Five-star quarterback Jarrett Stidham announced on Saturday evening that he was officially decommitting from Texas Tech.
Stidham’s official statement via Twitter:
“I want to say thank you to Texas Tech University for giving me the opportunity to play football and get a degree from there, but I have officially decided to decommit for various reasons. Thank you to everyone that has been involved.”
The Stehenville, Texas native received offers from Alabama, Auburn, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Baylor, but committed to Texas Tech on March 7.
The No. 3 ranked dual-threat quarterback made an official visit to Baylor last weekend against Kansas State, so the obvious speculation right now, is that he’s leaning towards the Bears. With Baylor senior quarterback Bryce Petty departing for the NFL, it’s highly likely the Bears will be spearheading a strong campaign to lure Stidham’s UHAUL to Waco.
Stidham was at the Texas Tech/Baylor game on Nov. 29 in Arlington, Texas, and even though Tech lost 46-48, he witnessed firsthand Red Raiders’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ incredible performance, where he threw for 598-yards and six touchdowns.
According to sources, Stidham’s main issue (and likely the reason for pulling his commitment), was whether he’d have to redshirt his freshmen year, or whether he’d play immediately.
Despite concerns, Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury has been adamant that Spring Ball will be a “wide open” quarterback battle between Mahomes, Davis Webb, walk-on Vincent Testaverde, and Iowa transfer Nic Shimonek.
Last year when former Texas Tech walk-on quarterback Baker Mayfield announced his decision to transfer, the noted reason was because he questioned Kingsbury’s commitment to him.
Whether that was the full reason, or part of the decision to transfer, one thing has been made crystal clear to the Tech coaching staff, and that’s a solid commitment to each of their players across the board. Being committed, means opening up competition to make sure players are ready to go, to add depth barring injury to a starter, and to keep up efficiency and productivity.
Perhaps Kingsbury couldn’t promise Stidham a starting job because he was honoring an “earned merit” protocol. But with Stidham’s announcement coming just 36 hours before the dead period, it certainly puts the Red Raiders in a precarious situation, as their 2015 recruiting class has been built around the quarterback.
Stidham could still end up signing with the Red Raiders, but whatever the outcome is, it hasn’t impacted the decisions of the other recruits, including four-star running back Corey Dauphine.
Dauphine stated, “I was shocked, but I knew it was coming. I was shocked when he made it final.”
Despite the loss, there’s much to look forward to for the Red Raiders, and expect Kingsbury & Co. to ramp up recruitment until signing day.
*Section Photo credit to 247sports.com; Featured Photo (above) credit to Russell Huffman, E-T.
