Friendswood WR best kept secret in Texas

One of the best-kept secrets in the Greater Houston area could very well be Friendswood wide receiver Andre Gautreaux. Quarterback Jacob Karam had recruiters flocking to the Galveston County school this spring and many were left wondering who the sure-handed receiver was that was on the receiving end of his passes.

It was the 6-foot, 180-pound Gautreaux. College coaches began to ask Friendswood head coach Steve Van Meter about his "other" college prospect in the class of 2009.

"A lot of them came to see Jacob and ended up being really impressed by Andre," said Van Meter. "The two of them are just in sync all the time, but it's more than that. Andre is a guy that is going to be a very, very good college receiver. He's got great hands, runs precise routes and we've timed him under 4.5 (seconds in the 40-yard dash) a number of times."

According to Gautreaux, a few of the schools that offered Karam have started giving him attention as well. Though his teammate recently committed to Texas Tech, it has not stopped the interest in him.

"Vanderbilt, Rice and SMU have all said that I'm high on their boards," said the wide receiver. "Tulane also seems to be really interested. I know they compared me to (current starting receiver) Casey Robottom. They said that they liked my film a lot and that I remind them a lot of him."

A few other schools have also taken notice as well.

"I've also been hearing from Houston, TCU, Southern Miss and Louisiana-Lafayette," said Gautreaux. "I'm going to try and make it to camps at all of them but I'm going to Rice for sure on July 17.

"A lot of the schools say that, if I have a good first couple of games and really prove myself my senior year, I'm in line for an offer. I don't really need extra motivation since we have a good team coming back and have a chance to make a serious run, but if I did, that would be it."

Gautreaux recently attended a NIKE combine and recording a SPARQ rating of 101.88, ranking him seventh in the nation among receivers. He will be a three-year starter this fall and earned first-team all-district honors a year ago after catching 22 passes for 460 yards and six touchdowns. With the other starting receivers having graduated, his numbers should be even higher this season. He will also be returning kickoffs and punts for the Mustangs.