Football
Recruiting Matchup: How OSU’s Starters Match Up with Texas Tech
OSU has a decided advantage in talent based off high school recruiting rankings.
Oklahoma State will have a decided advantage in starting-level talent when it takes the field against Texas Tech on Saturday evening in Stillwater.
Last week I compared Boise State’s starters to OSU’s starters based off high school recruiting rankings, and it gave a definitive edge to the Cowboys. This week, same exercise, new team, similar result.
Before I compare the two teams’ starting units based off their high school recruiting ranking, though, a quick note. Last week I threw out unranked players out of the average formula entirely. This week, I’m placing a rating of 70 to unranked players — which would be the equivalent of a low two-star according to 247Sports.
Let’s start with a look at Texas Tech’s starting unit on offense. Highly-ranked high school prospects Jack Anderson and T.J. Vasher buoy the team’s overall ranking of 81.92, but an astounding three starters were unranked coming out of high school by 247 in Ja’Deion High, Zach Austin and Paul Stawarz.
POS | TTU OFFENSE | RATING |
---|---|---|
WR | Ja’Deion High | 70 |
WR | T.J. Vasher | 89.19 |
WR | Zach Austin | 70 |
WR | Antoine Wesley | 82.15 |
LT | Travis Bruffy | 79.8 |
LG | Madison Akamnonu | 90.4 |
OC | Paul Stawarz | 70 |
RG | Jack Anderson | 96.28 |
RT | Terrence Steele | 80.65 |
TE | Donta Thompson | 82.94 |
QB | Alan Bowman | 85.68 |
RB | Da’Leon Ward | 85.93 |
AVERAGE | 81.92 | |
And now, a look at OSU’s offense.
POS | OSU OFFENSE | RATING |
---|---|---|
WR | Tyron Johnson | 98.79 |
WR | Jalen McCleskey | 85.28 |
WR | Dillon Stoner | 83.95 |
WR | Tylan Wallace | 94.42 |
LT | Arlington Hambright | 84.65 |
LG | Marcus Keyes | 80.72 |
OC | Johnny Wilson | 85.9 |
RG | Shane Richards | 82.17 |
RT | Teven Jenkins | 84.22 |
TE | Britton Abbott | 70 |
QB | Taylor Cornelius | 70 |
RB | Justice Hill | 84.43 |
AVERAGE | 83.71 | |
Talent at receiver is the area that sticks out to me here in comparing the two teams. Tyron Johnson, the former five-star, helps weigh the scale in favor of OSU. But even along the offensive line, save for TTU’s Jack Anderson and Madison Akamnonu, OSU has an edge. Incredibly, OSU has two unranked players of its starting bunch — one of which played like Johnny Manziel at times last week.
Now on to the defense, where we look at OSU first. As I mentioned last week, OSU doesn’t have a single starter that wasn’t ranked coming out of high school. It’s starting average is 86.40, which is a tick ahead of the electric OSU offense.
POS | OSU DEFENSE | RATING |
---|---|---|
S | Malcolm Rodriguez | 82.33 |
S | Thabo Mwaniki | 83.87 |
S | Kenneth Edison-McGruder | 87.41 |
CB | AJ Green | 84.65 |
CB | Rodarius Williams | 85.29 |
MLB | Justin Phillips | 84.51 |
OLB | Calvin Bundage | 87.70 |
DE | Jarrell Owens | 87.34 |
DE | Jordan Brailford | 88.94 |
DT | Darrion Daniels | 90.32 |
DT | Trey Carter | 88.07 |
AVERAGE | 86.40 |
OSU has an edge on defense in comparison to Texas Tech, too. And by quite a margin. OSU’s average recruiting ranking on defense is at 86.40, nearly five points in total average ahead of Tech, which ranks 81.56. Its unit has only one unranked prospect who plays as a starter.
POS | TTU DEFENSE | RATING |
---|---|---|
S | Vaughnte Dorsey | 84.2 |
S | Jah’Shawn Johnson | 83.94 |
CB | Desmon Smith | 83.15 |
CB | Damarcus Fields | 84.41 |
N | Justus Parker | 70 |
WLB | Dakota Allen | 85.07 |
MLB | Jordyn Brooks | 84.75 |
RLB | Kolin Hill | 85.74 |
DE | Eli Howard | 75.81 |
DT | Broderick Washington | 83.6 |
DT | Preston Gordon | 76.5 |
AVERAGE | 81.56 | |
Recruiting rankings matter, obviously, but it’s not always the deciding factor in who wins and loses a game. But with OSU owning a decided advantage on both offense and defense, it should, in theory, give OSU a leg up.
This falls in line with Vegas’ thinking, too, as OSU is now a 13-point favorite entering Saturday.
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