The second national signing day of the 2018 college football recruiting cycle arrives Wednesday. Here are a few key Texas Tech football recruiting battles to keep an eye on this week.
On Wednesday, the second signing period for high school football recruits arrives. The Texas Tech football team signed 12 players during the first ever December signing period meaning there is plenty of work left for Kliff Kingsbury and company to do.
The Red Raiders are expected to sign between 10-12 more players next week. Below are a few of the key recruiting battles that Texas Tech is in middle of.
John Stephen Jones – Quarterback, Highland Park, Texas
The two-star quarterback is the most famous high school football recruit in the nation. That is because he is the grandson of Dallas Cowboys Owner and General Manager Jerry Jones.
On the field, the 5-foot-11 175-pound prospect has had a fantastic high school career leading Highland Park to back-to-back state titles. This season, Jones threw for 3,107 yards and 30 touchdowns.
But Jones’ intangibles may be his greatest asset. He is a fantastic competitor and a natural leader that has drawn comparisons to former Texas Tech and Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield, though he is about three inches shorter than the 2017 Heisman Trophy Winner.
But like Mayfield, Jones has brought home some hardware for his work on the field. He was named the winner of the Landry Award as the top player in the 32 county North Texas area. Additionally, he was named the Built Ford Tough 5A Texas Player of the Year.
Jones took an official visit to Texas Tech last week and has the Red Raiders in his top three schools along with Arkansas and SMU.
Great time in Lubbock this weekend! #Wreckem pic.twitter.com/TarHyqP2FV
— John Stephen Jones (@JohnSJones15) January 27, 2018
Though Texas Tech has already inked one passer in the 2018 class, Alan Bowman of Grapevine, Kingsbury wants to add Jones to bring depth to a position that has become thin in recent years due to player transfers and recruiting misses.
Also, it would be naive to think that the prospect of having a potential pipeline to the Jones’ family fortune isn’t also an attractive aspect of bringing the under-sized QB into the fold.
The Red Raiders are squarely in the mix for John Stephen Jones but most think he will follow in the footsteps of his grandfather and father and head to Arkansas to play for new Razorbacks head coach Chad Morris.
Still, Texas Tech was Jones’ first FBS offer and he appears to be fond of Kingsbury making the Red Raiders believe they are in a good position.