Friday can only mean one thing for the discriminating Red Raider fan.
It's time for another edition of the Red Raider Confidential! The ground rules
are simple and easy to follow: everything reported in this report is not to be disclosed elsewhere. This feature is posted in the premium forum to ensure that this information stays exclusively within the
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Commitment expected this weekend?
There will be a number of 2010 prospects in Lubbock tomorrow for Texas Tech's
first mini-camp of the summer, but one of the few known attendees that already
boasts an offer from the Red Raiders is Sulphur Springs (TX) offensive lineman
Beau Carpenter.
"I'm leaving tomorrow morning, actually," confirmed Carpenter on Thursday.
"We're going to leave Sunday around 12 and be there the whole weekend."
While the 6-foot-7, 245-pounder will be in attendance, he might not actually
participate in the camp.
"I'm debating on whether or not I should participate in the camp and get a feel
for Coach (Matt) Moore's coaching or if I should just be there
and be watching from the sideline," explained Carpenter. "Coach (Eric)
Russell said that I could do either one. I kind of like the idea of
standing on the sideline."
This is a trip that Carpenter has had scheduled for quite some time, before he
received his offer from Tech. And it could be a huge weekend for him, as the
possibility exists that he could pull the trigger and commit to the Red Raiders.
"I want to get a tour of the campus," he said. "I want to meet all the coaches
and get a feel for it. I really have some high hopes. That's the school that
I've been waiting to see. If I get down there and it's exactly what I've been
thinking about, then I'll get to commit while I'm down there."
We get the idea that, with an offer already in hand, this trip is all about
Carpenter committing in person. Even though he told us that there's only a
75-percent chance that he could commit, he sure made it sound like it's a done
deal.
"My dad loves it," laughed Carpenter. "He's already talking about all the
websites calling me and breaking the news about me committing to Tech. My
parents are pretty into it. I think they like it because it's one of the closer
schools that has offered me. The other reason is that I like them so much. They
seem to like them as much as I do."
If there were to be any snag, it might be the fact that Carpenter still has some
desire to visit Oklahoma State. But Carpenter has been very adamant in saying
that if he were to commit to this weekend, then he would not trip to Stillwater
(or anywhere else) in the future.
"I don't think I would go visit OSU if I committed because I don't want to pull
all that," said Carpenter. "I want to act committed."
Expect good news on the Carpenter front sometime early next week, though it
could come as soon as Sunday.
Mum's the word with Woods
As the only true center on Texas Tech’s board, and one of the top
center prospects in the country, there is a large amount of attention focused on
Rockwall (TX) Heath lineman Austin Woods. He’s obviously one of
the Red Raiders’ top offensive line targets, but they’ll have to fight off every
one of the 20 schools who have officially offered Woods if they want to earn his
signature.
Woods hopes to make a decision before his senior year but, in the meantime,
don’t expect him to tip his hand. He adamantly maintains he has no favorites,
and doesn’t get into specifics about any one school over another. However, when
asked about Texas Tech, he had plenty of nice things to say about the coaches.
"Coach (Lincoln) Riley is the one I talk most to," said the four-star prospect.
"I talk to Coach Moore quite a lot as well. As a matter of fact, I just talked
to them a little while ago. They call every time they’re allowed to, which is
nice."
And that relationship just might be enough to give the Red Raiders a fighting
shot until the end.
"Our relationship means a lot," he explained. "We’re starting to get to know
each other, and these are the people you’re going to spend most of your next
four years with, so it’s a huge thing. That, the academics, the teammates, and
the facilities you’ll be working in, those all play a big role. So in that
regard, I’d say our relationship is really strong."
While landing Woods may indeed be a longshot - Oklahoma seems to be a major
player at this point - having Riley and Moore on the job sure doesn’t hurt.
Premium Video: 2010 LB V.J. Fehoko dominates the bench press
Texas Tech linebacker target V.J. Fehoko participated in the
PIAA Football Combine at the Saint Louis School in Honolulu last week, and
absolutely dominated the bench press. He was credited with 37 reps of 225
pounds, which is only two fewer than the 2009 NFL Combine-best 39 reps posted by
former Texas Tech offensive lineman Louis Vasquez in February.
The first linebacker taken in the 2009 NFL Draft, Wake Forest's Aaron Curry,
only did 25 reps.
You can watch Fehoko's impressive bench performance for yourself, as we have
obtained a copy
of the video. (.MOV, 1.97MB)
Grimble impressive on many levels
For being only 15-years old, Las Vegas (NV) Bishop Gorman prospect Jalen
Grimble is incredibly mature for his age. He’s able to express himself
better than most high school seniors-to-be, and he happens to have more offers
than a lot of them as well.
Even with Texas Tech, Utah, UNLV and LSU already saying that they have a spot
for him on their roster, Grimble is taking it in stride and continuing to work
hard.
One of his biggest role models is his father, Jerry Grimble, who is an assistant
football coach at his high school.
"He’s taught me everything from hard work to character," said Grimble of his
father. "I give him all my thanks for everything I am right now and the things
that I’ve gotten at this point. He’s the main reason I am here. He pushes me to
the limit, works hard and is the main reason I’m here where I am right now."
Of course, watching his older cousin go through the process hasn’t hurt either.
2010 tight end Xavier Grimble holds offers from virtually every
school in the country but committed to USC in April.
"The most important thing is to stay humble," explained Jalen. "I don’t need to
get big headed or get cocky. That’s the most important thing I’ve learned. When
he made his decision to go to USC, we always used to talk about it. He told me
he was really in love with USC so I told him if he loved them then he should do
it. So I’m real excited for him."
With a new head coach coming in this past spring, Grimble has been busy learning
a new system.
"It was kind of crazy with the new coach," he explained. "As soon as Coach
Sanchez got here, a lot of new coaches started coming through. It was something
that our school was used to, but not familiar with. This year it got crazy with
the new coach. Coach Sanchez is familiar with a lot of the college coaches so he
brought in a few of them."
The Texas Tech verbal offer came on Memorial Day, the same day that he was
informed about the LSU offer as well.
"I don’t know much about Texas Tech," admitted Grimble. "From watching them this
past year, they seem like a good program. They had a good chance to win the
national championship. I’ve never been there but my dad knows a lot about Texas
Tech. he tells me a few things about them."
While Grimble said he will visit Tech eventually, he has a full schedule lined
up for June.
"This summer I’m attending the UCLA camp on the 6th," he said. "I've got a team
camp to Fresno (State) and then the USC camp the weekend after that. My dad and I are
making plans to see Texas Tech, LSU and Utah over the summer."
Karam trained with Klinger
When we spoke to 2009 Texas Tech signee Jacob Karam earlier
this week, he told us about some unique training went through this spring to
help prepare.
"I actually got to train with Jimmy Klingler, who’s David Klingler’s little
brother, starting in January," he explained. "He played at Houston back in the
day, right after Andre Ware and his brother, and he was a big help to me."
So what exactly did they work on?
"It was mainly technical stuff," said Karam. "Lots of footwork, lots of watching
film, learning how to read more complicated looks, all that sort of stuff. It
was great."
And now that he’s participating in 7-on-7 versus Big 12 defenders, Karam’s hard
work is paying off.
"7-on-7 is definitely my favorite thing so far," he laughed. "We do that on
Tuesdays and Thursdays, and it’s been great. I haven’t even seen a playbook yet,
but I’ve learned so much since I got here. It’s funny, even though we played in
a spread in high school, this is different, so the older guys have been helping
me a lot. But I’m definitely glad I worked with Jimmy, because that’s made the
transition a lot easier."
Premium Photos: 2010 DE commit Jackson Richards
2010 Texas Tech commit Jackson Richards at Southlake (TX)
Carroll's spring game earlier this month.
Spurgeon down to two, looks good for Raiders
Things are looking good for the Red Raiders when it comes to the recruitment of
offensive tackle Trent Spurgeon. Over the last several months,
the Owasso (OK) prospect has consistently listed a top three of SMU, Texas Tech
and Arizona. He has very recently narrowed it down to two.
"Coach (Dennis) McKnight from SMU came up and watched me practice," said
Spurgeon. "We talked to him and just told him that we weren't considering SMU
anymore."
With the Mustangs out of the picture, it's a two horse race between Texas Tech
and Arizona. Spurgeon has already visited Lubbock, and now it's time for the
Wildcats to get their turn.
"I'll be leaving tomorrow at noon to go to Arizona," he explained. "I haven't
been out there and it's the only other school I'm considering left. I feel like
after I get back from there then I will really know what I'm going to do."
A big reason why Spurgeon is taking the trip to Tuscon is his relationship with
Arizona running back coach, and former Texas Tech assistant, Seth
Littrell.
"I knew Littrell when he was at Tech," said Spurgeon. "I just met (Bill)
Bedenbaugh a week ago. Littrell was one of the first to talk to me
about recruiting. Every time I talk to Coach Littrell or Bedenbaugh, they have
great things to say about me. They think I'd be a four-year starter because all
their starting tackles are graduating this year. So I feel like I'd have a
chance to start."
The 6-foot-8, 270-pounder told us that the opportunity to start isn't a
game-changer, and admitted that it would be difficult for his trip to the Copper
State to top his visit to the South Plains.
"Tech really has a nice little set up where the players live and all their
locker rooms and academic buildings are set up nice," said Spurgeon. "I really
like the strength coach down there (Bennie Wylie) and his
assistant YoYo (Szendrei). I really like him. I also like
Mike Leach and his style of play. They seem to be real
interested in me and I'm interested in them. I don't see Arizona beating them
but I don't know."
We should all know pretty soon after the visit as to where Spurgeon is going to
go.
"I'm going to talk to my parents," Spurgeon explained. "I'll probably take a few
weeks to think about it and I think I'll have a decision at some point in June."
Premium Q&A: 2011 DB target Josh Turner
What did you want on this spring?
JT: "My toughness and my awareness. On offense, I wanted
to work on my routes more."
Which side of the ball do you like more ? offense or defense?
JT: "I like safety more because I like to hit. It’s just
that feeling when you know you’re about tackle someone or get an interception.
It’s that feeling that you get."
Haven’t you always preferred WR?
JT: "Yeah, I did like wide receiver. When we went to the NIKE
Camp I went as a corner because that’s what I was getting recruited as. One of
my coaches said I was going to move to safety and I was hesitant, but it’s been
great."
Where are most schools recruiting you for?
JT: "Most schools want me at corner. A lot of them haven’t seen me at
safety. I just started safety during spring ball so they haven’t gotten a chance
to see me there."
How many offers do you have already?
JT: "I believe it’s eight."
What’s your reaction to all the early attention?
JT: "It’s just a blessing."
Did you expect this much attention this early?
JT: "No, not at all."
You said Oklahoma is in your top two. Is staying in-state something that you
would prefer to do?
JT: "No, actually I really want to get out. If I ended up
staying then I’d love to go to OU but it just seems like it’s too close. I feel
like I need to get out because I’ve been doing AAU during the summer and I’m
used to traveling."
Are you already pretty familiar with OU?
JT: "I feel like that I’m a part of them. I feel like I’m
a Sooner. I think I fit their style of play. I want to go visit OU again. I’ve
only been one time and that was their spring game. I liked that when I went."
You're going down to Texas Tech for a camp in a week or so, what do you know
about the Red Raiders?
JT: "I just like the environment and I like how they play.
Their defense improved this last season so I want to be a part of that."
What have you heard about them?
JT: "I heard that it’s a great school. It’s a great place to
be."
Can you tell us about former Millwood receiver Tramain Swindall?
JT: "I really like the way he came down here and helped us last
summer and spring. He helped us a lot. That was one of our advantages from other
teams. He was one of the individuals that came and helped us from higher
levels."
Did he help you in any one area specifically?
JT: "In a way he did. Overall he helped everybody the same. He
just showed us what the coaches would be looking for in technique."
Have you ever talked to him about Texas Tech?
JT: "I’ve talked to him a little bit about it. He’s the one
that’s told me that it was nice and a laid back place."
Where you else you going this summer?
JT: "We’re supposed to be going up to Kansas after the Tech
camp. I’m not sure what other camps we’re going to. We haven’t talked about it
yet."
When are you looking to make a decision?
JT: "I want it to go for a while. I probably won’t commit
until late in my junior year or early in my senior year."
What do coaches like about you?
JT: "Coaches tell me that they like my attitude, that I’m
coachable and my ability to fly to the ball."
Coach Grimble keeping a close eye on son
As Jalen Grimble's father as well as one of his
coaches, Jerry Grimble is understandably keeping a close eye on
his son's recruitment. And considering how young Jalen is, and the amount of
attention that he is receiving already, it is completely understandable that the
elder Grimble is being thorough with who he lets his son speak to in terms of
the media.
“He’s just so young,” said Jerry Grimble. “He’s only 15, so I have to screen
every phone call and makes sure he’s talking to someone legitimate.”
“He’s still learning. I just tell him to take a deep breath and know what he’s
saying. I try to tell him to answer all the questions and be truthful.”
Grimble's stock has risen very quickly, after a strong performance at a recent
NIKE camp.
“He didn’t tell people how old he was," said Coach Grimble. "He just mixed it up
and held his own. He did real well. They started talking about him and were
impressed when they found out that he was 15 years old. It was kind of crazy.
“Once you put your helmet on, you don’t know how old you are. You just go out
there and play the game.”
Grimble is clearly proud of his son and, like most fathers would, seemed to
enjoy talking about everything that’s going on in his son’s life right now.
“That was real big when Texas Tech called and Dennis (Simmons)
offered," he said. "We’re going to really consider them. We’re not going to do
like Xavier (Grimble) did. We’re going to go to every school
that’s offered. We’re going to check out Texas Tech and look at the school and
academics. We’re going to really consider them.”
It helps that Coach Grimble is already somewhat educated about the Red Raiders.
“I’ve been following Texas Tech for years," he said. "Way back when I was
playing, I had a couple of friends that went to school there. They came out of
JC and went to Tech.
“They always had a steady program and right now they’re big time. They’re
considered a BCS team like Utah. It’s one of the big schools that’s offered
Jalen. When they offered him, everybody got excited. That’s the way we looked at
it. It’s a great program with a great coach.
“We followed them last year when they beat Texas. That was a great game. We
thought they were going to beat Oklahoma but it didn’t work out that way. I
think my son would fit into that program and a lot of them.
“I’ve always watched Texas Tech’s defense. I’ve coached defense and I think my
son could fit in there. He played d-end all his life but he’s starting to grow
and could play d-tackle if the coaches wanted an athletic d-tackle.”
Coach Grimble’s brother is the father of 2010 prospect Xavier Grimble. He said
that they’ve all learned a lot from everything that Xavier has been through.
“We got to see the whole process and there was a lot of pressure," explained the
elder Grimble. "He had everyone in the country after him. It was tough. He was
telling me that Jalen is big time and he’s going to get a lot of phone calls.
“In a way, he got tired of it. He made about five or six unofficial visits and
narrowed it down to five. He just got tired with the process. It got real tough
as they all started recruiting him real well. It was Oklahoma, Florida, USC and
UCLA. Then it came down to Oklahoma and USC. One day after the NIKE camp he fell
in love with USC. He loved Bob Stoops and Kevin Wilson.
They were real good to him when he was down there. He was 95-percent at Oklahoma
then he went to the NIKE camp and all the coaches poured it on and he made the
decision on his own."
For Grimble, he feels that his son will approach the process differently.
“We got to see that whole process. With my son, we’re going to take our time.
We’re going to do what he did and, after Xavier signs, we’ll wait a couple of
weeks after and commit to get it out of the way. We have a while to go so I’m
going to let him enjoy the ride. He’s growing up and talking to writers. That’s
big for him.”
Xavier Grimble did receive a Texas Tech offer this spring, and told us in April
that he was "pretty strong" with his commitment to USC, but we asked Jerry
Grimble anyways if his nephew was 100-percent to the Trojans.
“The ink isn’t on the paper yet and he’ll keep his options open because you
never know what can happen," explained Grimble. "He loves USC though. I can’t
make that decision for him. I talk to my brother a lot and they’re keeping their
options open.
“We went with him and saw his whole process. The trips that he can get away and
go, he’s going to go with us. My brother and I are close and those two grew up
together so they like to see the process.”
Remember now, one of those visits that Jerry Grimble and Jalen are expected to
take is to the South Plains. Might Xavier perhaps come along for the ride as
well?
“There’s a big chance he could come to Tech with us," said Coach Grimble. "My
brother was talking about that. My brother’s wife’s mother lives in Dallas. He
wanted to come down with us and check out Texas Tech.
“I heard that Tech has a beautiful campus. Coach Simmons is a cool guy. The
conversation that we had with him was real cool.”
So what’s the timetable on all these visits?
“We’re probably going to make one or two this summer. We have a new coach
learning a new offense and defense. We’re trying to respect that. When we get
some days off, we’ll get a visit or two in.
“We’ll probably wait until after the season when we’ll take some more. We don’t
know when we’re going to Tech but we are coming there for sure. Tech and LSU are
going to be our first two stops. I have family in Louisiana, too. LSU and Texas
Tech are two of the schools that we are going to down and see.”
Texas Tech in Jalen Grimble’s top two? That's not bad. And that’s the way it’s
going to be as long as Jerry Grimble has such a positive attitude towards the
Red Raiders.
Finally, it appears that folks should not completely count out Xavier Grimble
just yet. He's still a longshot, but as long as Jalen and his father continue to
say that they’re going to visit Texas Tech, there’s still a possibility that
Xavier could make the trip as well.
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This post was edited on 6/5 11:11 AM by A. Dickens
