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Texas Tech football: 2020 Safety Ja’Vaun Dabon picks Red Raiders

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Vaughnte Dorsey #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders gets past Ben Powers #72 of the Oklahoma Sooners after making an interception during the first half of the game against the Oklahoma Sooners on November 3, 2018 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Vaughnte Dorsey #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders gets past Ben Powers #72 of the Oklahoma Sooners after making an interception during the first half of the game against the Oklahoma Sooners on November 3, 2018 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /
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Monday, Matt Wells and the Texas Tech football program picked up a commitment from 2020 safety Ja’Vaun Dabon.

The Texas Tech football program’s recent run of good fortune on the recruiting trail continued Monday when 2020 safety Ja’Vaun Dabon announced via Twitter his intention to commit to the Red Raiders.  This is the seventh player to pledge to Tech since June 20th and the sixth since Saturday.

The 6-foot-2, 182-pound prospect has no current rating from either 247Sports.com or Rivals.  In addition to Texas Tech, he holds offers from Houston, Missouri, North Texas, Tulsa, Tulane, UTSA and New Mexico State among others.

He has seen his recruitment pick up this spring with eleven schools extending offers since the beginning of March and his stock should continue to rise through the fall.  The Houston product was on hand this weekend in Lubbock for the huge Texas Tech recruiting weekend and he was apparently impressed enough to pledge his loyalty to the Red Raiders.

https://twitter.com/vaun28_/status/1143247851981541378

After watching Dabon’s highlights, it is clear that his greatest asset is his size.  He spent quite a bit of time near the line of scrimmage in man-to-man coverage (where if he could get his hands on the receiver at the line, he was able to dominate his man) or coming downhill to make a play on the ball, whether against the pass or the run.

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It would not be shocking to see Dabon eventually man the hybrid safety/linebacker spot that new DC Keith Patterson likes to utilize.  Similar to how Tech used former safety Terrance Bullitt from 2010-13, Dabon could eventually be allowed to roam the formation to utilize his athleticism and size to make plays all over the field, including rushing the passer at times.  Dabon and Bullitt were virtually the same size as high school prospects with Bullitt being 6-foot-3, 178-pounds as a recruit.

This is the second safety 2020 to commit to the Red Raiders joining Jonathan Davis, a 3-star prospect who gave his verbal on June 3.  Adding to the depth at the position was a focal point in this class.  That’s because after seeing 2018 safeties Jah’Shawn Johnson, Vaughnte Dorsey and John Bonney exhaust their eligibility last season, the Red Raiders brought in only two defensive backs in the signing class of 2019.

Therefore, this almost certainly will not be the last defensive back the Red Raiders will pursue in this recruiting cycle.  In fact, according to 247Sports, Tech has offered scholarships to 20 corners and 17 safeties in the 2020 class.

With 10 commits, the current Red Raider recruiting class is still ranked last in the Big 12 by 247Sports.  But, with an average recruit ranking of  85.35, Tech sits above Kanas, Kansas State, Iowa State and Baylor.

The Jayhawks currently have the largest class in the conference with 20 commits.  Meanwhile, Kansas State has 16, Oklahoma State and Iowa State have 13 and Oklahoma has 12.

Fortunately, the Red Raiders now no longer have the smallest class in the conference.  What’s more, there’s reason to believe the class will continue to grow this week.

Sunday, Wells sent out a Tweet that simply said “Wreck ‘Em x7”, leading Tech fans to believe that seven players had committed to the Red Raiders over the course of the weekend as he has used the term “Wreck ‘Em” to signify new commitments since he was hired in December.  Dabon is the sixth player to make his decision public since the weekend.

dark. Next. Texas Tech vs. Big 12 in 2018-19

Though the summer dead period, during which coaches are prohibited from contacting recruits, has now begun there could still be more commitments for the Red Raiders in the wake of this weekend’s visits.  Should that happen, we will have a breakdown of the newest additions to the Texas Tech family.

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