Hinton, Harris receive offers

Channelview (Texas) High School has been overshadowed by Galena Park's North Shore High School from time to time, which has been a talent-rich spot for college coaches.

The best Channelview athletes often times would travel five miles down the road to play for the North Shore football machine. It seems that Channelview coach Averion Hurts is changing all that and has two 2008 prospects with Division I offers.

Utility player Jackie Hinton emerged on the recruiting scene after a tremendous junior season, which saw him earn first-team, all-district nods at receiver, defensive back and kick returner.

"He's an aggressive kid with great size and speed," Hurts said. "He has the grades and the test score and coaches coming through here love his tape. This kid makes plays and projects as a big cover corner. He could get on someone's training table and grow into a safety."

Schools that have taken notice include Oklahoma State and Houston, which have offered this week. Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas State, Texas A&M, TCU and Iowa are showing significant interest, and Texas coaches were present for spring practice on Wednesday.

"This is always what I've wanted to do," Hinton said. "This is a dream come true. I've always liked LSU and UCLA, so we'll see what happens. This is a blessing though."

Hinton moved to Channelview from Shreveport, Louisiana, before his junior season to live with his father, who played college football at Grambling State.

"He came in here as an unknown and was a first-teamer at three positions. That's remarkable because of the talent in this district," Hurts said.

Teammate Duriel Harris has also received interest and local Division I offers from Rice and Houston. Harris (6-foot-5, 198-pounds) earned first-team honors as a junior as well.

"Duriel's confidence went up so much during last season," said. "He's light on size 17 feet and is just a gifted athlete. The light went on last year and his upside is tremendous. Nebraska will be down in a few days with their receiver coach to evaluate him."

Class of 2009 prospects include defensive linemen Tyrone Campbell (6-2, 250 pounds) and Jerel Watkins (6-3, 238 pounds), but the one to watch is sophomore-to-be Cedric Steward. The 6-foot-2, 280-pound offensive lineman will get plenty of attention over the next three seasons. He's off to a good start, starting every game as a freshman.