Metroplex OL picks Mustangs

Mansfield, Texas offensive guard Derek Lilly grabbed several scholarship offers in hand but had to narrow his choices to one as the recruiting process came to a close.

The 6-foot-3, 285-pounder only played five games this year due to a knee injury but his rehab went well enough for him to finish the season. It also went well enough for offers from Colorado State, Louisiana Tech, Washington State, North Texas and SMU to come in. One of those schools received his commitment yesterday.

"I committed to SMU yesterday," Lilly said. "I kind of wanted to go to a school that's going to start blowing up and that's building. I like the school and I wanted to study law and business. I've also had a couple of family members that went there.

"It seemed like a good place for me to be."

Lilly hasn't taken his official visit to SMU yet but plans to do that on Jan. 14. His recruiter was coach Jim Gush.

"He's a pretty cool guy," Lilly said. "Most of the time we just talked about how the football program is on the rise and everything is going to be big time at SMU."