On Texas released their player rankings/grades for the Texas Class
Generally Gerry’s rankings make a lot of sense but few things surprised me.
First, I am a bit shocked to see Jonah Williams ranked first overall given the other top end talent in the class. Understand he is super athletic and fluid, but safety usually takes at least a year or two of seasoning to understand the position. His baseball practices will take away study time and reps, which could slow this development further. Even Caleb Downs, who has elite speed and probably came in with the best understanding of the position of any high school prospect in recent memory, took multiple games to get comfortable.
I’m also surprised to see Lance Jackson and Michael Terry ranked so “low”. Both players stand to make huge athletic/strength games coming from “normal” high schools instead of power programs like Katy, Allen, or Southlake. Lance Jackson in particular might be the most athletic recruit in the class AND one of the most likely to maximize based on work ethic, etc. Just an absurd combination.
Finally, not sure if Kaliq Lockett is ranked too low or too high. Receivers are weird to project, but it seems like those without elite speed are less likely to become superstars (although this is purely observation and not based on any kind of data). Lockett only has average long speed and is raw as a route runner, which would ordinarily temper expectations. While he has the burst and fluidity to still somehow achieve just enough separation in high school and in camp 1-on-1 settings, it isn’t a sure thing that he can do this consistently at the P2 level. But despite those short comings, he is truly ELITE at body control and contested catches. I don’t know if Texas has ever had a prospect with these skills, maybe the $9.95er mythologized practice version of Troy Omerie that no one got to see. He looks like Matthew Golden catching the ball. If he learns to run better routes and has at least moderate improvement athletically, I could see him outplaying this ranking.
Curious if anyone else has final thoughts on the class.