ESPN College Football Recruiting

There is no letdown in perennially talent-rich Texas in 2009. The proof is in the pudding, as the Lone Star State boasts the second most prospects in the 2009 ESPNU 150.

While the total number of Texas offensive prospects in the coveted 150 list may be down a bit compared to recent classes, there has not been this type of top-tier positional talent in quite some time. The state boasts seven offensive prospects who rank in the top three nationally at their respective positions, nine if you count kickers. Athlete Russell Shepard (Houston/Cypress Ridge), offensive tackle Mason Walters (Wolfforth, Texas/Frenship) and kicker Dustin Hopkins (Houston/Clear Lake) lead the charge as No. 1-rated prospects at their respective positions.

It is no surprise the University of Texas has already cleaned up on most of this year's impressive in-state talent, including No. 3 quarterback Garrett Gilbert (Austin, Texas/Lake Travis). Still, bordering LSU is making its presence known, particularly for the state's top offensive prospects.

National titles always seems to bolster the following year's recruiting class, and Les Miles has a verbal commitment from one of this class' best overall players in Shepard and more athleticism on offense with tackle Stavion Lowe (Brownwood, Texas). At 6-foot-6 and 294 pounds, Lowe has deceptively good footwork and plays with desired leverage.

Overall, the Tigers currently have pledges from two out of the state's top six offensive players. LSU could potentially sign three if it lands running back Christine Michael (Beaumont, Texas/West Brook), who is rated higher than current Texas RB commit Chris Whaley (Madisonville, Texas).

It should be noted that the nation's No. 1 safety prospect Craig Loston (Aldine, Texas/ Dwight D. Eisenhower) has also shown strong interest in LSU, despite his verbal to Clemson. Defensive tackle Jamarkus McFarland (Lufkin, Texas), the state's No. 8 overall prospect, has a strong interest in LSU as well.

Russell Shepard, athlete
Cypress Ridge HS (Houston)
Verbal Commitment: LSU

Shepard is not only the top player in the state of Texas, he is the No. 2-rated player in the entire ESPNU 150. While Andrew Hatch and Jarrett Lee have combined to lead the Tigers to an impressive 4-0 record, we feel the future of the LSU quarterback position could be coming shortly in Shepard.

His elite speed, burst, fluidity and elusiveness jump out at you the moment you pop in his film -- he is human highlight film with the ball in his hands. Yet, in his coach's eye, Russell Shepard brings far more to the table than just physical intangibles.

"Russell is a very gifted athlete and very intelligent," Cypress Ridge coach Gary Thiebaud said. "He is very competitive by nature and willing to take his team and put them on his back and carry the load. If he makes a mistake, he has the ability to forget it and move on to the next play. Usually if he makes a mistake, he will follow it up with a big play because he is so competitive."

The highly explosive skill player who Thiebaud said "can score from anywhere on the field" does more than just make big plays with his feet behind center. The underrated signal caller has a quick and fluid release and distributes the ball out of the spread with good accuracy. Shepard throws on the run very well and makes most of the college throws with zip. Thiebaud still sees areas where his star quarterback can refine his throwing skills for optimal performance at the next level.

"Russell needs to get better at reading coverages and how defenses disguise those coverages," said Thiebaud. "He also needs to work on his audibles, getting in the right play and just continuing to develop as a passer being able to hit those intermediate routes."

Casey Pachall, quarterback
Brownwood HS
Verbal Commitment: TCU

Gary Patterson has built a great program at TCU by signing and developing quality under-the- radar prospects like Pachall. This gunslinger surprised many when he passed up on more prominent BCS offers and committed to the in-state Horned Frogs in the spring. His reasoning: Patterson and the TCU coaching staff put in the most sincere effort to land him.

Pachall's numbers thus far have been far from gaudy, but he takes command of the huddle and can move the chains with both his arm and legs. While his mechanics are a bit unrefined, he has too many mental and physical intangibles in our eyes not to have a productive career as a TCU signal-caller.

Aside from his live arm and quick release, Pachall has a knack for making big plays in crunch time and improvising out of the pocket. The recruiting effort paid off for Patterson -- the quietly-rated No. 34 quarterback in the country is a great fit for TCU.

Texas, 19 commits (Oct. 6)
If anyone would be a proponent for an early signing day, it would be Texas Longhorns coach Mack Brown. This class filled up quickly with most of the state's top prospects and placed in the top 5 in our last rankings. Walters headlines a talented group of offensive line prospects.

Brown's '09 class has nine top-10 positional prospects, including big catches in quarterback Garrett Gilbert (Austin, Texas/Lake Travis), tight end Barrett Matthews (Houston/Nouth Shore) and 6-foot-3 running back Whaley. While Texas has the benefit of not having to leave its state to recruit, it also passes up on a lot of good players by not doing so.

Texas A&M, 24 commits (Oct. 6)
In Mike Sherman's first full recruiting season the Aggies have a deep class (fourth highest total commitments in D-I), but he may need a turnaround on the field to retain them all. While the quality tails off toward the bottom half of this class, A&M still boasts 12 prospects with a Scouts Inc. grade of 77 or higher.

There is not an ESPNU 150 committed prospect headed to College Station at this point, but defensive tackle Chris Henderson (Dallas/Carter), corner Steven Terrell (Allen, Texas) and guard Patrick Lewis (Reserve, La./East Saint John) are all top-25 positional prospects.

Texas Tech, 17 commits (Oct. 6)
The Red Raiders have clearly seen their national exposure and on-field success pay off on the recruiting trail in 2009. This current class could push for a top-25 ranking come February if it continues to win on the field and land quality talent.

ESPN's No. 18-rated quarterback Jacob Karam (Friendswood, Texas) is a quick-release gunslinger with the ability to spread the ball over the field with zip in coach Mike Leach's pass-happy offense. Top-20 offensive tackle Kyle Clark (Denton, Texas/John H. Guyer) should provide good protection for Karam in the future.

Baylor, 14 commits (Oct. 6)
At this point, Baylor's class does not look like it will be as strong as the one it signed last year, but there are still some quality prospects on board, particularly on the offensive line.

No. 18-rated guard Jeramie Roberts (Garland, Texas) and No. 32 ranked tackle Ivory Wade (Dickinson, Texas) are both strong, massive linemen. Versatile guard Stefan Huber (Nederland, Texas) follows as the Bears' third highest-rated prospect.

Colleyville Heritage (5-0) at No. 1 Euless Trinity (5-0), Friday, 8:30 p.m. ET:
This one will likely determine the District 5-5A crown before a capacity crowd at Pennington Field.

After two scares last month, the nation's top-ranked Trojans returned to dominating form last weekend, thumping Fossil Ridge 45-3. The running game was paced by Nebraska-bound Dontrayevous Robinson and sophomore Tevin Williams, who each scored twice. The Trojans rolled up 519 yards of offense and gained 28 first downs.

The Heritage Panthers' offense is also firing on all cylinders, averaging 43 points per game. The Panthers, ranked in the state's top-25 polls, defeated Northwest Justin 35-17 Friday. Coach Mike Fuller's squad received a boost from Bryan Head who ran for 141 yards and three TDs. Defensive tackle Matt Hornbuckle (6-1, 265) is fielding several college offers. -- Christopher Lawlor

Billy Tucker is a recruiting coordinator for Scouts Inc. and has close to a decade of coaching experience at the college and high school level. Tucker has served as a recruiting coordinator for two nationally ranked Division II colleges. Most recently, he was the associate head coach and defensive coordinator for Merrimack College, which advanced to the Sweet 16 in the 2006 NCAA Division II playoffs.