Trip to Lubbock, Kingsbury returning made Royals want to be a Red Raider
It was an eventful weekend for the Red Raiders - a win in Austin to become bowl eligible, Kirby Hocutt announcing that Coach Kingsbury will be back next season and the coaches landing two (2) new 2018 commitments.
On Saturday afternoon, Abilene Cooper wide receiver Myller Royals made his commitment to Texas Tech public.
"I first started hearing from the Texas Tech coaches last year," Royals said. "I went on a visit last season and met the coaches, I really enjoyed it. The coaches always stayed in touch and Coach (Emmett) Jones started talking with me a lot more over the past few months.
"He offered me about 2-3 weeks ago, then I visited again for the game against TCU. The coaches sat me down during that visit and talked with me. It was Coach Kingsbury, Coach Morris, Coach Jones and some of the recruiting coaches. They mostly asked me about our season at Cooper and talked with me about playing at Tech.
"It was really after that meeting where I decided that I wanted to play for Texas Tech. I actually waited a few weeks to see how things played out and then knew that I was ready to commit once it was announced the coaches were coming back next season."
The annoucement from Texas Tech regarding Kingsbury's future directly impacted Royals' decision, because he is a December graduate and was looking to make a decision quickly.
"Kingsbury coming back was a main focal point," Royals said. "Mostly because I wanted to know he would be back, and not just me, it was important to me and a lot of the other commitments. I have a group message with a lot of the other commitments and even though I was comfortable committing, it helped a lot knowing that the coaching staff would be back next season.
"I'm graduating in December and will be enrolling at Texas Tech in January of 2018, so me waiting was also about knowing more about the situation and it seemed to change every week since I received my offer and visited.
"Leaving high school early and not playing basketball or track is tough, but I just wanted to get there early and get my classes started. I'm also excited about getting to participate in spring ball and begin working with my new teammates."
Royals went on to share more about his decision and why he felt comfortable committing to the Red Raiders.
"Coach Jones is a pretty cool coach," Royals said. "After I received the offers, we talked about the opportunity at Texas Tech and how they have five (5) total seniors graduating with four (4) of them being starters. He told me that no specific spots are takent for next season and that I have an opportunity to come in early to compete for playing time. I know all of that is earned both on and off the field, but having the opportunity to compete for playing time was a big plus for me.
"I actually texted him on Friday evening before our game and let him know that I was ready to commit. Then I spoke with all of the coaches on Saturday, it was mostly Coach Jones and Coach Kingsbury though. They were both fired up and really glad to have me committed, especially because I'm coming in as an early grad."
Royals now considers himself done with recruitment and will enroll at Texas Tech next January.
So why Texas Tech over a dozen other offers?
"I would say location, it is here in Texas and close to my family," Royals said. "I have also had some Red Raiders in my family and they were persuading me to attend Tech. Most of all, it was the offense they run and the atmosphere that I experienced during my visits to Lubbock.
"I'm done with recruitment and excited to enroll at Tech next semester. There are a couple of other commitments enrolling early and I'm supposed to speak with my counselor some time this week to discuss my schedule, roommates and all of that."
Currently rated a 5.6 three-star prospect, the 6-foot-5, 180-pound receiver chose the Red Raiders over offers from Houston, Kansas, Texas State, Tulsa and several others.
Through 11 games this season, Royals has 75 receptions for 1,184 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Royals and Abilene Cooper will face Aledo in round three of the playoffs this Friday night at 7:30 p.m.