Rivals100 RB getting full-court press from TTU coaches, recruits
With a stable of running backs on the roster for 2016, Texas Tech does not face a pressing need to add to the position in its 2017 class. This leaves a lot of recruiting ammo for running backs coach DeShaun Foster to use when recruiting for 2018. One of the top running backs - and most recent running back offers - on the board for the Red Raiders is Allen, Texas Rivals100 running back Kirby Bennett.
Bennett, who was recently offered by the Red Raiders after participating in their Euless Trinity camp, was far and away the best running back at the camp, which led to the offer.
"I picked up the offer a few weeks ago when I was injured," Bennett said. "I just came to the camp to show them what I still had and am blessed to have picked up an offer from Texas Tech.
"I felt like I showed them my speed, my route running, just the little things that all the other running backs didn’t have. How to properly hold the football, just the little stuff like cuts and everything."
A four-star running back, Bennett didn’t necessarily have to come and work out at the camp as he has definitely proven his ability on the field. However, his relationship with Foster is what made him want to go out and participate at the camp.
"I enjoy Coach Foster," Bennett said. "I reach out to him every other day, we talk on the phone, through Twitter. He is an enjoyable guy, he played in the NFL which is where I want to go. I enjoy getting to reach out to him. He keeps it real, and he doesn’t sugarcoat anything. He tells me exactly how it is and exactly how Tech is."
Bennett has definitely taken a liking to Foster, who has had success as a running back at the college and NFL level as well as a coach on staff at UCLA. But Foster isn't the only Red Raider in Bennett's ear about Texas Tech.
“Coach Foster had been talking to me about the camp, but Jack Anderson and Dawson (Deaton) have been recruiting me too. Group messages, late night calls, everything. They’ve been recruiting me very hard. They’ve been telling me about the crowd, the experience. They tell me a lot about the love the coaching staff has for the players, they care about them a lot and want them to succeed.”
Bennett, who also holds offers from Colorado, Ole Miss, and SMU, is intrigued by Texas Tech, racked up 1,251 yards rushing and 192 yards receiving with 13 total touchdowns last season. He thinks his versatility would be a big piece in the Red Raiders' Air Raid offense.
"I can do a lot with that type of offense, especially with the offensive line they have coming in for 2017," he said. "I could be very successful in a spread offense, take time off the game clock, I feel like I could do big things for the Red Raiders."
Bennett is expecting an offer from Georgia as a safety soon and will be taking visits to LSU, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Texas in the coming weeks.