Texas Tech football beating key Power 5 rivals on recruiting trail

In its recent run of success on the recruiting trail, the Texas Tech football team has beaten some key Power 5 rivals.

One aspect of college football recruiting that many fans closely monitor is the list of schools that have offered a particular recruit. Those such fans had to have been pleased when looking at the offers held by a number of the seven players that committed to the Red Raiders in the past week as it appears Matt Wells and his staff have begun to win some recruiting battles against key rivals.

By rivals, we do not only mean rivals on the field but more so rivals in the recruiting game. Because teams from all over the country try to pull talent out of Texas, the Red Raiders often find themselves developing recruiting rivalries that are just as important as on field rivalries.

One such school that fits that description in Arkansas. Because of the Hogs’ close proximity, they have always been active in Texas, especially the eastern portion of the state. Now that former SMU head coach Chad Morris is leading the program in Fayetteville, it seems like the Razorbacks and Raiders are fighting for the same recruits more frequently than ever.

That’s why it was so encouraging to see that four of the newest Tech commits (Ja’Lynn Polk, Tahj Polk, Quin Bright and J.J. Sparkman) all held offers from the Razorbacks. The biggest win for the Red Raiders from that group was Polk, a 4-star wide receiver from Lufkin.

The No. 62 player in Texas was thought to be leaning towards Arkansas after taking an official visit to Fayetteville in April. But he is now on board with the Red Raiders in a recruiting win that surprised a number of recruiting experts.

Speaking of key wins, beating TCU for Brooks, one of the state’s top running backs, could pay huge dividends down the road. The Frogs had made the No. 35 running back in the nation one of their top priorities in this class so when he picked the Red Raiders, it was a huge win for Matt Wells on two different fronts.

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Another Big 12 rival that was a big player in the recruitment of Tech’s latest group of commits is Baylor. Currently with the No. 8 class in the conference, the Bears have eleven players already on board.

Having extended offers to both Polk and Bright, Baylor was looking to add to their offensive talent pool. In fact, they had extended an offer to Bright all the way back in 2017 and had hosted him for a Junior Day event in 2018.

Yet another Big 12 foe to lose out on these recruits is Kanas, which has offers out to OT Larry Moore in addition to Sparkman, Bright and Polk. Moore took an official visit to Lawrence in April after receiving an offer from the Jayhawks in February but he is now the second offensive lineman in Tech’s class.

Currently with 21 commits already on board, Kansas has the No. 2 class in the Big 12. However, that is likely to change as other teams fill their classes. What may be a better indication of the KU class is the fact that they have the lowest average score per recruit of all Big 12 teams according to 247Sports.

Many Red Raider fans have come to view Kansas as a measuring stick on the recruiting trail because of their addition of former Red Raider wide receivers coach Emmett Jones. The former head coach at South Oak Cliff H.S. in Dallas has a reputation as a top recruiter and took a number of 2019 recruits that were once committed to Tech with him to Kansas.

But in helping to land Polk, Sparkman and Bright, new Tech receivers coach Joel Filani may be proving that he is no slouch when it comes to landing elite talent. That would certainly be a huge development for Texas Tech fans that have bemoaned the fact that Wells did not retain Jones.

Of course, offer lists are not a definitive measure of a player’s quality. After all, Wes Welker originally had no offers from Division I schools only picking up his offer from Tech after another recruit backed out on signing day.

Then there was Jakeem Grant, the Red Raiders all-time leading receiver. According to his 247Sports recruiting profile, his only Power 5 offers in 2011 were from Tech, Iowa State and Wake Forrest.

Still, Tech needed to start winning some recruiting battles against programs that occupy a similar place in the college football landscape as the Red Raiders. The first two players to commit to Wells this year, QB Donovan Smith and OL Caleb Rogers held only one Power 5 offer between them causing some fans to grow concerned about the direction of the class.

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As we continue to see how Matt Wells puts together his first full recruiting class as head coach of the Red Raiders, we need to see him continue to beat out key rivals for the type of talent needed to raise the program’s recruiting rankings. That will be the first step in what will hopefully be a successful rebuild of the Texas Tech football program.

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