Recruits recap Texas Tech's "West Texas Elite" camp

Texas Tech Football hosted their first camp of the summer on Sunday, where hundreds of prospects from the 2024 through the 2027 classes came to compete in hopes of earning a scholarship offer.

RedRaiderSports caught up with several of the campers for their thoughts on the day, which coaches they got to connect with, upcoming camp plans and more.

"The camp was great. They had amazing coaches and drills.

The coaches and I had great conversations and I got very close with coach Juice Johnson.

During this off-season I’m going to UNT, I got an invite from them. Also SMU, TCU, and OSU to join them for their camps."

"The camp was ran very well. Got to compete against some good athletes. Also got to help my brother Anthony White move into his apartment. So my time here was good.

My relationship with the coaches were good. They all had good coaching and teaching advice. Built a good relationship with coach Conry.

I will be going to Incarnate Word on June 2nd, UT on June 3rd and Oklahoma June 13th. I will attend a few other D2 camps as well."

"The camp is really well ran, probably the best camp I’ve been to and Lubbock is a nice quiet city.

I knew coach Hamby and coach Kenny (Perry) when they visited my school my sophomore year. We’ve been in touch and recently met coach Kittley and coach Nance.

A lot of camps this off-season. Houston, TCU and more."

"Well organized camp without too much time on measurables and more focused on drills, teaching and competitions (1v1s). Everyone was very friendly and knowledgeable.

Coach Cochran was the main coach I was working with during our drill sessions, but I got along real well with Jayden York, a tight end from Tech's current roster who was helping run drills and 1v1s. All of the coaches were easy to talk to and get along with.

The rest of this off-season/summer I will be working with my teammates during our strength and conditioning camp in order to get better. I also have plans to go to camps I have been invited to including Texas State June 1st, UTSA June 8th, Rice June 17th as well as Baylor, Wisconsin and Vanderbilt if/as the dates workout. My High School 7-on-7 team and I will be competing at the UIL State 7-7 Championships in College Station June 22-23. I also earned a roster spot and will be competing in Georgia in THESHOW by NXGN at the end of June/beginning of July."

"My sister is currently enrolled at Tech and will be entering her Jr year next fall. So I’m familiar with the campus and love the small town college atmosphere. The camp was an awesome experience. Camp was run very efficiently with several different drills and tons of reps. There was not a lot of standing around. We were constantly moving. One of the best QB camps I’ve been to.

As a QB I was mainly with QB type coaches. Every coach was energetic, specific, and knowledgeable. I really enjoyed how all the coaches were very approachable and personable."

Wise added that he has upcoming camps at SMU, TCU, Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor and UTSA this summer.

"My overall experience in Lubbock this weekend was great. The camp was very organized and the coaches were very energetic, especially coach Fitch which makes me want to play for the Raiders.

I connected with coach Perry he really was hands-on with me and told me the things he wanted me to go back and work on but also told me the things he likes about my game. Coach Brian Nance I can say that's my dude. So as of right now, I'm just going to stay in touch with coach Nance and Coach Perry.

As of right now, I'm going to Mississippi State on June 10, TCU on June 13, ULM on June 14, Grambling on June 30 but I do want to come back to Texas Tech though because not only did I like the coaching staff but it's something about that place that I like.

So overall I loved it, especially saying it was my first camp coming off an injury and being able to showcase my ability and for them to tell me that they will be recruiting me that's big, I have seen and watched what type of players that have come from their program and for them to take interest in me and like me is a blessing."

"Overall, I had a good experience at the Tech camp. It was good to compete against some of the talent in the area to see where I stood. I think my performance speaks for itself in 1v1s and having achieved a PR 40-yard dash at 4.5 and other strong measurables.

I spent a good amount of time soaking in some solid instruction from coach Yates. I also got some good face time with coach McGuire and coach DeRuyter. The staff is top notch and I could definitely see myself excelling in the program.

I’m keeping my options open for camps. I can’t go everywhere but I do enjoy and appreciate the experiences. I don’t have any official visits scheduled, yet. God willing… I’ll find a home before the season starts."

"I loved the camp I had a great and fun time competing and getting to learn new stuff and had an amazing time in Lubbock!

Coach Hamby and coach Perry. My relationship with them has been really good.

I got some few camps coming up next soon. And still adding more in July."

"I thought it was a good camp. Went through some good drills to work on technique and fine tune some things. I thought the 1on1’s were good too. Most everyone got a decent amount of reps.

After the camp I talked to coach Fitch and just let him know what graduation class I was in and what school I go to.

This week I’m going to the SFA camp in Melissa and then also the UNT camp on Thursday. That’s all I know about for sure."

"I was only in Lubbock for a day but I thought the camp was good and I learned a lot of new things.

I talked with coach Perry the most because he was the running back coach but I’ve also talked with coach Kirk Bryant a few times before the camp.

I’ve got a couple more camps I’m still planning on going to and I’m probably going to visit Angelo State sometime cause they're my first offer."

"Really great experience. Great competition and learned a lot.

I connected with coach Juice, Coach Kittley and coach Perry.

I am planning to go to UTSA camp, Abilene Christian, UIW, and Montana."

"Overall, the camp was great! The competition that I faced and the coaching that I received really gave me an idea of how players at Texas Tech play. It pushed me beyond my limits and made me better as a player. I really liked the facilities as well as the campus community.

I really connected with coach Perry and coach Ortiz. I just met them yesterday and can say that they care about their players. I spoke with coach Perry yesterday after the camp and told him to come watch me this season. Coach Ortiz gave me really great feedback on what I needed to improve on and what they were looking for from the running back position at Texas Tech.

This off-season will by far be my hardest. I will push past through my limitations and get bigger, stronger, faster, and smarter as a player and teammate. I will be attending 7 more camps that includes SMU showcase, DFW showcase, Nebraska, Minnesota, Northwestern, Stanford, and Rice."

"Camp was awesome. Didn’t lose any reps. I showed versatility by playing Edge, 3 Tech, and Nose. Being able to be taught by NFL Vets C.J. Ah You and Zarnell Fitch was great!

I connected with coach Ah You and coach Fitch. They are great coaches. It was also great talking to coach McGuire. He already knew who I was before I approached him, and that excited me. McGuire is building something special in Lubbock.

Currently, I am planning visits with , Sam Houston State, Tulsa, UTSA, and others. I am also planning on taking an official visit to Cal-Berkeley. A lot of coaches want to see me at the UH Mega camp, I’ll be there June 2nd."

"I loved it. Coach Hamby, coach Lou (Bunning) and coach Martin. More camps, no visits."

"I thought the camp was great! Well run and coaches were great!

I connected with coach Hamby who recruits San Antonio and coach Johnson who is my position coach. I’m hoping to build relationships with them as I move into my freshmen year at Johnson High School here in S.A.

Next I’ll keep my WR & DB training while continuing my camp circuit. I’ve been invited to Texas State this Thursday and UTSA that afternoon and then SMU Friday and University of Texas Saturday.

Overall I really enjoyed my time at Tech and having a chance to meet coaching staff! Looking forward to connecting with them in the future."

"The camp was really great, I got a lot of benefit out of it and it was set up great. Had a lot of fun and ended up tying for first on the field goal competition which was great as well. My time in Lubbock was great, I was actually born in Lubbock and lived here until I was 2 so Lubbock has a special place in my heart for sure, it’s like a home away from home in a way!

Leading up to the camp coach Schovanec had reached out and invited me and also had me on campus a month prior for a spring practice visit and had remained in contact leading up to the camp as well. He’s a really great coach and one I hope to play under in the near future!

This off-season I’m really taking it as a building season focusing on getting bigger, faster, and stronger and preparing to have a really great senior season. Camps wise I’m going to a couple more to mention some TCU, Wyoming, Texas State, SFA, UNT, UIW and UTSA."

"It was an enjoyable camp where I got a lot of valuable instruction while getting to compete against some of the best talent in Texas. I really like Lubbock, it's very similar to where I currently live (Amarillo).

I've attended a few camps at Tech and it was great getting to connect with coach McGuire and getting tips from coach Perry (RB coach) and coach Fitch. Looking forward to a building on my relationship with coach Fitch.

I will also be competing in camps at University of Oklahoma, UTPB, UTSA and plan on returning to Texas Tech before the summer ends."

"I had a great time at camp yesterday. It was well organized, with great coaching, and I got a lot of reps.

Coach Blanchard is the main connection because he was the first TTU coach to follow me. I also had a great time connecting with coach Juice.

I’m doing 8 camps this summer in addition to our strength and conditioning camp at school this summer."

"Tech's camp was a great camp to go to. You get a lot of reps which other camps you don’t get that much. This camp helped me become a better overall player. This helps with your skill and bonding with teammates.

Coaches I talked to were coach Perry and coach Book (Josh Bookbinder). I have talked to coach McGuire before also. They are coaches that are going to bring the energy which I love. They are amazing leaders and will help you as much as they can to improve your game.

This off-season I have a lot of camps to go to. I have TCU, UTSA, SMU and North Texas."

"I like that camp. This is the second of their camps I’ve attended.

I like coach Hamby, he always has positive feedback for my performance. Caleb Rogers, one of the OT's also commented on my improvement from the first camp performance.

Rebel SAC starts June 5th. I will be at UNT June 1, SMU June 2, TCU June 3, Texas State June 9, OSU June 13, NMSU on the 17th, UNLV June 22, The Show Trench Kings June 29-July 2 Emerson GA."

"The Texas Tech camp was a great experience I had the opportunity to run my 40 in front of coach McGuire which was a 4.5. I liked the WR drills the coaches had us go through working on technique and skill at the WR position I learned a lot. I am also thankful for having the opportunity to compete against the incoming Jr's & SR's, which I won most of my reps. My overall time in Lubbock & Tech camp was great will be coming back later in summer.

The overall Coaching staff at Tech were great I loved the energy they brang to the camp. Coach Bryant is one of the coaches that I had a connect with since last years camp he always shows love when I come. The head WR's coach coach Juice I met for first time yesterday, had great energy, really broke down the drills for us during the position period. Really great WR coach would love to build a great relationship with him also.

Next for me I have North Texas camp on June 1st , Highschool 7v7 in Abilene June 3rd and TCU camp June 4th, I did an unofficial visit to TCU back in April 14th plus had opportunity to watch the spring game. Hopefully I will get the chance to get more visits in the future. Until then I will be training at Game Ready Sports Performance facility, also will be going to Dallas to train with WR trainer David Robinson (DRob) this summer and attending my high school SAC camp for this off-season getting ready for varsity football for this coming fall season."

"The camp was a great experience, I had a lot of fun and the coaches were great and they helped improve my game.

I connected with coach Bookbinder, coach McGuire, coach Kittley and had a nice conversation with them. They were really great coaches.

I’m going to Texas State and then a couple other camps this summer then we have our season this fall."

"I enjoyed the testing and workouts, unfortunately with the amount of athletes and lack of reps it was tough getting in front of coaches.

I haven't had any connections with Tech coaches but I’m going to keep pushing.

I’m headed to College Station 7v7 nationals next weekend to compete for the title, after that I’m heading to the Univ. of Houston camp."

"I thought the camp was awesome and had a blast competing with some great competition and it would be great to eventually become a Red Raider.

I connected with Coach Blanchard and Coach Ah You a lot great guys and coaches. My relationship with them I think is pretty good and I know Blanchard thinks very highly of me and wants me to be back up there for a visit!

I will be hitting up TCU, Baylor, UH, TX State, & UTSA for camps over the summer and then hopefully back up in the 806 for a visit!!!"

"My overall thoughts on the camp that it was run well I learned some new drills and overall I thought it was a good experience.

While I was there I got to meet the running backs Coach Kenny Perry. And a few other of the coaches have been to my school this past school year.

I have been invited to a few more camps which I plan on attending UTSA, Baylor, TCU, Houston and North Texas. I also be taking the SAT for the first time this summer."

"I thought the camp was fun and the coaches were very engaging. I learned lots of new techniques.

I connected with coach Hamby because he was my position coach and he was able to help me out a lot. I was also able to connect with coach Cochran the tight ends coach because he recruits my area.

This offseason I will continue practicing what I learned at Texas Tech and I will also be visiting SMU, TCU, and NMSU football camps."

"The Texas Tech camp was a great experience, All the coaches had very high energy and I learned a lot. It was my first time in Lubbock so it was good too see the area and some of the Texas Tech facilities.

Coach McGuire was who I connected with the most he was always smiling and had high energy. This was my first time meeting some of the coaches, but I feel like my relationship with the Tech coaches is going to grow.

Next up for me this off-season will be Texas State on June 1st. I will be hitting up a couple more camps after that."

"Texas Tech did a great job with the event. They attracted a lot of top talent, which created a really competitive atmosphere - I love that energy! Definitely made the long trip from Dripping Springs worthwhile for me and my teammates.

I was lucky enough to connect with head Coach McGuire and Coach Josh Cochran, who coaches my position (Tight End). I also appreciated getting to know Jayden York current TE for the Red Raiders (#15). He was great! Learning from Coaches and Players is really valuable. I hope to build on the relationships in the future.

This day at Texas Tech kicked-off a busy off-season schedule for me! Our Dripping Springs 7v7 team just took home a Championship and we will continue competing in tournaments each week to make it to the State 7v7 Championship in College Station. I'm excited to travel to workout at a bunch of college camps over the next month. I'll be competing at four more big events in Texas this week alone. I'm trying to make the most of the off-season, going into my Senior season, to learn and develop as much as possible so that I can make an impact at the next level."

"I thought the experience at the camp was great. Being my first camp ever I didn’t know what to expect, but the coaches and staff delivered everything I could’ve asked out of them. The drills we did at the camp were different than I am used to but I love that because it was teaching me things I didn’t already know. The quality of instruction I received from Coach Bookbinder helped me so much in the man coverage aspect of playing linebacker. The time I spent in Lubbock was short, but the little I saw is definitely somewhere I can see myself spending 4 years of college.

The main coach I connected with at camp was Coach Bookbinder since he was my positional coach. Coach Bookbinder gave me great tips all day about how to get better with my 1 on 1 man coverage skills that were specific to me and not just generic. At the end of camp he also gave me several tips on how to improve my chances of being recruited to Texas Tech. I also talked to Coach Fitch as he is in charge of recruiting for my area and I can’t wait to see him at school next time he comes back! All of the coaches I talked to throughout the whole camp all made me feel like I was family and belonged there.

For me this summer is all about becoming the best player I possibly can. I will be training with my private trainer twice a week, positional training twice a week, speed training 3 times a week, Performance Course and Football Skills with my school 4 days a week and Strength training at the gym 4 days a week. While Texas Tech is my first choice I will be attending the TCU showcase, the OU camp, the OSU camp, the Angelo State University camp, Midwestern University camp and the University of North Texas camp.

"I felt like the camp was very well set up and organized. It moved really smoothly and I felt like everyone got an opportunity to get reps and show off their skills. I had a very good time in Lubbock, everyone was super nice and it’s a beautiful city.

I connected most with Coach Cochran, he was working with me and the other tight ends. I was able to work on a lot of different releases and different techniques to get open using my size and strength. We also worked ways to get to the second level on blocking schemes out of different positions (split out, hand in the ground, and slot back). He is also the head recruiter in New Mexico so I felt like it was good to get my name out there to him especially considering he is also my position coach.

I will be attending the North Texas camp on June 1st, SMU camp on June 2nd, TCU on June 4th, NAU mega camp on June 11th, and the WNMU camp on June 12th."

"The overall camp was great, I learned a lot of things that I never thought I’d learn and my time was well spent.

And as far was the coaches I connected with would have to be Coach Perry, Coach Lock (James Lockhart), Coach Maxwell and lastly of course Coach Hamby. I feel as though my relationship with the coaches is just starting and that wouldn’t be the last time they see me.

My off-season is gonna consist of a lot of training, and private workouts, and more camps like UNT, Prairie View A&M, Texas Wesleyan, and the TCU showcase."

"It was a really good camp. There were a lot of athletes there, but I was put into a small group with Coach Juice so I felt like I was actually getting looked at. I was able to get a lot of reps against good competition.

I connected with Coach Juice, Coach Hamby, Coach Bookbinder, and Coach Z. It was my first time meeting them and they were all cool. I liked how Coach Juice coached us up during the drills and 1 on 1s.

I’ll be training all off season and I’m attending a couple more camps in Texas."

"My experience at the camp was great and had a lot of fun and competing. My time in Lubbock was fun ate at some good restaurants and enjoyed the campus.

I connected with coach Marcel Yates, secondary coach. Moving forward, I'd like to connect with all the coaches, especially on the defensive side.

Next for me is the Western New Mexico camp on June 11th in Albuquerque, NM. June 12 I'lI start summer practice for Cleveland HS in Rio Rancho, NM. Hopefully, I'll be able to make two more camps in June and late July."

"Overall great camp. The registration could have been more organized. Staggered by age or position. So it moves smoother. The warm up was too short couldn’t get ready to run at my best.

Coach Yates was awesome, took time to help me with my technique. Coach Juice talked to us about recruiting and was really cool."

Stewart also noted he has upcoming camps at Texas State, SMU, TCU, Florida, LSU, Auburn, Arkansas, Oklahoma, UTSA, Northwestern and Houston.

"I thought it was great time and experience.

I feel like I learned the most from Coach Fitch, he pointed out little things I would have never seen.

I will be going to TCU, SMU and NAU for their camps"

"This overall camp was great.

I really connected with Coach Cochran and are relationship is good.

My next camp will be UL Ragin' Cajuns."

"I loved it there, I liked the drills and competition i was put up against. They also kept us hydrated.

My relationship with the coaches was good, they liked me and I also shook the head coaches hand after my 40 and a couple drills. He told me good job.

On June 16th I go to LSU and UNLV on June 24th. I also got invited to Yale and Tulane."

"The camp was really fun I enjoy everything about the camp and the coaches and players give out a lot of encouragement to you and the players I enjoy Lubbock every time I go down there!!

I connected with the TE coach Cochran and the head coach, coach McGuire.

More camps I’m going to be attending this upcoming weekend and so on and this offseason really just stay focused and grind through the summer!!"

"Overall I loved the camp and how the coaches were engaged with each individual player.

I connected with Coach Josh Cochran and Coach Justin Johnson. Coach Cochran and I had a good conversation because he recruits kids from New Mexico.

What’s next for me this offseason is a ton of camps. I am also going down to Portales New Mexico, to watch one of Eastern New Mexico university games and then visit their campus."

"Camp was amazing and Lubbock is a great spot with good food and nice people.

My connections grew with mainly coach Kirk Bryant, he made my experience amazing and gave me very good feedback.

I will for sure be back during the season to watch some Red Raider football!"