SIGNING DAY!!!!!

[Drbio]

When you get news about your recruiting classes, post it here. A lot of us love signing day. Congrats to Texas for adding Franklin Okam last night. HUGE signing. I watched him announce live last night on FoxSports.




Could we not get the guy a Bear hat? dang.




Report away guys....this is a great day for college football.

[Dooby]

Rivals rates SMU class as 74th best in college football. SMU was hurt by a lack of scholarships to give, which does affect rankings. Only 13 HS seniors. Plus 3 JuCo's and 3 transfers. Given the season SMU had, this is a great class.

Cortley Blackmon
DB
5-10 • 175
Bay City, Texas (Bay City)
First-team All-District 24-4A selection at both cornerback and wide receiver… First-team All-Area and All-County…Bay City Football MVP in 2003… Chose SMU over offers from Iowa and Tulane…

Vincent Chase
TE
6-5 • 250
Irving, Texas (Irving)
A Rivals.com three-star recruit, the highest among 2004 SMU signees… No. 5 tight end in the nation by SuperPrepXtra.com… No. 50 prospect on Rivals’ Texas Top 100 and the top-ranked tight end in the state… No. 25 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100 and No. 75 overall in State Top-100… Also tabbed the state’s No. 1 tight end by the DMN… Named to The Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Area Top 75 and Dave Campbell’s Texas Top 300… An All-State, All-District and All-Area selection… An Academic All-District honoree… Chose SMU over offers from Florida, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, LSU, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Colorado State, Syracuse, Kansas State, Kansas, TCU, Missouri and Iowa State…

Kyle Griffin
DE
6-4 • 225
Colleyville, Texas (Colleyville Heritage)
A two-time All-District 5-5A selection… Named All-Tarrant County and Defensive MVP… Rated as the top defensive end in the Metroplex by Rivals.com… Also lettered in baseball… No. 86 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… Has a 36-inch vertical leap… Chose SMU over offers from Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Air Force, Miami (Ohio) and “just about all the Ivy League schools”…

Tony Hawkins
WR
6-1 • 190
Longview, Texas (Pine Tree)
A two-time first-team All-District running back and All-District safety… Named All-East Texas… Named Football Newcomer of the Year and Basketball Sophomore of the year in 2001… Won district 400m dash and mile relay in 2003…Runs a 4.5-second forty… Chose SMU over TCU, Baylor and Louisiana Tech…

David Haynes
DB
5-9 • 180
McGregor, Texas (McGregor)
District 21-2A Most Valuable Player… A first-team All-State pick… Named to the Super Centex All-Central Texas Team… Rivals.com two-star recruit… Named District Offensive MVP and All-District cornerback as a junior…Named District Newcomer of the Year as a freshman…Runs a 4.4-second forty… Chose SMU over Arkansas, Kansas, TCU, Tulsa, North Texas and Baylor…

Jessie Henderson
RB
5-8 • 170
Paris, Texas (Paris)
An All-America selection by PrepStar and SuperPrep…Named The National Old Spice Red Zone Player of the Year… Invited to both the Nike Camp and the U.S. Army All-America Combine… A Texas Top-130 pick by the Aggie Websider… An All-State selection… The District 11-4A Return Specialist of the Year… One of the Top 10 running backs in the state according to Texas Prep Xtra and Lone Star Recruiting… A national Blue-Chip Running Back by Max Emfinger… Member of Dave Campbell’s Texas Top 300 and Don Cartwright’s Lone Star 100… Named to Inside Texas Football’s Top 100… The Texas 4A State Champion in the 100m as a sophomore… Runs a 4.25-second forty… Rivals.com two-star recruit… A State Top-100 player and the No. 41 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… Chose SMU over Arkansas, Colorado, Purdue, BYU, Colorado State, Utah, Missouri, Iowa State, TCU
and Houston… Born Dec. 8, 1984, in Dallas.

LaCori Johnson
DB
5-9 • 175
Atlanta, Texas (Atlanta)
A unanimous All-District 12-3A selection… Named the District Defensive Back of the Year… A second-team All- East Texas pick… Led the Atlanta Rabbits to two straight Class 3A state track championships and the 2003 Class 3A football title… Top- 100 player in the state by TexasPrepXtra.com… Named All-Northeast Texas… Anchored three state championship relays (4x100, 4x200 & 4x400) and was the district champion in the 200m as a sophomore… His 800m relay team set a new state 3A record… Runs a 4.3-second forty… Chose SMU over TCU, Arkansas and SFA…

Jonathan Lindley
DB
6-0 • 180
Sulphur Springs, Texas (Sulphur Springs)
A two-time All-District 11-4A defensive back… Also earned honorable mention honors as a sophomore… No. 46 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… No. 93 prospect on Rivals’ Texas Top 100… Coached by Brad Turner at Sulphur Springs… Also lettered in track and basketball… Chose SMU over TCU, Baylor, UTEP, Colorado, Texas Tech, Tulsa and Arkansas…

Sean Lobo
OL
6-3 • 285
Arlington, Texas (Sam Houston)
A two-time All-District 6-5A selection… All-Area as a senior…A team captain at Sam Houston… Ranked as the No. 29 player in the Metroplex by the Arlington Star-Telegram… Named to the Area Top-75 by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram… Named to Dave Campbell’s Texas Top 300… No. 67 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… Also lettered in power lifting and track… Chose SMU over New Mexico, New Mexico State, Louisiana Tech and Arizona

Devin Lowery
WR
5-11 • 180
Grand Prairie, Texas (Grand Prairie)
A 2002 first-team All-State selection… Also named firstteam All-District 8-5A and first-team All-Area… Invited to play in the Coca-Cola All-Star game… Runs a 4.37-second forty… Also lettered in basketball… Chose SMU over Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Baylor and Kansas.

DeMyron Martin
RB
6-2 • 200
Allen, Texas (Allen)
District 9-5A Player of the Year… First-team All-District 9-5A pick and an honorable mention All-State selection by the AP and Dallas Morning News… Named the All-County 4A-5A Player of the Year by the Star Community Newspaper…Invited to play in the Oil Bowl… No. 57 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… Coached by Joe Martin at Allen… Runs a 4.5-second forty… Picked SMU over offers from Texas A&M, Arkansas, TCU, Tulsa, Baylor and New Mexico State

Wilton McCray
LB
6-0 • 195
LaMarque, Texas (LaMarque)
A two-time All-District and All-Galveston County selection… Named District 23-4A Defensive Player of the Year… An honorable mention All-State pick… Led LaMarque to a 16-0 record and the state championship in 2003… Chose SMU over TCU, Baylor and Arizona…

Andrew McKinney
RB
6-4 • 235
Decatur, Texas (Decatur)
The leading scorer in his district with 27 touchdowns… Named All-District and All-Area in 2002 & 2003… Selected the 2002 Offensive Back of the Year… Made the regional finals in the long jump and the 440-yard relay…Also lettered in basketball, track and golf… Rivals.com two-star recruit… The state’s No. 50 running back according to Rivals… No. 58 overall prospect according to the Dallas Morning News Area Top-100… Also tabbed a State Top-100 player by the DMN and an Area Top-100 player by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram… Top-100 player in the state by TexasPrepXtra.com… Chose SMU over Kansas and Kansas State…

[Drbio]

Bears clinging to 16 football prospects
By JERRY HILL Tribune-Herald assistant sports editor
If possible, Guy Morriss would stay on the phone until the fax machine started buzzing.

"It's a dog-eat-dog business," the second-year Baylor coach said of a recruiting process that culminates today when players turn commitments into signatures and fax in their letters of intent.

"I'm sure all our competitors are still calling these guys to decommit and come to their places. You've got to stay on the phone with these guys and call them right to the end. It's unfortunate, but that's the nature of the business. There's no honor among thieves, that kind of thing."

Morriss should know. In his stint at Kentucky, he was on the phone until midnight on the day before signing day and stole one away from another school at the last minute.

"That's what you worry about," he said. "Somebody doing it to you. But that's the rules we're all playing by."

Barring any last-minute thievery, Morriss is expected to sign 16 players today to go with the two junior college transfers who signed in November. Quarterback Dane King from Blinn and offensive lineman Evan Stone from Tyler Junior College enrolled last month and will go through spring training.

"If we're going to sign a junior college guy, whether he comes at midterm or May, he's got to play," Morriss said. "If there's any question about him cracking our lineup, we're not going to sign him. What's the point? Most of those guys have only got two years, so if he's not starting, you haven't helped yourself much." Former Tribune-Herald Super Centex offensive lineman Yancy Boatner (6-5, 300) from Hamilton also fits into that category. A starter this year at Dixie State College in Utah, Boatner is the only junior college player among the 16 recruits expected to sign today.

Based on recruiting lists, Morriss' second class will be woefully short on blue-chippers.

The Bears have commitments from just three players off the Trib Top 100 state recruiting list: linebackers Ben Hixson from Southlake Carroll and Bradley Bullitt from Garland Naaman Forest and all-state running back Jacoby Jones from Bangs.

"We have to take a little bit of an unconventional route in signing kids," Morriss said. "A lot of these guys were not on any lists, but I think the proof's in the pudding when you look four or five years down the road. Maybe he's not the blue-chip guy with all the accolades. But we've just got to get them here and start developing them."

One of the team's biggest "need" areas at defensive tackle was left unfilled. Dan Gay (6-5, 262), who played just one football season at St. Thomas More Catholic High School in Lafayette, La., is considered a project at the position.

"We could have used some d-linemen that could have stepped in and played next fall," Morriss said. "We had three guys we felt like could have helped us there. But for whatever reason, they went other places. It just didn't work out."

Arkansas continued its successful Central Texas swing with a commitment Tuesday from mammoth University offensive lineman Ryan Young (6-7, 325). The Razorbacks are also expected to sign Marlin defensive backs D'Nerian Wrighter and Matterial Richardson today.

[Bayliss]

I'm pleased that Baylor signed the kid from Bangs. It's not everyday that a 2A player gets to go to a Division I school with hopes of being a contributor. Hope it works out for him.

[Drbio]

From what I have heard, there was a late run on the kid from Bangs after he reeled off several 200-300 yard games. Several other D-1 schools were mentioned. BUT.....he stuck to his commitment. It's nice to see a kid keep his word. I look forward to yelling my lungs out for this kind of kid.

[Dooby]

The best way for the SMU's and the Baylor's of the world to acheive success is to get the sleepers early before they have big HS playoff runs. SMU has more than a few of those. The bad part is that you really have to sweat out the commitment in January when the big schools come. At the end, it seemed like Notre Dame was going down our commitment list one kid at a time. Never worked, though.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

[mavsfanforever]

Originally posted by: Dooby
The best way for the SMU's and the Baylor's of the world to acheive success is to get the sleepers early before they have big HS playoff runs. SMU has more than a few of those. The bad part is that you really have to sweat out the commitment in January when the big schools come. At the end, it seemed like Notre Dame was going down our commitment list one kid at a time. Never worked, though.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

I concur with that.