Even in the worst of times, the Texas Longhorns have never had trouble landing a top ranked recruiting class and that was again the case on National Signing Day for 2015. Texas finished with the top ranked recruiting class in the Big 12 and was the only Big 12 Conference team that ranked in the top 10 nationally with an ESPN rank of ninth.
The Oklahoma Sooners were the only other Big 12 team that had a class ranked in the top 25 nationally. Oklahoma ranked 19th at 247 Sports, 17th at ESPN and 19th at Rivals.com. The rest of the Big 12 Class was uninspiring and indicative of the league’s loss of stature behind the SEC, ACC, Pac 12, and Big Ten. Let’s assess the Big 12 and its 2015 National Signing Day classes.
A Strong Class
Texas long boasted top ten recruiting classes under former head coach Mack Brown but did a terrible job at developing all of that talent into a championship team. Second year head coach Charlie Strong is expected to fix that issue with an impressive class. Strong did a great job last year at weeding out the problem players and instilling a newfound toughness and discipline that has been missing for years in Austin.
The new players coming aboard will be all-in for Strong’s culture shift and not part of the soft entitled past of Brown’s players. Headlining the Texas class is a core total of 18 four-star signees led by outside linebacker Malik Jefferson. Strong is a defensive-oriented coach and that shows with another four-star linebacker in Anthony Wheeler, who will fill in the inside. Four-star safety DeShon Elliott will further add to what will be a potentially outstanding defense. A big loss, however, was four star quarterback Zach gentry who flipped to Michigan.
Stoops needs improvement Sooner rather than Later
Oklahoma has been slipping on head coach Bob Stoops’ watch and is coming off an 8-5 season in which they were unranked in the final AP poll. Stoops has posted just one top ten finish in the last four years and patience is running thin in Norman. Oklahoma did land a total of 13 four star signees led by cornerback P.J. Mbanasor, defensive tackle Ricky DeBerry, and defensive tackles Neville Gallimore and Marquise Overton, which demonstrates a commitment to shoring up a defense that has been nowhere near its dominant past. Also of note was the lack of a quarterback in the 2015 class.
Bear Market
Baylor was unable to capitalize on its last two seasons as a national championship contender with a sparkling new stadium as they finished with a class that ranked 32nd in the nation by ESPN. Still, head coach Art Briles has improved the climate in Waco with perennial top 40 classes, which was an impossible pipedream not that long ago. Heading the 2015 class is four star quarterback Jarrett Stidham, a highly touted dual threat quarterback that should maintain the Bears tradition of great quarterbacks like Robert Griffin III and Bryce Petty.
Frogs Fail to Leap
TCU finished with a final ranking of third in the nation and yet landed a recruiting class that was ranked only 37th in the nation by ESPN. The Frogs were a near miss for the College Football Playoff and that was based in part because the Big 12 does not have a Conference Championship Game. The Frogs were no doubt victims of some negative recruiting and the fallout of the Big 12 losing stature and prestige in the national conversation. Four star athlete Kavontae Turpin heads the class.
Guns Up
Despite a terrible 4-8 season last year Texas Tech and head coach Kliff Kingsbury had a relatively impressive class that ranked 35th at ESPN. Kingsbury addressed the need to shore up the Red Raiders horrible defense with four star signees Breiden Fehoko (defensive tackle) and Jamile Johnson Jr. (safety).
Of Note
Kansas State had a typically mediocre ranking of 59th in the nation, which Hall of Fame head coach Bill Snyder will likely develop into a top 25 team.
Oklahoma State and head coach Mike Gundy finished the season with a Bedlam win over Oklahoma and carried that momentum to Signing Day with a class that ranked 34th in the country.
