Texas Tech football: Red Raiders add JUCO LB DeShawn Page

Friday afternoon, the Texas Tech football program picked up a verbal commitment from JUCO Linebacker DeShawn Page.

Matt Wells and the Texas Tech football program continue to invest heavily in the JUCO ranks. Already with three former JUCO players set to start or play significant roles for the 2020 team, the Red Raiders have added JUCO LB DeShawn Page to the 2021 recruiting class.

The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder announced his commitment on Twitter Friday evening. He becomes Tech’s 9th verbal commit in the class of 2021.

"“I would like to thank this program for believing in my talents and welcoming me [with] open arms,” he wrote on Twitter. “With that being said, I am 100000% committed to TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY!”"

https://twitter.com/DeshawnPage7/status/1291874524728786950?s=20

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As a true freshman last year, the Knoxville, Tennessee native had 36 tackles (three for loss), one forced fumble, and a fumble recovery for East Mississippi Community College in 2019. If that school sounds familiar, it may be because it was the subject of the first two seasons of the Netflix documentary series Last-Chance U. Of course, on season two of that show, former Texas Tech LB Dakota Allen was featured as he spent one year at East Mississippi.

Since arriving, Wells has leaned heavily into the JUCO market. That’s always a 50/50 proposition at best given the challenges that JUCO players face when adjusting to the FBS level of college football.

In 2019, Wells signed the No. 2 JUCO TE in the nation, Travis Koontz, who is expected to start this year. In fact, Koontz was the first player to commit to Tech after Wells was brought on board. Also in that recruiting class, Wells signed LB Kosi Eldridge and placekicker Jonathan Garibay. What’s more, Tech welcomed walk-on Xavier White, who made an early impact as an inside receiver before an injury cut his season short after just four games.

The 2020 recruiting class saw even more JUCO talent come into the mix. Tech signed LB Krishon Merriweather, DE Devin Drew, TE Jason Lloyd, S Cam White, and OT Ethan Carde. The first three of that group are all expected to compete for serious playing time this fall.

Already this year, Tech has added two more JUCO players to its recruiting class. In addition to Page, the Red Raiders have secured a pledge from JUCO DT Demeco Roland. Also, Tech is in the fight for JUCO DB Kamal Hadden and OT Caleb Etienne.

As for Page, his size would suggest that he’s an outside LB. But even if that’s the role envisioned for him at Tech, he is going to have to put on some weight in order to play at the Big 12 level.

light. Related Story. The most disappointing JUCO signees in Tech history

It remains to be seen how Wells’ strategy of relying so heavily on the JUCO ranks pans out. Much of the success of the 2020 team is going to hinge on the ability of JUCO players to make immediate impacts, something that transfers from that level often struggle to do. But one thing we know for sure is that Wells believes whole-heartedly in mining the JUCO ranks for talent. Now, all we can do is hope he strikes gold more than he strikes out.

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