After a tumultuous football season, head coach Seth Littrell hit the recruiting trail to bolster North Texas’ football roster. He managed to do just that as he signed his best-ranked recruiting class since joining the Mean Green. The 18 recruits that signed their letter of intent were all 3-star prospects according to 247Sports.
Although it is early, Littrell’s 2020 recruiting class is currently ranked No. 2 in Conference USA — behind Louisiana Tech — which tops last season’s No. 4 recruiting class.
“I know [we] got better today,” Littrell said. “The Mean Green got much better, we were able to target a lot of different positions and needs. It’s an unbelievable class with great guys with great character. We’ve had a lot of fun recruiting these dudes and I’m really excited about the opportunity to coach them.”
This year’s class ended up in an even split of offense and defense as the Mean Green added nine players to each side of the ball. North Texas will have two junior college transfers in offensive lineman Anterrious Gray (Northwest Mississippi CC) and defensive lineman Davontae McCrae (East Mississippi CC).
“[They’re] two guys who are a little bit more developed and experienced,” Littrell said. “They have a little bit more maturity to them so hopefully those guys come in and make big-time plays for us.”
Littrell confirmed that there were four possible commits that could sign in the coming days. When asked about more potential signees, Littrell joked by saying with a smirk that he’s always got a few up his sleeve.
“We’ve probably got about four left,” Littrell said. “You never know, maybe one will pop here in the next couple days, maybe one can pop up in February.”
After North Texas’ 26-21 loss to Alabama-Birmingham, it was that following Monday when Littrell decided to part ways with first-year offensive coordinator Bodie Reeder and defensive coordinator Troy Reffett. There was some speculation about whether or not the coordinator firings would have an impact on North Texas’ recruiting and its ability to layout what system recruits would be playing in.
Littrell responded to concerns surrounding recruiting without coordinators by bringing it back to his strengths. As an offensively-minded head coach, Littrell admitted there was a challenge recruiting defensive players without an established scheme.
“It wasn’t as big of a challenge as I thought on offense,” Littrell said. “I think everybody has a pretty good idea about who I am and what type of situation they’re coming into. It’s probably more of a challenge defensively just because I’m an offensive head coach. I think it comes down to yourself and what an unbelievable place this is, you’re going to be around great coaches and great mentors. You’re going to be around a coach that cares about you, that’s going to help you reach all your goals and aspirations in life.”
With the 2020 signing class being as highly ranked as it is, there is a real possibility that some signees could be featured on the field next season. Although North Texas saw some freshmen step up when called upon this season, Littrell emphasized that the team’s health played a part in their uptick in playing time.
“There are definitely some areas that we need guys to step up,” Littrell said. “But at the same time, I feel good about our base and I feel good about where we’re at. Hopefully, as we get through the spring, we’ve got to stay healthy. But I do feel like there’s a lot of guys in this class that will come in and have an opportunity to do big-time things for us.”
Here’s the full list of the recruits who signed their letter of intent today:
*Signees planning to enroll early*
Offense:
Kade Bond | 6’3” | 298 | Offensive lineman
Jett Duncan | 6’2” | 291 | Offensive lineman
Dane Jackson |6’0” | 277 | Offensive lineman
Erik Williams | 6’4” | 247 | Offensive lineman
Anterrious Gray | 6’2” | 329 | Offensive lineman
Christian Lee | 6’3” | 210 | Tight end
Jake Roberts | 6’4” | 235 | Tight end
Isaiah Johnson |6’0” | 200 | Running back
Loronzo Thompson | 6’0” | 160 | Wide reciever
Defense:
Davontae McCrae | 6’4” | 250 | Defensive lineman
Ta’Shoyn Johnson | 6’1” | 288 | Defensive lineman
Kortlin Rausaw | 6’3” | 259 | Defensive lineman
Jordan Brown | 6’0” | 200 | Linebacker
Jacobi Johnson | 6’3” | 230 | Linebacker
Garnett Burke | 5’11” | 170 | Safety
Jordan Nichols | 6’1” | 199 | Safety
Upton Stout | 5’9” | 165 | Defensive back
Tavorice Weaver | 5’11” | 190 | Defensive back
Featured Image: Head coach Seth Littrell hypes up his team before they storm the field. Jacob McCready
Article Originally Published by on North Texas Daily
Source: North Texas Daily
