8/21/2018 football Edit

Texas Mid-Term Recruiting Report: TCU

Daimarqua Foster could be the next Texas running back to reach four-star status this fall (NICK LUCERO | rivals.com)

Nick Krueger • Rivals.com

Recruiting Analyst

Nick Krueger joined Rivals.com as a multimedia producer in 2011 and has covered recruiting in the state of Texas since 2016. He also co-hosts and produces Rivals' weekly podcast, Commitment Issues.

Football prospects looking to make their college football commitments before the start of their senior season is nothing new in Texas. However, in the first full cycle of changes made to the NCAA football recruiting calendar, many players took advantage of the opportunity to knock out many - if not all - of their official visits from the end of spring through early summer. Many top programs in-state, as well as those out-of-state teams that frequently recruit Texas, have seen their classes fill at an advanced pace with a higher likelihood that products from the Lone Star State will remain committed with an eye on signing their letters of intent in December.

In 2016, 258 players from Texas ranked as 5.4 two-stars or higher signed with Power Five or Group of Five programs. In 2017, that number grew to 297 and again in 2018 to 334. Currently, 216 players in that demographic are committed to Power Five or Group of Five programs in the 2019 class. While the number of signees at the very top of the rankings has remained relatively consistent since 2016, the growth in total players signed during that time is an indicator that the overall quality of talent in the state has grown as well.

With that in mind, and the start of football season just around the corner, now is as good of a time as any to take stock of which teams have recruited Texas most successfully this year. Here is a look at the job TCU has done with the fall approaching.

PERFORMANCE TO-DATE

The Horned Frogs are positioned pretty well at the start of fall to have another strong recruiting class in 2019, and have done well with their recruiting efforts within the state of Texas. Although Iowa import Max Duggan is arguably their best overall commit thus far, nearby Aledo, Texas, defensive end Colt Ellison came through with a commitment in early July to give TCU its second four-star commit. Ellison has grown into a solid defensive end prospect over the last few seasons, but is a tricky and athletic defender that is going to give head coach Gary Patterson an opportunity to get creative with his usage when he’s ready to take the field.

Several TCU commits saw some positive moves in the most recent release of the Rivals rankings, led by Wichita Falls-Hirschi running back Daimarqua Foster, who showed this offseason that he is planning on making a strong play for the top all-purpose back in the state. Cedar Hill defensive back Donovann Collins is in a similar boat as a safety and Newton, Texas, athlete Josh Foster has been working on both sides of the ball to help his team repeat as state champions this season.

The Frogs have done well to win some pretty close in-state recruiting battles to shore up some of these commits as well. In addition to Ellison and Foster, who each chose TCU over at least three other programs apiece when they committed, former Florida commit Andrew Coker also made the decision to choose TCU, with numerous offers from around the country on the table. The Frogs have put a heavy emphasis on recruiting offensive linemen in the past two classes, and Coker is one of the biggest in the state.

TCU is sitting on a top-30 recruiting class, but has a few high-profile targets left on the board that could commit and help take the group’s profile to the next level. Four-star wide receiver Tamauzia Brown announced that he’ll make his commitment this week, and after visiting TCU with teammate Foster ahead of his commitment, the Frogs should feel good about their chances to land him as well. The third player in a Big 3 from Newton is running back Darwin Barlow, who has been very complimentary of the relationships that he has with the staff - and he was also up for a visit at the end of July. The big fish would be Rivals250 defensive back Jalen Catalon, who is a local prospect, has some personal ties to the school and has been a frequent visitor. Although TCU seems to be pretty full in the secondary for this class, the staff would surely find a way to bring him aboard should he want to choose them. A clean sweep of landing all those prospects would be a jackpot scenario for the program.

MID-TERM GRADE: B

Truthfully, there might not be a ton of name value to TCU’s class at the moment, but there is a reason that is ranked where it’s at. The staff has done a nice job bringing in guys that at the minimum seem to be just very solid players. Should the Frogs land a few of those bigger splash names here to start the season, it will have been a job well done recruiting for prospects that can make an early impact as well as for quality depth and role players. Patterson and company have lost out on very few in-state targets, but part of that has been shrewdly identifying the players that they know they can land and fit into the system.