6/26/2007 football Edit

Texas QB on the rise wth offers

John Talman

Recruiting Analyst

Plano (Texas) East dual-threat quarterback Riko Smalls is on the rise this spring after recovering from an injury and coming back in the playoffs last season.

Thus far, the 6-foot, 183-pounder has added scholarship offers from Air Force, Colorado State, Louisiana Tech, and Tulsa. Other schools, that have yet to offer but have been showing interest, include Houston, Oklahoma State, Oregon, SMU, UTEP, and Wake Forest. Smalls says that he's keeping his options open but is excited about the early offers.

"I thought it was pretty cool to get offers early," Smalls said. "I'm sure I have more

coming and I'll get more through the season."

Smalls says that the majority of the schools recruiting him at this point like him at the quarterback position where he plays at the high school level. He injured his collarbone after the first three games but came back to play in the playoffs.

Now at "100 percent", Smalls says that he recently ran a handheld 40-yard dash time at 4.35. With his speed and throwing ability, Smalls says that he brings a lot to the table as a signal caller.

"I can make stuff happen when nothing is there," he said. "I help my teammates, I make good decisions, and I'm good at scrambling. I have the speed to run if I want to. I'd say 90 precent of the schools want me as a quarterback."

So far this summer, Smalls says he's attended camps at Houston, Oklahoma State, and UTEP. Stops at North Texas, SMU, TCU and some out-of-state camps are also possible but he's unsure of definite plans at this point.

The rising quarterback prospect says he's also deciding whether he wants to make his commitent before or after the season.

"I kind of want to commit right before the season so if I get injured, I know I have a scholarship," Smalls said. "But, I also want to wait until the end so if more offers come I can take a look at those."

Smalls had 61 completions for more than 800 yards and 14 touchdowns through the air during his junior season with 354 rushing yards and two scores on the ground.