Entering the past week, head coach Everett Withers and Texas State had no commits in the fold for the Class of 2018. It’s safe to say that the Bobcats have made up some significant ground in just the last few days.
On Wednesday, safety Brandon Johnson of Tyler Junior College and formerly of Dallas Skyline became the first commit followed by receiver T.J. Graham of Mansfield Lake Ridge on Friday. Then on Saturday, the floodgates opened for Texas State, adding seven new members of their 2018 recruiting class on Saturday and then one later on Sunday.
The first two commitments came in from Allen teammates CJ Johnson and Taj Bickham. The two defensive backs were only a sign of things to come on Saturday. Johnson chose Texas State over offers from McNeese State and Stephen F. Austin. Bickham also held an offer from SFA.
The run in the secondary wasn’t done yet as Pearland Dawson defensive back Auston Deaton announced his commitment to the Bobcats, choosing Texas State over offers from Air Force and Army.
Texas State would later get a boost up front on the offensive line for the remainder of the day. Manvel offensive lineman Jalen Momerelle became Commit No.4 and the second straight Houston area commit. The 6-5, nearly 300-pound offensive lineman should play an important role as the Mavericks try to win their first state title.
The Bobcats would add a commit from Oklahoma in Morgan Moore of Midwest City (Oklahoma City). The rising senior spent the majority of his time up front at tackle and also held an offer from South Dakota State.
Commits Nos. 6 and 7 hailed from East Texas in Tatum linemen Drake Centers and Kylar Cooks of Liberty-Eylau. Centers had seen his stock rise from the end of his junior season, fielding offers from Houston Baptist, Louisiana-Monroe, SMU and Southern Miss before ultimately deciding on Texas State. The three-star prospect was a second-team all-district selection as a junior and should be a staple on the offensive line for Tatum in 2017.
Cooks became the final commit of the day for the Bobcats and like his East Texas counterpart; he too had seen his stock rise in recent months with other offers from Abilene Christian, Alcorn State, Arkansas State, Louisiana Lafayette and North Texas. That was it for Saturday but the Bobcats would get one more addition.
On Sunday, Fort Bend Travis linebacker Jake Lynch announced he would be joining the San Marcos crew. The 6-5 linebacker was a first-team all-district selection as a junior, finishing with 59 tackles and an interception in 2016 and chose the Bobcats over his only other D1 offer at Air Force. The Tiger linebacker should be in line for another big year in 2017.
With the recruiting dead period starting on Monday, head coach Everett Withers and his staff are entering the period with the top-ranked recruiting class in the Sun Belt after starting last week with a grand total of zero commits. There’s a long way to go between now and National Signing Day, but the Bobcats have to feel good where they stand for their future.
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