Raiders Add Football Newcomers
June 21, 1999 | Football
February 3, 1999
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech announced the signing of 15 football student-athletes to national letters of intent during the first day of the NCAA signing period today, head coach Spike Dykes announced. Dykes also announced that two current Red Raiders have earned scholarships based on their performance in 1998.
"We are obviously excited about the players we have added to our football program today," said Dykes, who is entering his 13th season as the head football coach at Texas Tech and is the dean of Big 12 coaches. "We always recruit for need and we feel like this class will have as much impact on our team as any we have had in recent years."
"There are several players in this class who we feel like will make an immediate contribution to our football team. We've done a pretty good job in the last few years of signing players that fit in our program. Im excited about the potential and the future this class has in front of it as we continue to compete for the Big 12 championship."
In addition to the 15 newcomers in Texas Techs signing class, Dykes also announced that walk-ons Chris Birkholz and Kyle Sanders have been awarded scholarships for the 1999 season. Birkholz, a rising junior from Temple, Texas, filled-in for injured starter Jaret Greaser and finished the season as a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award and earned second-team all-Big 12 honors. He was also a first-team academic all-conference selection and was the leagues specialty player of the week. Birkholz finished the season connecting on 16-of-21 field goal attempts and was a perfect 23-for-23 on point after attempts.
Sanders, a rising junior from Monahans, Texas, saw significant action in nine games and started the Fresno State contest in the place of injured starter Robert Haddon. He was a factor in the success of Texas Tech 29th-ranked offensive attack that averaged 201.7 yards rushing and 216.5 yards passing. Both players enter the 1999 season as projected starters.
Texas Tech returns eight offensive and six defensive starters from last year's squad that finished the season with a 7-5 record and appearance in the Sanford Independence Bowl. Texas Tech has recorded six-straight bowl-eligible (record-wise) seasons and has finished second in the Big 12 in academic all-conference selections for two-straight years. The Red Raiders have recorded a division-leading 11-4 record against the South in the first three seasons of the Big 12 Conference. Against its in-state rivals, Texas Tech is 4-2 against Texas, 3-3 vs. Texas A&M and 4-2 against Baylor over the last six seasons.
1999 Football Signing Class
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Class Hometown / Last School Lamont Anderson DL 6-4 265 Fr-HS Irving, Texas / Nimitz Ryan Aycock DB 6-1 185 Fr-HS Lubbock, Texas / Coronado Toby Cecil OL 6-6 285 Fr-HS Richardson, Texas / Berkner Nathan Chandler QB 6-6 230 Fr-HS Southlake, Texas / Carroll Eric Cooper DB 6-0 197 Fr-HS Houston, Texas / Madison Carlos Francis WR 5-10 180 Fr-HS Fort Worth, Texas / Southwest Byron Johnson DB 6-1 180 Fr-HS Duncanville, Texas / Duncanville Casey Keck OL 6-5 280 Fr-HS San Antonio, Texas / Clark Matt McCormick DL 6-5 245 Fr-HS Canyon, Texas / Randall Mickey Peters QB 6-3 195 Fr-HS Weatherford, Texas / Weatherford Beau Radney OL 6-3 285 Fr-HS Sulphur Springs, Texas / Sulphur Springs Rex Richards OL 6-5 280 Fr-HS Midland, Texas / Lee B.J. Symons QB 6-1 185 Fr-HS Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek Harold Watson DB 5-10 183 Fr-HS Austin, Texas / Reagan Shaud Williams RB 5-8 175 Fr-HS Andrews, Texas / Andrews
1999 Texas Tech Football Signee Bios
Lamont Anderson Defensive Line 6-4, 265, Fr-HS Irving, Texas / Nimitz Registered 76 tackles as a senior including 13 tackles for a loss and six sacks ... recovered three fumbles, three batted balls and six quarterback hurries ... started both ways in all 10 regular season games and two playoff games ... all-district selection both ways as a senior ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the state by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Dallas Morning News , Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Houston Chronicle ... one of the top 50 players in Texas by National Recruiting Center ... named to Texas Football Magazine's second-team Super Team prior to his senior season.
Ryan Aycock Defensive Back 6-1, 185, Fr-HS Lubbock, Texas / Coronado Earned all-district 3-5A honors at safety as a junior and at quarterback as a senior ... tallied 59 tackles, one interception and two batted balls at cornerback in 1997 ... completed 45 of 95 passes for 733 yards and six touchdowns in 1998 ... also rushed for two touchdowns in 1998 ... started at quarterback during senior season for 9-2 prep team.
Toby Cecil Offensive Line 6-6, 285, Fr-HS Richardson, Texas / Berkner Three-year starter in high school ... two-time all-district selection ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the metroplex area by the Dallas Morning News ... lead blocker for offense that averaged 351 yards and 26 points per game ... blocked for 1,000-yard rusher, second-ranked receiver and sixth-ranked passes in Texas ... recorded 28 tackles and one sacks in limited defensive action ... two-time all-city selection.
Nathan Chandler Quarterback 6-6, 230, Fr-HS Southlake, Texas / Carroll Recorded 110 completions in 183 attempts as a senior for 1,630 yards and 16 touchdowns ... rushed for 373 yards and 13 touchdowns ... District 11-4A Offensive MVP ... team went 13-2 ... class 4A second-team all-state selection by the Associated Press ... third-team All-State selection by TSWA ... all-area first team selection by the Dallas Morning News ... one of the top 100 players in the state by the Dallas Morning News, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and Fort Worth Star-Telegram ... named one of the top 75 plyaers in Texas by National Recruiting Center ... earned starting qb honors in the third game of the year as a junior ... also plays basketball and was an all-district selection as a junior.
Eric Cooper Defensive Back 6-0, 197, Fr-HS Houston, Texas / Madison Two-year starter on prep team that tallied 20-4 record ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the state by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and Houston Chronicle ... half-brother of current Red Raider football player Anthony Terrell.
Carlos Francis Wide Receiver 5-10, 180, Fr-HS Fort Worth, Texas / Southwest An all-District 9-4A selection as a receiver and cornerback as a senior ... recorded 33 solos and 23 assistsed tackles as a senior ... also posted three interceptions, eight pass breakups, one forced and one recovered fumble ... caught 23 passes for 381 yards and three TDs ... District 7-5A sophomore of the year and all-district selection in 1996 ... also all-district as receiver as a sophomore ... also participates in track and field ... posted times of 102. in the 100-meters and 21.0 in the 200-meters before suffering a knee injury prior to the regional championships as a junior.
Byron Johnson Defensive Back 6-1, 180, Fr-HS Duncanville, Texas / Duncanville An all-District 7-5A selection at defensive back ... recorded 70 tackles 18 pass breakups and five interceptions ... also caused four fumbles and recovered four fumbles ... helped lead team to 5A Division I state championship ... started final six games of junior season at cornerback before switching to free safety for senior season ... paraticipates in track and field ... competed in the 400-meters and on the 4x400-meter relay.
Casey Keck Offensive Line 6-5, 280, Fr-HS San Antonio, Texas / Clark Class 5A all-state honorable mention by the Associated Press ... two-time all-district selection ... named an all-city selection... three-year starter ...key blocker on prep team that finished 1998 season with and 8-2 record.
Matt McCormick Defensive Line 6-5, 245, Fr-HS Canyon, Texas / Randall Named Class 4A second-team all-state by TSWA ... credited with 74 tackles, six sacks and 12 quarterback pressures during senior season of high school ... two-time all-district seleciton ... ranked No. 1 in Texas and No. 6 nationally in wrestling at the time of signing day with a record of 20-1 with 19 pins.
Mickey Peters Quarterback 6-3, 195, Fr-HS Weatherford, Texas / Weatherford Completed 64 passes in 129 attempts for 831 yards and seven touchdowns in 1998 ... rushed for 964 yards and 12 touchdowns during senior season ... Class 2A 110-meter hurdles state champion at Holliday H.S. during junior track season ... posted a time of 14.25 at the state meet and ran on third-place 4x100-meter relay ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the area by the Dallas Morning News ... sister, Ami competed for the Texas Tech track team as a hurdler.
Beau Radney Offensive Line 6-3, 285, Fr-HS Sulphur Springs, Texas / Sulphur Springs Three-year starter at right tackle and unanimous all-District 15-4A pick in 1998 ... led offensive line that averaged 5.0 yards-per-rush in 1998 ... bench presses 405 pounds ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the state by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal ... Class 4A first-team all-state by TSWA ... high school teammate of current Red Raider lineman J.J. Williams.
Rex Richards Offensive Line 6-5, 280, Fr-HS Midland, Texas / Lee Recorded 105 pancake blocks including a school-record 16 in one game ... key blocker for offense that averaged 365 yards per game ... helped lead team to the Class 5A Division II state championship with a 15-1 record ... class 5A first team all-state by TSWA ... team finished 10th in USA Todays final national rankings ... listed by Superprep Magazine as a southwest top 50 selection ... named a Lubbock Avalanche-Journal Fab 44 selection ... one of the Austin American Statesmans Fab 55 picks ... a state top 100 selection by the Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram. ... one of the top 60 recruits in Texas by National Recruiting Center ... all-West Texas Super Team ... all-Permian Basin ... participates in discus and shot put in track and field.
B.J. Symons Quarterback 6-1, 185, Fr-HS Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek Completed 126 passes in 228 attempts for 1,597 and 11 touchdowns during senior season ... rushed for 411 yards and seven touchdowns in senior seson ... named first-team all-District 16-5A as a junior and senior ... completed 259 passes in 478 attempts for 3,704 yards and 27 touchdowns in two years as a starter during high school career ... rushed for 655 yards and 10 touchdowns in high school career ... a member of Superprep Magazines southwest top 100 ... listed as one of the top 100 players in the state by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Dallas Morning News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Houston Chronicle ... completed 122 passes for 1,987 yards and 15 TDs as a junior ... rushed for 214 yards and three TDs ... three-year starting pitcher in baseball.
Harold Watson Defensive Back 5-10, 183, Fr-HS Austin, Texas / Reagan Totaled 87 tackles in senior season of high school ... had six interceptions as a senior ... returned two interceptions for touchdowns ... an all-CenTex selection ... two-time all-district selection ... rushed 42 times for 236 yards and two TDs as a junior ... also registered 69 tackles, three interceptions as a junior ... returned an interception for 57 yards and a TD ... member of two relay teams in track and field and runs the 100, 200 and 400 meter dashes ... helped 4x100 and 4x400-meter relay teams to district championships.
Shaud Williams Running Back 5-8, 175, Fr-HS Andrews, Texas / Andrews Led all rushers in class 4A in Texas as a senior with 2,121 yards ... scored 27 touchdowns ... rushed for over 2,000-yards in three consecutive seasons ... totaled 7,710 career yards on 1,006 attempts in high school, the second-best Class 4A total in history ... scored 87 career TDs ... Gatorade Circle of Champions Southwest Region Player of the Year ... listed as the sixth-best prospect and top running back in Texas by National Recruiting Center ... Southwest Top 50 by Superprep Magazine ... Class 4A Player of the Year by the Associated Press ... Class 4A first team All-State by TSWA... a Fab 44 selection by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal ... listed as a Fab 55 selection by the Austin American-Statesman ... one of the top 100 players in the state by the Dallas Morning News, Ft. Worth Star-Telegram and Houston Chronicle ... named to Texas Football Magazines preseason Super Team ... honorable mention all-USA by USA Today as a junior ... a four-year all-district selection and three-time district MVP ... first-team all-state as a junior and senior ... all-USA by USA Today as a junior ... rushed 34 times for 438 yards and five TDs against Fort Stockton as a sophomore ... runner-up at the state track meet in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 13.97 as a junior.