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Texas Tech Football: Scouting New ’18 WR Commit KeSean Carter

By Matthew Conner

ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 25: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Texas Tech Red Raiders interacts with Patrick Mahomes II
ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 25: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Texas Tech Red Raiders interacts with Patrick Mahomes II /
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On Tuesday, the Texas Tech football program received a verbal commitment from receiver KeSean Carter.  Here is a scouting report on the newest Red Raider pledge.

The Texas Tech football program has picked up its first verbal commitment of July after an unprecedented run of good fortune on the recruiting trail in June.  KeSean Carter, a three-star receiver from The Woodlands, Texas gave his verbal commitment to Kliff Kingsbury on Tuesday.

Carter is the Red Raiders’ 14th pledge for 2018 and the fourth receiver in the class.  Tech will have to replace three regulars in the wide receiver rotation (Cam Batson, Dylan Cantrell and Derrick Willies) following the upcoming season so the team was expected to replenish the reserves at the position in this cycle after taking only one receiver in the 2017 class.

The 5-foot-10, 150-pound prospect is also a track star and posted one of the fastest 100-meter-dash times in the nation last year among high schoolers.  He was highly coveted as a football prospect but only Texas Tech was willing to let him run track as well as play football.  Carter was also recruited by Arizona, Houston, Utah and West Virginia among others.

Carter plays almost exclusively out of the slot in the above highlight video.  And given his slight build, it is obvious that he will be in the slot at Texas Tech.

The most dominant aspect of his game is his raw speed.  That is no surprise given his status as an elite track sprinter.

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The vast majority of the plays in the above video show Carter using his speed to blow by defenders on fly routes and post patterns.  That strategy naturally works well at the high school level and The Woodlands coaches are smart to use this weapon to its full potential.

However, Carter will have to evolve as a route runner to be a threat in college.  For reference, consider the career of Texas Tech’s all-time receiving leader Jakeem Grant.

Despite possessing elite speed, Grant did not become a true weapon in the passing game until he learned how to work within the offense by running precise routes.  Carter will also have to learn how to be a serviceable blocker, a requirement placed on inside receivers due to their close proximity to the offensive line.

Another area of the game in which Carter’s speed is an asset is in special teams.  He has both a punt and kick off return touchdown in his highlight video.  Texas Tech’s special teams were woefully poor last season and the program has lacked a true return threat since Grant graduated.

Overall, it appears that Carter is usually the best athlete on the field.  It is always worth taking a shot on a player with electrifying speed.  Because of that special ability, Cater could become the next dominant slot receiver at Texas Tech.

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