About 345 hopefuls gave everything they had Friday at Richardson Pearce in front of the Baylor coaching staff. Abilene Christian's staff was there as well. The skill players spent their time on the practice field. Offensive and defensive linemen were going through their drills on the baseball field.
Just a couple of things to note:
> Baylor is probably going to take one linebacker for this class. There are several ILB on the roster, so from what I gather, I wouldn't look for this class to be heavy there.
> It looks like the defensive line recruiting class could be either three or four. It's pretty clear there is a lot of attention focused toward Spring DT Bravvion Roy's visit to LSU.
> With four DB commitments, there's probably room for two more in this class. And it probably doesn't matter if they are in the form of corner or safety.
> There is some outside hope that Kentwood (LA) athlete Shyheim Carter, who is committed to Alabama, and Marrero (LA) linebacker Michael Divinity will be able to come to Baylor for Sunday's camp. It would serve as an unofficial visit. Neither would go through drill work unless they wanted to. Both are in the Rivals100. Saturday could provide a better answer if this is going to happen or not.
Now, on to the report.
If Baylor is going to take one linebacker for 2016, it's first priority appears to be Plano Prestonwood's Deonte Williams. Williams said he came to Pearce to see how he could work with the staff and how this group coaches their players. He called the relationship with the coaches much stronger than what it was four months ago. There are really no plans to visit other schools this summer. It sounds like a commitment decision could some summer. The early thinking is late June or early July.
Dallas Woodrow Wilson 2017 WR Charleston Rambo
I really like his hands. There's a reason why he is 4-star standout and in the Rivals100. Rambo had no problem working against the DBs. He caught anything that was close. Baylor likes him but may wait a little bit to offer him. Rambo is pretty thin (that's normal for a junior to be). But at 170, he probably could play in college at 195. "I love coaches the coaches,'' Rambo said. "They made me feel like I already committed.''
Plano Prestonwood 2018 DB Verone McKinley III
McKinley is listed at 5-10. I don't think that's right. I think he’s about 5-9. However, he has time to grow since he still has three years of high school ball left to play. What makes him attractive to LSU and Oklahoma, who have already offered? His recovery speed. If a wide receiver got behind him, he had enough to track him down and make a play on the ball. Plus, he has pretty good instincts to play the ball. “It lived up the hype. It’s Baylor,’’ he said. “I felt my transition game got better.’’ McKinley said he will probably visit Oklahoma, Tulsa and Texas Tech this summer.
Allen 2016 DE Levi Onwuzurike
He was a spectator on Friday but spent most of his time with the defensive line and watched how they went through drills. He said Baylor is pretty high up with him in terms of schools he’s considering – “The top half of his offers.’’ He said he will probably name his list of finalists in the next couple of weeks. Onwuzurike said he liked how the defensive coach taught on how to work against offensive. Nothing is scheduled but he said he plans to take some visits soon. One out-of-state trip visit appears to be Arkansas.
Richardson 2016 WR Khalil Lacy
He has offers from UL-Monroe and Army. Several other schools are looking at him. He’s visiting Baylor toward the end of June. It’s hard to know where Baylor sees him. It’s probably a bit of a stretch that the Baylor coaches will move on him anytime soon. “Camp season is my life right now,’’ he said. “The more camps I go to, the better my chances of getting offers.’’
Plano East 2016 WR Audie Omotosho
It’s clear that Baylor likes him. He was at the camp on Friday but did not go through workouts. He already holds 31 offers. Baylor isn’t one of them. But that could change. “Building a relationship with them and putting out more product for them to see,’’ he said. “I’m sure they’ll be looking to into my first three games as well as the rest of the season. It’s important for a player to be consistent.’’ He wants to announce his Top 10 by July and then maybe take unofficial visits then. He said Jim Gush wants him to visit soon.
Sachse 2018 WR Drue Jackson
It’s really early in the process for the youngster. He worked out in Waco last week – his first college camp experience – and came to support some Sachse teammates Friday. At 6-0, 170, he has interest from Baylor, TCU, Mississippi State and Oklahoma. He’s also going to camps with Iowa State and Texas Tech.
SL Carroll 2017 FS Robert Barnes
While he didn’t go through the camp because of a hamstring issue, Barnes has exceptional length. Barnes (6-3, 190) has seen Jim Gush a couple of times when Gush made evaluation stops at Carroll. “He said he likes how I use my feet and that I come down and hit people,’’ Barnes said. “But he likes me a lot and has been boosting me to the coaches a lot.’’ He’s played a little bit at outside linebacker. He said schools are looking him at either FS or LB simply because they don’t know how big he’s going to get. “I’m open to anything,’’ he said. He has offers from Duke, Nebraska, Oregon State, Iowa and Boston College.
Sachse 2016 DB Donovan Duvernay
Maybe some people thought this offer to Donovan was a means to see if they could get his brother, Devin, the Rivals100 wide receiver. But it turns out Donovan has turned out his own solid resume. He came Friday to watch and spent the entire evening there. He said ever since Baylor offered, “they’ve been on me heavy,’’ he said. I thought the attention was about what he expected. He and Devin are planning some trips and that Baylor should be one of them. As for he and brother being a package deal, Donovan said: “It’s something we’d like to do.” He said Baylor is pretty high on his board and said he could see himself playing for this coaching staff.
Some other quick hitters
> Irving Nimitz LB Noah Spears went through the camp and had a good experience. He definitely has the size to play in Division I. However, he’s not P5 quick. And that probably will cause Baylor to keep from moving on him. He’s a good player and will find a Division I home. He has plans to visit SMU and Texas Tech. He said he has grandparents who live in Lubbock and he wants to visit them.
> There’s no denying that Dallas Bishop Dunne 2017 RB Rajan Cunningham is a legit prospect. In several of the drills, once he cleared the first obstacle, he showed his acceleration. He can move to a higher gear quickly. However, it could be awhile before Baylor offers.
> Mansfield Lake Ridge 2016 RB Duke Carter (5-8, 183) kind of reminds me of JaMycal Hasty. Don’t look for Baylor to move on him but he’s good enough to play for somebody.
> There were two other players of note in Flower Mound safety Chandler Claterbaugh and Denison's Brendon Luper. But these are players Baylor would simply follow. Don't look for offers anytime soon.
> As we mentioned, there were 84 pre-registered for Saturday’s camp in Marshall. That’s four times as many that have ever been registered. Through the first three camps, Baylor has probably had about 1,300. There are more than 200 pre-registered for Sunday in Waco. The last camp on July 17 will at Houston Bellaire because it coincides with the beginning of Coaching School. Now, that’s some strategy. Sunday's camp in Waco is the last one on campus.
Just a couple of things to note:
> Baylor is probably going to take one linebacker for this class. There are several ILB on the roster, so from what I gather, I wouldn't look for this class to be heavy there.
> It looks like the defensive line recruiting class could be either three or four. It's pretty clear there is a lot of attention focused toward Spring DT Bravvion Roy's visit to LSU.
> With four DB commitments, there's probably room for two more in this class. And it probably doesn't matter if they are in the form of corner or safety.
> There is some outside hope that Kentwood (LA) athlete Shyheim Carter, who is committed to Alabama, and Marrero (LA) linebacker Michael Divinity will be able to come to Baylor for Sunday's camp. It would serve as an unofficial visit. Neither would go through drill work unless they wanted to. Both are in the Rivals100. Saturday could provide a better answer if this is going to happen or not.
Now, on to the report.
If Baylor is going to take one linebacker for 2016, it's first priority appears to be Plano Prestonwood's Deonte Williams. Williams said he came to Pearce to see how he could work with the staff and how this group coaches their players. He called the relationship with the coaches much stronger than what it was four months ago. There are really no plans to visit other schools this summer. It sounds like a commitment decision could some summer. The early thinking is late June or early July.
Dallas Woodrow Wilson 2017 WR Charleston Rambo
I really like his hands. There's a reason why he is 4-star standout and in the Rivals100. Rambo had no problem working against the DBs. He caught anything that was close. Baylor likes him but may wait a little bit to offer him. Rambo is pretty thin (that's normal for a junior to be). But at 170, he probably could play in college at 195. "I love coaches the coaches,'' Rambo said. "They made me feel like I already committed.''
Plano Prestonwood 2018 DB Verone McKinley III
McKinley is listed at 5-10. I don't think that's right. I think he’s about 5-9. However, he has time to grow since he still has three years of high school ball left to play. What makes him attractive to LSU and Oklahoma, who have already offered? His recovery speed. If a wide receiver got behind him, he had enough to track him down and make a play on the ball. Plus, he has pretty good instincts to play the ball. “It lived up the hype. It’s Baylor,’’ he said. “I felt my transition game got better.’’ McKinley said he will probably visit Oklahoma, Tulsa and Texas Tech this summer.
Allen 2016 DE Levi Onwuzurike
He was a spectator on Friday but spent most of his time with the defensive line and watched how they went through drills. He said Baylor is pretty high up with him in terms of schools he’s considering – “The top half of his offers.’’ He said he will probably name his list of finalists in the next couple of weeks. Onwuzurike said he liked how the defensive coach taught on how to work against offensive. Nothing is scheduled but he said he plans to take some visits soon. One out-of-state trip visit appears to be Arkansas.
Richardson 2016 WR Khalil Lacy
He has offers from UL-Monroe and Army. Several other schools are looking at him. He’s visiting Baylor toward the end of June. It’s hard to know where Baylor sees him. It’s probably a bit of a stretch that the Baylor coaches will move on him anytime soon. “Camp season is my life right now,’’ he said. “The more camps I go to, the better my chances of getting offers.’’
Plano East 2016 WR Audie Omotosho
It’s clear that Baylor likes him. He was at the camp on Friday but did not go through workouts. He already holds 31 offers. Baylor isn’t one of them. But that could change. “Building a relationship with them and putting out more product for them to see,’’ he said. “I’m sure they’ll be looking to into my first three games as well as the rest of the season. It’s important for a player to be consistent.’’ He wants to announce his Top 10 by July and then maybe take unofficial visits then. He said Jim Gush wants him to visit soon.
Sachse 2018 WR Drue Jackson
It’s really early in the process for the youngster. He worked out in Waco last week – his first college camp experience – and came to support some Sachse teammates Friday. At 6-0, 170, he has interest from Baylor, TCU, Mississippi State and Oklahoma. He’s also going to camps with Iowa State and Texas Tech.
SL Carroll 2017 FS Robert Barnes
While he didn’t go through the camp because of a hamstring issue, Barnes has exceptional length. Barnes (6-3, 190) has seen Jim Gush a couple of times when Gush made evaluation stops at Carroll. “He said he likes how I use my feet and that I come down and hit people,’’ Barnes said. “But he likes me a lot and has been boosting me to the coaches a lot.’’ He’s played a little bit at outside linebacker. He said schools are looking him at either FS or LB simply because they don’t know how big he’s going to get. “I’m open to anything,’’ he said. He has offers from Duke, Nebraska, Oregon State, Iowa and Boston College.
Sachse 2016 DB Donovan Duvernay
Maybe some people thought this offer to Donovan was a means to see if they could get his brother, Devin, the Rivals100 wide receiver. But it turns out Donovan has turned out his own solid resume. He came Friday to watch and spent the entire evening there. He said ever since Baylor offered, “they’ve been on me heavy,’’ he said. I thought the attention was about what he expected. He and Devin are planning some trips and that Baylor should be one of them. As for he and brother being a package deal, Donovan said: “It’s something we’d like to do.” He said Baylor is pretty high on his board and said he could see himself playing for this coaching staff.
Some other quick hitters
> Irving Nimitz LB Noah Spears went through the camp and had a good experience. He definitely has the size to play in Division I. However, he’s not P5 quick. And that probably will cause Baylor to keep from moving on him. He’s a good player and will find a Division I home. He has plans to visit SMU and Texas Tech. He said he has grandparents who live in Lubbock and he wants to visit them.
> There’s no denying that Dallas Bishop Dunne 2017 RB Rajan Cunningham is a legit prospect. In several of the drills, once he cleared the first obstacle, he showed his acceleration. He can move to a higher gear quickly. However, it could be awhile before Baylor offers.
> Mansfield Lake Ridge 2016 RB Duke Carter (5-8, 183) kind of reminds me of JaMycal Hasty. Don’t look for Baylor to move on him but he’s good enough to play for somebody.
> There were two other players of note in Flower Mound safety Chandler Claterbaugh and Denison's Brendon Luper. But these are players Baylor would simply follow. Don't look for offers anytime soon.
> As we mentioned, there were 84 pre-registered for Saturday’s camp in Marshall. That’s four times as many that have ever been registered. Through the first three camps, Baylor has probably had about 1,300. There are more than 200 pre-registered for Sunday in Waco. The last camp on July 17 will at Houston Bellaire because it coincides with the beginning of Coaching School. Now, that’s some strategy. Sunday's camp in Waco is the last one on campus.
