We will have more junior day visitor reactions and didn't want to keep piling onto the other thread, so here are some more reactions from this past weekend...
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DeSoto (Texas) corner A.J. Green made the trip out to the South Plains this weekend for the Texas Tech junior day and came away impressed with the city of Lubbock.
"We flew in on Saturday morning and barely missed the team going through practices," Green said. "I was kind of upset that we missed practices, but the coaches told me that I would be welcomed back to see practices any time. We met everyone upstairs at the stadium and had lunch with all of the coaches.
"From there, coach Kingsbury gave a speech to everyone and talked about the program, where they plan to be and what type of players they needed to get there. My parents and I enjoyed the presentation because it seemed like coach Kingsbury has a clear vision for the program at Tech."
Green spent most of his time with Texas Tech defensive coordinator David Gibbs and corners coach Kevin Curtis on Saturday.
"After the meeting, we broke off into position groups and I went with coach Curtis into the corners meeting," Green said. "We didn't really watch film, but coach broke down the defense they run and showed me how the defensive backs lineup within their defense.
"They want to put guys in a position to read the quarterback's eyes and make plays on the football. It didn't seem too complicated, but they run some multiple looks and it is an NFL style defense. I liked everything they had to show me in terms of the defense."
The standout prospect also had a chance to meet a few of the current Texas Tech players - Nigel Bethel and Michael Coley.
"I met Nigel (Bethel) and Mike (Coley)," Green said. "They were real cool and basically just talked with me about their experience at Texas Tech so far. Both of them really like the coaches there at Tech and told me how much they have grown as players after being there for only one season.
"I really liked talking with Mike because he is a Bio-Medical Engineering major and that is something I want to pursue in college. He told me that it isn't easy and that it takes a lot of hard work to balance school and football, but I appreciated his honestly and it was good to hear it from someone already there in the program."
Green and his family toured the football facilities, the campus and even took pictures with some of the Tech coaching staff, but a one-on-one meeting with coach Kingsbury stood out for the DeSoto corner.
"We toured everything around the football facilities and the coaches took us around campus, but towards the end of the day we went to meet with coach Kingsbury for a meeting," Green said. "He basically talked with my parents and I about the opportunity at Texas Tech. How they want to help me grow as a person off the field and a player on the field. It was genuine and I came away impressed with the entire approach."
Now that Green has taken his visit out to Lubbock, what are his thoughts on the opportunity at Texas Tech?
"I was really impressed by everything," Green said. "Everyone had told me that the town of Lubbock was real dry and there wasn't much there, but being out there taught me differently. It's a pretty big city and Texas Tech is surrounded by the entire town. I could definitely see myself playing there and look forward to keeping in touch with the coaches."
Green plans to visit Rice later this month and will compete at the Rivals Camp in Dallas on March 29th.
-Clare
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Wichita Falls (Texas) Rider offensive tackle Clay Greathouse was in attendance for the Texas Tech junior day this weekend and seemed to really enjoy his time around the program.
"I was really impressed," Greathouse said. "The whole experience was great and watching the team go through practices really stood out for me. Maybe it's because Eric (Ward) is one of our coaches at Rider, but the Texas Tech players were doing a lot of the same drills we do in practices at our school.
"I hung around coach (Lee) Hays and the offensive linemen. It was nice being around a bunch of other bigger guys because I'm a big guy myself and it's not all of the time when I feel normal sized, if that makes sense. I liked how they were getting after it and all the players seemed to really like coach Hays."
After practice ended, Greathouse and other recruits in attendance all had lunch at the stadium and gathered for a presentation from head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
"We had lunch after practice and toured the stadium a little bit," Greathouse said. "From there, we met up in the team meeting room and coach Kingsbury gave a presentation about Texas Tech. The athletic director also talked with us for a little while and both of them talked more about the leadership program they have at Tech for student-athletes.
"I was pretty impressed with everything they had to say. Most schools will tell you they want to help you grow on and off the field, but coach Kingsbury and the athletic director showed us exactly how they would help us. It was unique compared to some of the other visits that I have taken so far."
The 6-foot-5, 290-pound tackle prospect spent some additional time around coach Hays and some of the other lineman prospects in town for the visit.
"Coach Hays took us into his meeting room and showed us some film of the offense," Greathouse said. "It was me, coach Hays and about 3-4 other lineman who were visiting. They use different play calls and terminology, but I was familiar with most of the schemes and sets they work out of in the Tech offense."
Greathouse also had a chance to tour the football building and learn more about the program from a few of the current players.
"They took us around the football facility and had all of the great set out for us," Greathouse said. "We tried on jerseys and helmets, then took a bunch of pictures with the coaches too. The coaches showed us around the weight room, the locker room and the main 'helmet' room with some of the former players listed.
"Breiden (Fehoko) and Jared (Kaster) were a few of the players that helped to show us around too. There were others, but those are the two that I can remember. They were both very nice, answered all of our questions and talked with us about their experiences at Texas Tech."
Greathouse does not currently hold an offer from the Red Raiders, but is expecting a return trip from coach Hays later this spring.
"Coach Hays wants to see me practice live," Greathouse said. "He is going to keep in touch with me and stop by during the spring when our practices get started. I would really like to add the Texas Tech offer and it would be a big one for me, but I'm not ready to commit just yet. I would like to take my time and let the process play out over time."
Greathouse has plans to visit both SMU and Oklahoma State this spring.
-Clare
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Wylie (Texas) East running back Eno Benjamin was one of a handful of impressive 2017 prospects in town for the Texas Tech junior day this weekend.
"We started the visit watching the team go through practice and I hung around the running backs group," Benjamin said. "It was a fast-paced practice, very little down time and very upbeat the entire time. I spoke with coach (Mike) Jinks and he gave me a run down of their current running back situation.
"They have mostly been showing interest, but coach wants to get in touch with my coaches and go from there. With the depth chart and me being a few years away, it might be a great opportunity for playing time."
Benjamin and the other visitors all had lunch with the coaches, toured the facilities and campus for most of the day. The 2017 standout is friends with current Texas Tech running back Quinton White and spent the evening at a team barbeque.
"I'm actually good friends with Quinton White," Bejamin said. "He took us to a team barbeque for Branden Jackson's birthday and it was a lot of fun. The players weren't treating us based on our age and were all interacting with me and building a bond."
Benjamin also spent time around a few other current Tech players before leaving town.
"I also met Breiden (Fehoko) and Davis (Webb) during the visit too," Benjamin said. "They both told me that they are building a great team at Tech and the program is going to be good again very soon. The team needs players like me and some of the other guys to come build upon what they are trying to do there.
"The future seems bright at Texas Tech and I feel going to college there would help me get to the next level."
Benjamin has already visited SMU, Baylor and UNT this offseason. He has plans to visit Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and the Baylor spring game later this month.
-Clare
This post was edited on 3/9 9:10 PM by M. Clare
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DeSoto (Texas) corner A.J. Green made the trip out to the South Plains this weekend for the Texas Tech junior day and came away impressed with the city of Lubbock.
"We flew in on Saturday morning and barely missed the team going through practices," Green said. "I was kind of upset that we missed practices, but the coaches told me that I would be welcomed back to see practices any time. We met everyone upstairs at the stadium and had lunch with all of the coaches.
"From there, coach Kingsbury gave a speech to everyone and talked about the program, where they plan to be and what type of players they needed to get there. My parents and I enjoyed the presentation because it seemed like coach Kingsbury has a clear vision for the program at Tech."
Green spent most of his time with Texas Tech defensive coordinator David Gibbs and corners coach Kevin Curtis on Saturday.
"After the meeting, we broke off into position groups and I went with coach Curtis into the corners meeting," Green said. "We didn't really watch film, but coach broke down the defense they run and showed me how the defensive backs lineup within their defense.
"They want to put guys in a position to read the quarterback's eyes and make plays on the football. It didn't seem too complicated, but they run some multiple looks and it is an NFL style defense. I liked everything they had to show me in terms of the defense."
The standout prospect also had a chance to meet a few of the current Texas Tech players - Nigel Bethel and Michael Coley.
"I met Nigel (Bethel) and Mike (Coley)," Green said. "They were real cool and basically just talked with me about their experience at Texas Tech so far. Both of them really like the coaches there at Tech and told me how much they have grown as players after being there for only one season.
"I really liked talking with Mike because he is a Bio-Medical Engineering major and that is something I want to pursue in college. He told me that it isn't easy and that it takes a lot of hard work to balance school and football, but I appreciated his honestly and it was good to hear it from someone already there in the program."
Green and his family toured the football facilities, the campus and even took pictures with some of the Tech coaching staff, but a one-on-one meeting with coach Kingsbury stood out for the DeSoto corner.
"We toured everything around the football facilities and the coaches took us around campus, but towards the end of the day we went to meet with coach Kingsbury for a meeting," Green said. "He basically talked with my parents and I about the opportunity at Texas Tech. How they want to help me grow as a person off the field and a player on the field. It was genuine and I came away impressed with the entire approach."
Now that Green has taken his visit out to Lubbock, what are his thoughts on the opportunity at Texas Tech?
"I was really impressed by everything," Green said. "Everyone had told me that the town of Lubbock was real dry and there wasn't much there, but being out there taught me differently. It's a pretty big city and Texas Tech is surrounded by the entire town. I could definitely see myself playing there and look forward to keeping in touch with the coaches."
Green plans to visit Rice later this month and will compete at the Rivals Camp in Dallas on March 29th.
-Clare
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Wichita Falls (Texas) Rider offensive tackle Clay Greathouse was in attendance for the Texas Tech junior day this weekend and seemed to really enjoy his time around the program.
"I was really impressed," Greathouse said. "The whole experience was great and watching the team go through practices really stood out for me. Maybe it's because Eric (Ward) is one of our coaches at Rider, but the Texas Tech players were doing a lot of the same drills we do in practices at our school.
"I hung around coach (Lee) Hays and the offensive linemen. It was nice being around a bunch of other bigger guys because I'm a big guy myself and it's not all of the time when I feel normal sized, if that makes sense. I liked how they were getting after it and all the players seemed to really like coach Hays."
After practice ended, Greathouse and other recruits in attendance all had lunch at the stadium and gathered for a presentation from head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
"We had lunch after practice and toured the stadium a little bit," Greathouse said. "From there, we met up in the team meeting room and coach Kingsbury gave a presentation about Texas Tech. The athletic director also talked with us for a little while and both of them talked more about the leadership program they have at Tech for student-athletes.
"I was pretty impressed with everything they had to say. Most schools will tell you they want to help you grow on and off the field, but coach Kingsbury and the athletic director showed us exactly how they would help us. It was unique compared to some of the other visits that I have taken so far."
The 6-foot-5, 290-pound tackle prospect spent some additional time around coach Hays and some of the other lineman prospects in town for the visit.
"Coach Hays took us into his meeting room and showed us some film of the offense," Greathouse said. "It was me, coach Hays and about 3-4 other lineman who were visiting. They use different play calls and terminology, but I was familiar with most of the schemes and sets they work out of in the Tech offense."
Greathouse also had a chance to tour the football building and learn more about the program from a few of the current players.
"They took us around the football facility and had all of the great set out for us," Greathouse said. "We tried on jerseys and helmets, then took a bunch of pictures with the coaches too. The coaches showed us around the weight room, the locker room and the main 'helmet' room with some of the former players listed.
"Breiden (Fehoko) and Jared (Kaster) were a few of the players that helped to show us around too. There were others, but those are the two that I can remember. They were both very nice, answered all of our questions and talked with us about their experiences at Texas Tech."
Greathouse does not currently hold an offer from the Red Raiders, but is expecting a return trip from coach Hays later this spring.
"Coach Hays wants to see me practice live," Greathouse said. "He is going to keep in touch with me and stop by during the spring when our practices get started. I would really like to add the Texas Tech offer and it would be a big one for me, but I'm not ready to commit just yet. I would like to take my time and let the process play out over time."
Greathouse has plans to visit both SMU and Oklahoma State this spring.
-Clare
----------
Wylie (Texas) East running back Eno Benjamin was one of a handful of impressive 2017 prospects in town for the Texas Tech junior day this weekend.
"We started the visit watching the team go through practice and I hung around the running backs group," Benjamin said. "It was a fast-paced practice, very little down time and very upbeat the entire time. I spoke with coach (Mike) Jinks and he gave me a run down of their current running back situation.
"They have mostly been showing interest, but coach wants to get in touch with my coaches and go from there. With the depth chart and me being a few years away, it might be a great opportunity for playing time."
Benjamin and the other visitors all had lunch with the coaches, toured the facilities and campus for most of the day. The 2017 standout is friends with current Texas Tech running back Quinton White and spent the evening at a team barbeque.
"I'm actually good friends with Quinton White," Bejamin said. "He took us to a team barbeque for Branden Jackson's birthday and it was a lot of fun. The players weren't treating us based on our age and were all interacting with me and building a bond."
Benjamin also spent time around a few other current Tech players before leaving town.
"I also met Breiden (Fehoko) and Davis (Webb) during the visit too," Benjamin said. "They both told me that they are building a great team at Tech and the program is going to be good again very soon. The team needs players like me and some of the other guys to come build upon what they are trying to do there.
"The future seems bright at Texas Tech and I feel going to college there would help me get to the next level."
Benjamin has already visited SMU, Baylor and UNT this offseason. He has plans to visit Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and the Baylor spring game later this month.
-Clare
This post was edited on 3/9 9:10 PM by M. Clare
