the season, I might play a little more offense because I'm doing so well on offense and they need skill players to play receiver. I don't know, it's a little iffy right now whether I play offense or defense, maybe a combination of both. I'm excited about that."
MATHIS ON HOLD UNTIL TITLE GAME
Much like with Porter, Brenham (Texas) Blinn C.C. defensive lineman Jonathan Mathis is focusing most of his attention on a title game before shifting that attention towards recruiting -- No. 2 Blinn plays No. 1 Fort Scott (Kan.) Fort Scott C.C. on Sunday in the Citzens Bank Bowl for the NJCAA national championship.
"I'm just talking to a few coaches," he said, "from Texas A&M, Texas Tech and I'm going to take another visit to Arizona."
It looks like those three are the only programs really in the mix for Mathis, who hosted some of their coaches during the week.
"I've seen a coach from Texas Tech and Texas A&M, and there were some scouts out there today (at practice) from North Carolina," he said. "I'm pretty cool right now with them (Tech and A&M coaches). I'm still haven't decided what I really want to do yet, after I take all of my visits."
Mathis is scheduled to visit Arizona on December 11th, and may look to make a decision afterward. He has yet to take an official visit to Texas A&M, but he has seen the program up close several times -- including their Thanksgiving matchup with No. 2 Texas.
CORKER JUST WAITING TO SIGN
Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons wideout, and Texas Tech commit, Shawn Corker has now wrapped up his senior season and has his sights set squarely on the transition to Texas Tech. His season didn’t end like he planned, but Corker understands that the future looks to be a bright one.
“It didn’t go as well as I hoped it would, but I mean I did what I had to do. I stayed injury-free, and just got myself ready for the next level,” Corker said. “Overall I think I was second in the county this year. My goals were just to be better than what I was last year. I fell a little bit short statistically, but overall it was a success.”
Corker has followed the Red Raiders' 2009 campaign closely, and is waiting anxiously for his chance to contribute.
“They were pretty good this season. Overall they had a pretty good season," he said. "They lost some games that they should’ve won, but I guess you can’t win them all. But when I get there, I’ll be looking to help win some of those games that they could have or should have won this season.”
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound prospect has kept in touch with the Texas Tech coaching staff and continues to maintain a strong relationship with inside receivers coach Lincoln Riley.
“Actually, he came down yesterday (Tuesday) and we went out to dinner last night," Corker said. "Everything is still good with us, between myself and Coach Riley, as well as Coach [Dennis] Simmons.”
Corker has also worked to build a relationship with future teammate, and fellow Red Raider commit, Denton (Texas) Ryan quarterback Scotty Young.
“I talked to Scotty about two weeks ago. We still have high expectations for each other. I know he’s going to get the job done. I know he’ll get me the ball,” Corker said. “We’re just going to have to work together on and off the field to build that relationship, which is starting now. And when we get there, we’re going to come together and just make it happen.”
Corker has no more visits planned and is waiting for the day when he can make his commitment to Texas Tech official.
"No, I don't have any visits planned," he said. "I'm just waiting to sign."
WILLIAMS FINALIZING VISIT PLANS
Irving (Texas) Nimitz defensive lineman Damon Williams has a long list of offers from programs around the country, but appears to be narrowing his focus to a few programs as he enters into the home-stretch of his recruitment with a number of visits coming up in December.
“I’m going to go to Oklahoma or Arkansas on December 11th," he said. "I was supposed to visit Kansas on December 20th, but I think I’m probably going to push that visit back and use that date to go to the school that I don’t visit on December 11th. It all depends on what I do on the 11th."
Aside from those visits, the 6-foot-4, 300-pounder has also visited Texas Tech, doing so back in early October. He has continued to follow the Red Raiders through the end of the regular season and came away impressed with the defense he saw in their finale against the Baylor Bears.
"It was a pretty well played game defensively, I mean I was pretty impressed with the defense and stuff like that," he said. "I was very impressed with them, and the way they fought to get the win overall."
Williams is not quite ready to set a specific timetable for a decision, but seems to have a good idea of who he’ll be suiting up for on the next level.
"I’ll say that probably after I take a few more visits and then I’ll know where I want to go," he said. "I’ve pretty much got it set in my mind, but I’m just trying to make sure right now.
"I can give you a top five right now. That would be Arkansas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Kansas and Minnesota."
WINBUSH CAN'T WAIT TO BE A RED RAIDER
The football career of Schertz (Texas) Clemens linebacker, and Texas Tech commit, Zac Winbush ended in November, but Winbush is not dwelling on the loss. He is now preparing himself for the spring and, ultimately, his transition to the Red Raiders.
“Well, it was good, although we did end our season,” he said. “You know, things didn’t work out the way we wanted them to, but it was a very fun season overall, and I have no regrets.”
Because of his team's run in the Texas High School Playoffs, Zac has yet to have a chance to officially visit Texas Tech, but plans are in the works.
“We’re going to be talking about that tomorrow. One of my coaches is going to be coming by to discuss that with me. Because of the playoffs I couldn’t make it to any of the games or anything. We‘re thinking sometime around Christmas, so that we can have one-on-one‘s with the coaches.”
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound prospect has had contact during his recruitment with defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill, cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell and defensive ends coach Charlie Sadler.
“It’s very good,” Winbush said of his relationship with McNeill. “He’s funny and I think it’s going to be great, just being there honestly. He makes you feel good, he cares about his defense and everything.”
Like many others, Winbush has noticed the improvement on the defensive side of the ball for the Red Raiders this season.
“The last game (against Baylor) was excellent. The defense was really good, you know. The defense is stepping up and you know, getting better each time,” he said.
After usually having a busy Spring schedule with basketball and track, Winbush will eliminate one of those extracurricular activities in anticipation of his enrollment at Texas Tech.
“I’m not playing basketball this year because I’m just worried about hitting the weights a lot more and working on my speed. But I am running track still -- the 110m hurdles, long jump and relays.”
Bottom line for Winbush?
“I just can’t wait to be a Red Raider,” he said.
New 2011 Offer?
According to a source within the Rivals.com network, Texas Tech has extended an offer to Dallas (Texas) Lake Highlands wide receiver Desmond Roland. He also holds an early offer from Arkansas.
This post was edited on 12/5 12:06 PM by A. Dickens
With Mark Mangino being forced out at Kansas, expect Texas Tech to make a strong push for Garland (Texas) defensive lineman Jeremiah Edwards. From what he's told us, he has spoken frequently with Red Raider outside receiver coach Lincoln Riley throughout the season -- even before there was any thought that Mangino was at risk of not being retained.
Earlier this week, before Mangino was officially out, Edwards told a source in the Rivals.com network that:
"If Mangino leaves Kansas, I'm going to call Texas Tech. I'm going to visit them."
We reached him briefly yesterday afternoon and asked him to describe the status of his commitment to the Jayhawks.
"I am just going to wait and see who is the head coach going to be before I make any changes," he said.
What is working in Kansas' favor in this situation is that wide receivers coach David Beatty was one of three assistant coaches that have been retained and given interim co-head coach responsibilities. So while Mangino is out, there is still someone on the Jayhawk staff -- for not, at least -- that he has a good, pre-existing relationship with.
Edwards hadn't scheduled a visit to check out the Red Raiders when we talked to him, but said that he plans to take his official visit to Kansas on December 18th.
PORTER SOLID?
There have been a lot of questions asked recently on the message board about the status of Midwest City (Okla.) Carl Albert defensive back Tre'Vante Porter. With the Titans set to take on Bixby in the Oklahoma Class 5A Championship Game on Saturday, Porter isn't spending much time focusing on recruiting.
"I'm still with Texas Tech," he said. "I'm just blocking off all the recruiting away so I can stay focused on this title game."
Does he consider himself solid with Mike Leach's program, or is he considering opening his recruitment back up after his season ends?
"I might just open it up a little bit, a little crack," Porter said, "but I'm still with the Red Raiders."
While that statement is probably a little more iffy than Red Raider fans would prefer, he told us that he talks with running backs coach Clay McGuire every week. In fact, during one of those conversations a month or so ago, Porter learned that Texas Tech might look to play him somewhere on offense.
"Early in the season, they told me I was going to play DB," Porter said. "They said, after the season, I might play a little more offense because I'm doing so well on offense and they need skill players to play receiver. I don't know, it's a little iffy right now whether I play offense or defense, maybe a combination of both. I'm excited about that."
MATHIS ON HOLD UNTIL TITLE GAME
Much like with Porter, Brenham (Texas) Blinn C.C. defensive lineman Jonathan Mathis is focusing most of his attention on a title game before shifting that attention towards recruiting -- No. 2 Blinn plays No. 1 Fort Scott (Kan.) Fort Scott C.C. on Sunday in the Citzens Bank Bowl for the NJCAA national championship.
"I'm just talking to a few coaches," he said, "from Texas A&M, Texas Tech and I'm going to take another visit to Arizona."
It looks like those three are the only programs really in the mix for Mathis, who hosted some of their coaches during the week.
"I've seen a coach from Texas Tech and Texas A&M, and there were some scouts out there today (at practice) from North Carolina," he said. "I'm pretty cool right now with them (Tech and A&M coaches). I'm still haven't decided what I really want to do yet, after I take all of my visits."
Mathis is scheduled to visit Arizona on December 11th, and may look to make a decision afterward. He has yet to take an official visit to Texas A&M, but he has seen the program up close several times -- including their Thanksgiving matchup with No. 2 Texas.
CORKER JUST WAITING TO SIGN
Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons wideout, and Texas Tech commit, Shawn Corker has now wrapped up his senior season and has his sights set squarely on the transition to Texas Tech. His season didn’t end like he planned, but Corker understands that the future looks to be a bright one.
“It didn’t go as well as I hoped it would, but I mean I did what I had to do. I stayed injury-free, and just got myself ready for the next level,” Corker said. “Overall I think I was second in the county this year. My goals were just to be better than what I was last year. I fell a little bit short statistically, but overall it was a success.”
Corker has followed the Red Raiders' 2009 campaign closely, and is waiting anxiously for his chance to contribute.
“They were pretty good this season. Overall they had a pretty good season," he said. "They lost some games that they should’ve won, but I guess you can’t win them all. But when I get there, I’ll be looking to help win some of those games that they could have or should have won this season.”
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound prospect has kept in touch with the Texas Tech coaching staff and continues to maintain a strong relationship with inside receivers coach Lincoln Riley.
“Actually, he came down yesterday (Tuesday) and we went out to dinner last night," Corker said. "Everything is still good with us, between myself and Coach Riley, as well as Coach [Dennis] Simmons.”
Corker has also worked to build a relationship with future teammate, and fellow Red Raider commit, Denton (Texas) Ryan quarterback Scotty Young.
“I talked to Scotty about two weeks ago. We still have high expectations for each other. I know he’s going to get the job done. I know he’ll get me the ball,” Corker said. “We’re just going to have to work together on and off the field to build that relationship, which is starting now. And when we get there, we’re going to come together and just make it happen.”
Corker has no more visits planned and is waiting for the day when he can make his commitment to Texas Tech official.
"No, I don't have any visits planned," he said. "I'm just waiting to sign."
WILLIAMS FINALIZING VISIT PLANS
Irving (Texas) Nimitz defensive lineman Damon Williams has a long list of offers from programs around the country, but appears to be narrowing his focus to a few programs as he enters into the home-stretch of his recruitment with a number of visits coming up in December.
“I’m going to go to Oklahoma or Arkansas on December 11th," he said. "I was supposed to visit Kansas on December 20th, but I think I’m probably going to push that visit back and use that date to go to the school that I don’t visit on December 11th. It all depends on what I do on the 11th."
Aside from those visits, the 6-foot-4, 300-pounder has also visited Texas Tech, doing so back in early October. He has continued to follow the Red Raiders through the end of the regular season and came away impressed with the defense he saw in their finale against the Baylor Bears.
"It was a pretty well played game defensively, I mean I was pretty impressed with the defense and stuff like that," he said. "I was very impressed with them, and the way they fought to get the win overall."
Williams is not quite ready to set a specific timetable for a decision, but seems to have a good idea of who he’ll be suiting up for on the next level.
"I’ll say that probably after I take a few more visits and then I’ll know where I want to go," he said. "I’ve pretty much got it set in my mind, but I’m just trying to make sure right now.
"I can give you a top five right now. That would be Arkansas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Kansas and Minnesota."
WINBUSH CAN'T WAIT TO BE A RED RAIDER
The football career of Schertz (Texas) Clemens linebacker, and Texas Tech commit, Zac Winbush ended in November, but Winbush is not dwelling on the loss. He is now preparing himself for the spring and, ultimately, his transition to the Red Raiders.
“Well, it was good, although we did end our season,” he said. “You know, things didn’t work out the way we wanted them to, but it was a very fun season overall, and I have no regrets.”
Because of his team's run in the Texas High School Playoffs, Zac has yet to have a chance to officially visit Texas Tech, but plans are in the works.
“We’re going to be talking about that tomorrow. One of my coaches is going to be coming by to discuss that with me. Because of the playoffs I couldn’t make it to any of the games or anything. We‘re thinking sometime around Christmas, so that we can have one-on-one‘s with the coaches.”
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound prospect has had contact during his recruitment with defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill, cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell and defensive ends coach Charlie Sadler.
“It’s very good,” Winbush said of his relationship with McNeill. “He’s funny and I think it’s going to be great, just being there honestly. He makes you feel good, he cares about his defense and everything.”
Like many others, Winbush has noticed the improvement on the defensive side of the ball for the Red Raiders this season.
“The last game (against Baylor) was excellent. The defense was really good, you know. The defense is stepping up and you know, getting better each time,” he said.
After usually having a busy Spring schedule with basketball and track, Winbush will eliminate one of those extracurricular activities in anticipation of his enrollment at Texas Tech.
“I’m not playing basketball this year because I’m just worried about hitting the weights a lot more and working on my speed. But I am running track still -- the 110m hurdles, long jump and relays.”
Bottom line for Winbush?
“I just can’t wait to be a Red Raider,” he said.
New 2011 Offer?
According to a source within the Rivals.com network, Texas Tech has extended an offer to Dallas (Texas) Lake Highlands wide receiver Desmond Roland. He also holds an early offer from Arkansas.
This post was edited on 12/5 12:06 PM by A. Dickens
