TCU is changing its offense and now has some top-notch recruits to help.
The Horned Frogs signed 22 players to national letters of intent Wednesday. That includes a school-record five four-star recruits, all on offense.
Foster Sawyer, a 6-foot-5 standout from All Saints' Episcopal School in Fort Worth, is one of the state's top quarterback prospects. The other four-star signees were receivers Corey McBride and Emanuel Porter, offensive lineman Ty Barrett and running back Shaun Nixon, a late addition after initially committing to Texas A&M.
Coach Gary Patterson, who hired new co-offensive coordinators Sonny Cumbie and Doug Meacham in December, said the Frogs are "morphing into an Oklahoma State-Texas Tech style of throwing offense."
Because of that, it was important to get a quarterback, and they got more than one. Decatur's Grayson Muehlstein also signed.
"In a lot of peoples' eyes, we have the second-ranked quarterback class in the country," Patterson said.
TCU also wanted to get bigger and more athletic on the offensive line. Along with Barrett, TCU signed three offensive tackles.
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"With the offense we are putting in, we felt we had to go get some guys with length," Patterson said. "Porter and McBride, both are guys that have that, and both have tremendous speed."
Desmon White was the AP Texas 5A offensive player of the year after combining for 4,661 total yards and 43 touchdowns as DeSoto's dual-threat quarterback. TCU has other plans for the player Patterson said "is hard to catch in a phone booth."
White could line up in the wildcat formation, be an H-receiver that can run fly sweeps and also return punts and kicks.
TCU's 2014 football signees announced Wednesday:
Vinny Ascolese, lb, 6-3, 220, ASA College (N.Y.)
Ty Barrett, ol, 6-5, 316, Skyline HS, Dallas
Chris Bradley, dt, 6-2, 255, Evangel Christian HS, Shreveport, La.
L.J. Collier, dt, 6-4, 245, Munday (Texas) HS
Trey Elliott, ot, 6-4, 275, Jesuit HS, Dallas
Ryan Griswold, ot, 6-5, 255, Pearland (Texas) HS
Travin Howard, s, 6-1, 190, Longview (Texas) HS
Kenny Iloka, s, 6-2, 209, Tyler JC (Texas)
Ridwan Issahaku, db, 6-1, 180, Norcross (Ga.) HS
Frank Kee, og, 6-4, 345, Tyler JC (Texas)
Corey McBride, wr, 6-2, 180, Dutchtown HS, Geismar, La.
Casey McDermott Vai, de, 6-4, 250, Raytown (Mo.) HS
Torrance Mosley, ath, 5-10, 160, Dutchtown HS, Geismar, La.
Grayson Muehlstein, qb, 6-4, 210, Decatur (Texas) HS
Shaun Nixon, tb, 5-10, 180, Lake Travis HS, Austin, Texas
Corry Omeally, cb, 6-0, 170, Ellsworth CC (Iowa)
Nick Orr, cb, 5-10, 166, DeSoto (Texas) HS
Emanuel Porter, wr, 6-4, 190, Lincoln HS, Dallas
Foster Sawyer, qb, 6-5, 215, All Saints HS, Fort Worth, Texas
Austin Schlottman, ot, 6-6, 280, Brenham (Texas) HS
Ty Summers, lb, 6-2, 211, Reagan HS, San Antonio
Desmon White, wr, 5-7, 150, DeSoto (Texas) HS
TCU
National rankings (Rivals 51; Scout 37).
Best in class: Shaun Nixon, RB, Lake Travis, Austin, Texas.
Best of the rest: Ty Barrett, OL, Dallas Skyline; QBs Foster Sawyer, Fort Worth, and Grayson Muehlstein, Decatur; WRs Corey McBride, Geismar, La., and Emanuel Porter, Dallas Lincoln.
Late addition: Nixon, a four-star recruit, had committed to Texas A&M before his surprise visit to TCU last weekend. Patterson called him a "guy who stood out who wanted to come to TCU. I don't think you ever turn down a great tailback."
One that got away: DE Jarrell Owens, who was also a running back at Palestine High, committed to the Frogs last summer. But the 6-3, 240-pounder switched to Oklahoma State after a visit to Stillwater last weekend and signed with the Cowboys on Wednesday.
NOTE: Ty Summers was a dual-threat All-District quarterback with 3,774 total yards and 47 touchdowns at San Antonio's Reagan High. Patterson recruited him to play linebacker, like he has done with other former high school QBs, including Jason Phillips, who is an NFL linebacker for Philadelphia. "A little bit going back to my old ways," Patterson said. "He ran with the ball more than he threw it. He's a very physical player."
