DRC article on 4 signings this weekend and summary

OldTimer · January 30, 2006

DRC

UNT adds four on final weekend

08:17 AM CST on Monday, January 30, 2006

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

Tulsa East Central’s Travis Hill has spent 21 years coaching high school and college football and he has never seen a performance quite like what Tim Patton produced at the end of his senior season

East Central was in the thick of a battle for a state title when Patton averaged 15 tackles from his defensive tackle position in the final four games of the playoffs, including a win in the Class 5A state championship game.

“I have never seen that from a defensive tackle,” Hill said. “I have coached a lot of kids who have played in college and the NFL. At this point in time, Tim is as good as any of them.”

Patton was one of four players who orally committed to play for North Texas on Sunday. The Mean Green also picked up commitments from defensive lineman Kendrick Ridge of South Garland and defensive ends Draylen Ross of Fort Worth Diamond Hill Jarvis and Kail Krider of Leonard.

Oral commitments are non-binding. The first day recruits can sign national letters of intent is Wednesday.

Patton will be among the players with the most impressive credentials in UNT’s recruiting class if he follows through on his oral commitment and signs with the Mean Green. The 6-2, 301-pound defensive tackle was a Class 5A all-state selection in Oklahoma, the District 5A-4 Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-Metro selection by the Tulsa World. He has also been invited to play in the Oil Bowl, an all-star game that pits all-star teams from Texas and Oklahoma.

Patton visited both Kansas and Oklahoma State. He said he decided to play for UNT because of a chance to contribute early on, a friendship he struck up with Ridge and the comfort zone he found on his visit to Denton.

UNT finished last in the Sun Belt Conference in rushing defense last season and lost starting senior defensive tackle Chris Miller to graduation.

“The coaches told me that if I come in with the right mindset and do what I am supposed to over the summer, I will have a chance to make an impact early and maybe start,” Patton said.

Patton and Ridge both said they felt more comfortable with committing to UNT after striking up a friendship on their official visit.

“We bonded on our visit,” Ridge said. “We had a lot of fun and got along real well.”

UNT is hoping the pair carries that chemistry to the field at UNT and continues its history of success. Ridge, 6-1?, 275, was a two-time All-District 11-5A selection in his final two years at South Garland and received first-team honors as a senior.

Midwestern State and Southwestern Oklahoma also offered Ridge a scholarship, while Louisiana-Monroe and Sam Houston State also showed interest.

Ridge named the chance to play early and his experience on his official visit as the reasons he committed to UNT.

“UNT is a real nice university in a small town,” Ridge said. “I felt at home when I was on my visit because of the coaches and players. I liked the atmosphere.”

Krider is also 6-3, 245. He was named to the All-District 15-2A team the last three years as a linebacker for Leonard and also received all-league honors as a tight end the last two seasons.

Southeastern Oklahoma and Texas A&M-Commerce also offered Krider a scholarship.

“The coaches said I would start off at defensive end, but they are going to move me around a little bit to see where I fit in best,” Krider said.

Ross, 6-3, 245, earned first team All-District 7-4A honors as a defensive end as a junior and a tight end as a senior. Central Florida, Utah State, Stephen F. Austin and Prairie View A&M all offered Ross scholarships.

Ross named the environment at UNT and the chance to play early as the reasons he decided to join a rapidly growing group of high school defensive linemen in the Mean Green’s recruiting class. UNT now has seven high school players projected as defensive linemen in its class of 18 players, a total that includes four mid-term junior college transfers.

“I am looking to contribute early,” Ross said. “I talked about it with the rest of the defensive linemen on our visit and we feel like we will be ready to play this year.”

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com

UNT COMMITMENTS

The following is a list of players who have committed to North Texas beginning in the 2006 season.

Player School

TE Brian Carlson* Kilgore CC

FB/RBAvery Curry Galveston Ball

OL Kelvin Drake Galveston Ball

OL Nick Foster Allen

CB Robbie Gordon Ardmore, Okla.

DE Kail Krider Leonard

DB Roy Loren* Coffeyville CC

DL Matt Menard Houston Westfield

ATH Chris Neal Kaufman

DL Tim Patton Tulsa (Okla.) East Central

DL Kendrick Ridge South Garland

LB Craig Robertson Stafford

DE Draylen Ross FW Diamond Hill Jarvis

DL Esteban Santiago El Paso Coronado

TE Bryant Seidle Cypress Fair

OL Trent Stanley* Coffeyville CC

DE Marquis Sykes Coppell

QB Woody Wilson* Coffeyville CC

* Note – Player is a midterm junior college transfer who has already signed a national letter of intent.

Stan R · January 30, 2006

Wow, 15 tackles in one game by a DT? Is Patton the best recruit in this class? Unless TJ makes grades I'd say he's your starter.

foutsrouts · January 30, 2006

Wow, 15 tackles in one game by a DT? Is Patton the best recruit in this class? Unless TJ makes grades I'd say he's your starter.
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Fifteen tackle AVERAGE over his last four games in the playoffs. Might of had a 20 tackle game in that stretch. Pretty impresive. Maybe we should of used DD's "stealth" recruiting method on this guy. Hope no one else gets to him before Wednesday.

Stan R · January 30, 2006

Interesting, the guy right above him in this list is a 4 star DE...

Oklahoma 2006 all state

Stan R · January 30, 2006

I'm kind of surprised that this guy is not even listed in rivals...

Marty · January 30, 2006

DE Kail Krider Leonard .

Wasn't Ray Renfro from Leonard? It's also the birthplace of the great J.T. Smith.

UNTLifer · January 30, 2006

Does anyone have a good link to Oklahoma Prep Football similar to Dave Campbell's?

OldTimer · January 30, 2006

Does anyone have a good link to Oklahoma Prep Football similar to Dave Campbell's?
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This is not like Texas Football...it is like Texas Prep. I go to it all the time, but won't post our committments to it untell they actually sign. Because it would invite other schools to jump on our recruits

http://hsoklahoma.rivals.com/

UNTLifer · January 30, 2006

This is not like Texas Football...it is like Texas Prep. I go to it all the time, but won't post our committments to it untell they actually sign. Because it would invite other schools to jump on our recruits
http://hsoklahoma.rivals.com/
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I appreciate the link, but I was looking for something other than a Rivals site since Patton is not listed on there. That is somewhat surprising considering his stats and playing for a state championship team.