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Texas Tech football: Red Raiders make the cut for talented OLB

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - OCTOBER 19: Defensive coordinator Keith Patterson of the Texas Tech Red Raiders oversees warmups as linebackers Tyrique Matthews #32 and Xavier Benson #37 warm up before the college football game against the Iowa State Cyclones on October 19, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - OCTOBER 19: Defensive coordinator Keith Patterson of the Texas Tech Red Raiders oversees warmups as linebackers Tyrique Matthews #32 and Xavier Benson #37 warm up before the college football game against the Iowa State Cyclones on October 19, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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The Texas Tech football program has made the cut for talented OLB D’Marion Alexander, who has the Red Raiders in his top four.

One of the best linebackers in Texas has cut his list to four schools and as you might imagine, the Big 12 is going to factor heavily in this recruiting battle.  This week, 3-star China Springs, Texas outside LB D’Marion Alexander cut his list of suitors to Texas Tech, TCU, and Kansas of the Big 12 as well as Minnesota out of the BIg 10.

At 6-foot-4, 210-pounds, Alexander is the No. 52 outside LB in the nation and the No. 95 player in Texas according to 247Sports.com.  In addition to the teams in his top four, he holds an offer from Baylor but the Bears seem to be out of the mix.

247Sports shows that Alexander has taken an unofficial visit to TCU but has not taken any official visits at this point.  And now that all recruiting has been put on hold because of the coronavirus outbreak, there’s no telling when he will be able to schedule those all-important trips to the campuses that he is interested in.

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In the class of 2021, Tech has only two players committed at this time, QB Behren Morton and WR Jerand Bradley, both of whom are four-star prospects.  That’s a great start to what will be the class that very well could determine Matt Wells’s ultimate fate in Lubbock.

Tech has already offered at least eight other OLB in the 2021 class and given the defensive scheme that defensive coordinator Keith Patterson runs, we can expect players at that position to continue to be of a high priority.  That’s because they are often versatile enough to play the hybrid DE/LB position Patterson calls the “Raider”, which is one of the spots on his defense that he counts on to put pressure on the QB.

In the recently-signed class of 2021, Tech signed talented Amarillo product L.B. Moore, a 3-star weakside DE rated as the No. 119 player in Texas, who likely fits into the role of the Raider.  And every year, it will be critical for the Red Raiders to continue to stockpile players capable of being edge rushers.  Perhaps Alexander will be that guy in the 2021 class.

Also important to know on the Texas Tech recruiting trail is the fact that the program’s top 2021 defensive target, 4-star DE Landyn Watson from Hutto, Texas has released his top 13 schools and Tech made the list.  Also still in the running for the 4-star target and No. 39 player in Texas are LSU, Mississippi State, Arizona State, Arkansas, Missouri, Baylor, Notre Dame, Cal, Penn State, Tennessee, Michigan, and Virginia Tech.

Next. The potential impact of spring football cancellation. dark

It is likely that these recruiting battles will not be decided for quite some time as we have no idea what the future of the college football recruiting landscape will look like over the upcoming weeks and months.  But as the uncertain recruiting cycle unfolds, keep an eye on the names of D’Marion Alexander and Landyn Watson because they would both be fantastic additions to the Texas Tech football program.

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