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Looking At 2012 Basketball Recruiting
Texas Tech has already reeled in its first 2012 commitment from Jacksonville
(Fla.) Arlington Country Day forward
Jordan Goodman and all indications are that Billy Gillispie and his staff
are looking to add to the Red Raiders' class.
Here are a few guys to keep an eye on
Marcus Smart - We haven't been able to reach Smart (6-foot-4) yet, but it
wouldn't surprise us if the five-star prospect visited Tech at some point this
August with high school and AAU teammate Phil Forte.
Phil Forte - More on Forte later.
Alex Caruso - It would seem to be difficult for Tech to reel in Caruso as he
has not only grown up in College Station but his father is also an associate
athletic director at Texas A&M. Still, Caruso is playing things pretty evenly
and isn't tipping his hand, so I wouldn't completely chalk him up as a loss yet.
Connor Lammert - We posted an update on him Thursday, and he should actually
be in town visiting right now. Lammert would be a big get for Gillispie and the
Red Raiders, as his stock really blew up during the summer.
Uche Ofoegbu - Ofoegbu, who is on the same AAU team as Lammert, also claims
offers from Colorado, Gonzaga, Stanford, Texas A&M and others. His older
brother, John, played at Tech under Bob Knight for a couple of seasons before
transferring to Idaho State.
- Dickens
?
More Basketball Notes
* Don't immediately look at Jeff Kidder and assume that he's going to be limited
to or focused on recruiting the junior college ranks because of his experience
at that level. Basketball recruiting isn't like football where staff members are
assigned geographic areas or levels of competition, so Kidder will be focused on
everything from high school to international prospects.
* While we know that Kidder is the third member of Gillispie's staff -- joining
Chris Walker and Bubba Jennings -- his role is not immediately clear. At this
point, Walker is the only member of Gillispie's staff to have a job title
(Associate Head Coach) listed on his official Tech bio.
Gillispie was asked on Wednesday if the addition of Kidder meant that he had
completed his staff.
"We don't know exactly what we're going to do," he said. "We may hold a position
(open) for a year. I'm not trying to not answer your question, I just don't know
exactly what we will hire and how many we will hire before the season starts.
- Dickens
? ?
Kaster Getting To Know Commits
Altair (Texas) Rice Consolidated center
Jared Kaster has taken it upon himself to begin to build a relationship with
a few of his fellow 2012 commits.
"Oh yes, sir. I talk to a lot of the guys in our class pretty often. I've tried
to get in touch with all of them through Facebook or whatever way is possible. I
think I've gotten to talk to just about everybody," Kaster said. "It's going to
pay off for us when we get to Texas Tech if we've already kind of got a head
start on building those relationships and building up trust. I think we've got a
great group of guys and I'm looking forward to getting to know them more as we
go along."
The 6-foot-4, 268-pounder has paid particular attention to his teammates along
the offensive line.
"I've talked to guys like
Trey Keenan and
Christian Okafor quite a bit. We've gotten to know each other pretty well. I
think chemistry is really important for an offensive line and we've got a good
opportunity to start building that up now."
Kaster committed to Tech in June.
- Cowan
?
Forte May Visit This Month
Flower Mound (Texas) Marcus guard Phil Forte says that the recruiting process
has been "crazy" so far, but noted that it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience
that he's enjoying.
The 5-foot-11 prospect holds offers from several Big 12 programs, including
Kansas and Kansas State, but said that Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State
"are coming at me pretty hard right now." In fact, when asked which schools were
standing out to him...
"Probably Texas Tech, OSU and OU are standing out the most right now to me."
Forte said that he tries to talk to Gillispie at least once a week.
"It is his first year at Tech so it would be cool to be part of the start of a
turnaround of a program," Forte said. "What he has accomplished at other schools
is impressive and he is a proven winner. I like that about him for sure, it is
what caught my attention about him and Tech.
"He has explained the offense to me and how I would fit in to it if I were to
come there. He explained how the offense works and what it exposes on a defense.
We have talked about my role and what type of player I am going to at the next
level. He tells me how he believes in me and how I could run a Big 12 team on
the court and off the court as well. He is going to win at Tech and hopes to
bring a championship there and wants me to really be apart of that."
Forte has already visited Boise State and San Francisco, and hopes to visit Tech
"soon;" he also would like to visit Oklahoma and Oklahoma State before the
summer ends.
- Hair
??
Flannigan Ready For Tech
Missouri City (Texas) Linebacker prospect
Ryan Flannigan has shut down his recruitment.
"I have really just shut it down completely because I felt that Tech was the
right place for me," he said. "It felt good when I visited Lubbock and I want to
honor my commitment to the Red Raiders. I owe it to them to be honest after how
well they have treated me over the past two years. I already have backed out of
one commitment with Baylor to be with Texas Tech and I feel really great about
that decision."
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound prospect stays in contact with ex-high school teammate
and current Red Raider DeAndre Washington. Flannigan has asked what to expect
when he arrives in Lubbock.
"We still talk every once in awhile. He calls me or I will call him. He tells me
how good it is up there and how hard the workouts are so far. He lets me know
what I need to expect when I move down to Lubbock. He also lets me know what all
I need to improve on before coming down there. He lets me know that it is not
always fun but it will be worth it when I am down there with them playing for a
national championship."
Flannigan plans on making a few trips to the South Plains during the fall as
well as a trip in January.
"I am going to try to make it to a couple of games this year. I don't know which
ones yet but I want to try to be there for at least two games this year and then
have my official visit in January."
Flannigan and his Marshall teammates start two-a-days next week.
Ryan committed to the Red Raiders over offers from Arizona, Arizona State,
Arkansas, Baylor, Boise State, Houston, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana Tech,
Minnesota, Oregon State, San Diego State, West Virginia and Western Kentucky.
- Hair
?
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This post was edited on 8/5 2:29 AM by A. Dickens
