By David Beaudin
Frogs Today staff writer
The first recruiting update that Frogs Today shared is wrapping up, and the feedback thus far from the prospective student-athletes has been extremely positive, according to members of the TCU football staff.
I got a chance to catch up with nine of the 11 prospects in town and will share those interviews on FrogsToday.com.
The buzz around the program, particularly from this stretch of official visits, is strong. The momentum that we talked about in Part 1 of the official visit updates continues as the following five prospects arrive on campus Monday.
This batch of prospects include four defensive players and four out of the five are transfers — with only Max Carroll coming from the prep ranks.
Let’s take a look at the second round of December official visits.
On campus Monday
Player: Channing Canada
Current/previous school: Trinity Valley Community College /Houston Baptist (renamed Houston Christian)
Position: Cornerback
In the current state of Name, Image and Likeness, the transfer portal and the extra year given to all players due to COVID, you almost need a mathematics degree to properly calculate remaining years of eligibility. For Canada, when you add on top of the fact that he graduated high school in 2020 (Hahnville HS, Boutte, La.), attended Houston Baptist and has bounced back to Trinity Valley Community College, trying to figure out years of eligibility is that much more challenging.
Worst case, from best I can tell, Canada has three years to play two. Best case, he has three years to play three.
This is a longer corner who is very physical, both in man coverage and tackling at the line of scrimmage. In addition, he can make an impact in the kick return game. Canada is from the same hometown as TCU cornerbacks coach Carlton Buckels, and the two of them have quite the relationship.
According to Rivals.com, Canada and Buckels facetime regularly and talk about life outside of football quite often. For these reasons and more, TCU seems to be the front-runner for Canada’s services.
Player: Mason White
Current/previous school: Mount Sac Community College
Position: Cornerback
This California product also is coming out of the junior college ranks. White went straight into Mount Sac from Birmingham Community High School, a charter school in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles.
White was essentially a one-man show for an underwhelming prep program and went the community-college route for exposure, which he got in California. These JUCO programs on the west coast are highly competitive and the players from these schools are known to travel.
White traveled to Fort Worth this weekend, as TCU is trying to grab some players who are ready-made to play on Saturdays next fall. This is a prospect who has taken the talented skill-set he had in high school and really developed those skills during his time at Mount Sac.
Player: Anthony Goodlow
Current/Previous School: Tulsa
Position: Defensive end
Goodlow will enter his sixth season in 2023, but it will be the first one for him not playing for Tulsa. The Athletic American second-team all-conference player is being pursued by conference foes Tulane and SMU as well as other suitors from the Big 12, including home-state Oklahoma State.
After playing his high school football in Del City, Okla., Goodlow joined current Frogs defensive coordinator Joe Gillespie during his time coaching for the Golden Hurricane.
In addition to local universities swooning over the experienced defensive lineman, a “need” that just about every major football program is looking to fill, teams from the Pac 12 have also been heavily involved since the transfer portal opened up at the beginning of December. One has to imagine that the connection with Gillespie, familiarity with his defense and recent success gives TCU the leg up in acquiring this prospect.
Player: JoJo Earle
Current/Previous school: Alabama
Position: Wide receiver
Earle was extremely productive for prep powerhouse Aledo during his high school days. After two years at Alabama, he has not been able to quite find his stride. He has legitimate speed and is smooth in route running.
Earle is not overly big, listed at 5-foot-10 with a smaller frame. In spite of the lack of size, Earle has shown the ability to line up in the slot, the backfield or even at outside receiver. In addition, he can be a threat as a kick returner.
The Frogs are looking to bring Earle back home after a big visit, though that visit will be a game-time decision. The visit was not fully confirmed as this article was released. Stay tuned to FrogsToday.com for the latest on Earle and other Frogs’ targets.
Player: Max Carroll
Current/Previous school: Memphis Briarcrest Christian HS
Position: Linebacker
Carroll is a versatile player and was honored by his home state NFL team, the Tennessee Titans, as the player of the year.
Listed at 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds, Carroll has lined up at wide receiver, safety, quarterback, running back and linebacker — the position he is being recruited for by the Frogs. Check out this episode of Dissecting The Frogs, where Carroll stopped by as part of #RiffRam23 Day over the summer.
Carroll is committed to TCU and is expected to sign during the early signing period that begins Dec. 21. He will immediately add some needed depth for Gillespie’s linebacker unit. The rangy defender can cover a lot of ground and has the natural instincts required of the position.
The Frogs are continually mining the transfer portal, and it remains a fairly fluid situation. FrogsToday.com will have you covered with the latest information and updates with all of the Horned Frogs targets.
