In this week's edition of The Roundtable, we ask this question: Who will be Texas Tech's top newcomer in 2015?
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Level: Lots of options to pick from but I'd have to go with South Oak Cliff corner Jamile Johnson. Texas Tech's inability to cover and stay away from big plays over the top was painful to watch in 2014. The Red Raider defense has lacked a corner with the size that Johnson has at 6-foot and 205-pounds for quite some time and it helps that Johnson can run too. You'll see David Gibbs really lean on his corners and I can envision a starting duo of Nigel Bethel and Johnson sooner than later. When Johnson was being recruited he was told he'd have a spot here and would start and while many coaches tell prospects that this promise wasn't lip service.
Dickens: This might be hard for you to believe -- since I wrote 600 words earlier this week comparing Pat Mahomes to a Game of Thrones character -- but I'm not going to overthink this. Breiden Fehoko will be Texas Tech's most impressive newcomer in 2015. He's one of the program's most heralded signees in its history, plays a premium position and is not going to be physically overwhelmed as a freshman. Fehoko may not finish with any starts and he may not pile up a ton of gaudy statistics, but my bet is that he'll flash more than his peers this fall. (And, in case you're wondering, the closest Game of Thrones comparison for Fehoko is probably a much more verbose Hodor.)
Kohnle: Texas Tech inked 19 prospects in their 2015 class, and all of them potentially have the chance to play, and maybe even start, for this Texas Tech team come the fall. Breiden Fehoko looks the part, plays at a position of need and has the hype surrounding him to be the pick for top newcomer for next year, but that's too easy. We move to another position of need: wide receiver. Tech signed six receiver prospects, and all could infuse much needed talent at both the inside or outside positions. Though there are question marks about him qualifying, former four-star receiver J.F. Thomas possesses the game-breaking skill and is my pick for top newcomer next year. The man just scores touchdowns, plain and simple (He caught 26 his senior year) which will be welcomed in this offense. There is always an adjustment period for incoming recruits, but all you need to do is put the six-foot-four Thomas in the red zone and watch him do his thing.
Clare: I decided to go with a two-part answer on this particular subject - one redshirt top newcomer and one true freshman top newcomer.
This is going to be all about the linebacker position. I believe that redshirt linebacker Dakota Allen and true freshman linebacker D'Vonta Hinton both have the ability to become 'top newcomers' this season. The linebacker position seems to be 'okay' for Texas Tech and most people are focused on the addition of former 5-star, all everything linebacker Mike Mitchell. That might end up working out very well for the Red Raiders this season, but the overall depth at linebacker is not great and the team will need to lean on reserves like Allen or Hinton - maybe even both.
Both players were coveted prospects out of high school and were considered big recruiting wins for Texas Tech over the past two seasons. Allen is currently listed at 6-foot-2, 234-pounds and looked to be involved in several plays during the recent spring game. Hinton is listed a much smaller 5-foot-9, 204-pounds - yes, that is correct. The 'Hitman' will not impress most with size alone, but the standout prospect was considered one of the best linebackers in the state. He plays much bigger than his listed size and is a tackling machine on the football field, recording 171 total tackles his junior season on the way to earning all-state honors. I'm just not certain they will be able to keep Hinton off the field, and it might begin with special teams duties.
McKay: It's always hard for me to go with a true freshman wide receiver as my pick for top newcomer, just because it's honestly one of the harder positions to adjust to and make an early impact. Heck, it took Ian Sadler essentially three-quarters of a season before he made headway down the stretch last fall. But, I can't help myself, as I'm taking South Oak Cliff wideout JF Thomas. Quite a bit of that probably has to do with the fact that he has a unique skillset compared to the rest of the wide receiver corps.
Yes, Tech has a big outside receiver in Dylan Cantrell, but Thomas is both bigger and faster. While I don't think he'll start over Devin Lauderdale at X, I definitely think he'll end up with his share of reps, simply because he's a physical matchup nightmare, has hands like glue, and had nearly 30 touchdowns as a senior last fall, which is ludicrous. You can't keep his kind of talent off the field at Texas Tech right now.
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Level: Lots of options to pick from but I'd have to go with South Oak Cliff corner Jamile Johnson. Texas Tech's inability to cover and stay away from big plays over the top was painful to watch in 2014. The Red Raider defense has lacked a corner with the size that Johnson has at 6-foot and 205-pounds for quite some time and it helps that Johnson can run too. You'll see David Gibbs really lean on his corners and I can envision a starting duo of Nigel Bethel and Johnson sooner than later. When Johnson was being recruited he was told he'd have a spot here and would start and while many coaches tell prospects that this promise wasn't lip service.
Dickens: This might be hard for you to believe -- since I wrote 600 words earlier this week comparing Pat Mahomes to a Game of Thrones character -- but I'm not going to overthink this. Breiden Fehoko will be Texas Tech's most impressive newcomer in 2015. He's one of the program's most heralded signees in its history, plays a premium position and is not going to be physically overwhelmed as a freshman. Fehoko may not finish with any starts and he may not pile up a ton of gaudy statistics, but my bet is that he'll flash more than his peers this fall. (And, in case you're wondering, the closest Game of Thrones comparison for Fehoko is probably a much more verbose Hodor.)
Kohnle: Texas Tech inked 19 prospects in their 2015 class, and all of them potentially have the chance to play, and maybe even start, for this Texas Tech team come the fall. Breiden Fehoko looks the part, plays at a position of need and has the hype surrounding him to be the pick for top newcomer for next year, but that's too easy. We move to another position of need: wide receiver. Tech signed six receiver prospects, and all could infuse much needed talent at both the inside or outside positions. Though there are question marks about him qualifying, former four-star receiver J.F. Thomas possesses the game-breaking skill and is my pick for top newcomer next year. The man just scores touchdowns, plain and simple (He caught 26 his senior year) which will be welcomed in this offense. There is always an adjustment period for incoming recruits, but all you need to do is put the six-foot-four Thomas in the red zone and watch him do his thing.
Clare: I decided to go with a two-part answer on this particular subject - one redshirt top newcomer and one true freshman top newcomer.
This is going to be all about the linebacker position. I believe that redshirt linebacker Dakota Allen and true freshman linebacker D'Vonta Hinton both have the ability to become 'top newcomers' this season. The linebacker position seems to be 'okay' for Texas Tech and most people are focused on the addition of former 5-star, all everything linebacker Mike Mitchell. That might end up working out very well for the Red Raiders this season, but the overall depth at linebacker is not great and the team will need to lean on reserves like Allen or Hinton - maybe even both.
Both players were coveted prospects out of high school and were considered big recruiting wins for Texas Tech over the past two seasons. Allen is currently listed at 6-foot-2, 234-pounds and looked to be involved in several plays during the recent spring game. Hinton is listed a much smaller 5-foot-9, 204-pounds - yes, that is correct. The 'Hitman' will not impress most with size alone, but the standout prospect was considered one of the best linebackers in the state. He plays much bigger than his listed size and is a tackling machine on the football field, recording 171 total tackles his junior season on the way to earning all-state honors. I'm just not certain they will be able to keep Hinton off the field, and it might begin with special teams duties.
McKay: It's always hard for me to go with a true freshman wide receiver as my pick for top newcomer, just because it's honestly one of the harder positions to adjust to and make an early impact. Heck, it took Ian Sadler essentially three-quarters of a season before he made headway down the stretch last fall. But, I can't help myself, as I'm taking South Oak Cliff wideout JF Thomas. Quite a bit of that probably has to do with the fact that he has a unique skillset compared to the rest of the wide receiver corps.
Yes, Tech has a big outside receiver in Dylan Cantrell, but Thomas is both bigger and faster. While I don't think he'll start over Devin Lauderdale at X, I definitely think he'll end up with his share of reps, simply because he's a physical matchup nightmare, has hands like glue, and had nearly 30 touchdowns as a senior last fall, which is ludicrous. You can't keep his kind of talent off the field at Texas Tech right now.
