Summer Crootin’, happened so fast.

What a summer it has been for the Baylor Bears. Dating back to the end of May, Baylor has managed to earn the commitment from 13 young men. Eleven for the 2025 class and two for the 26 class.

The changes Baylor has made in the off season have make all the difference thus far, with Coach Khenon Hall leading the charge. Soon after Dave Aranda was announced as Baylor’s next head coach, I had hoped he would be an instant addition.

Hopefully this is just the beginning of even greater things to come, but for now let’s dive in.

Class of 2025 - Recruiting Recap

Edward Griffin (QB) - Coppell - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 88

Baylor kicked off their summer recruiting by picking up their signal caller and possibly flying under the radar for his ranking. Boasting a very impressive 16-1 TD to turnover ratio and 74% completion rate last year helped him take home his district overall mvp. I think his pocket awareness is what impresses me the most in his highlights. Stepping up when ends fly past and rolling when things turn into chaos to still make a play. He fits the ball into some tight windows as well. If he has a big senior year, he should start rising in the ranks.

Chase Collier (WR) - The Bolles School - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 86

The Bears went out of state and grabbed a playmaker for their qb. His greatest strengths are his hands and his vision. He makes some incredibly tough catches going up to get the ball and winning battles with corners. If he can grow just a bit more from his listed 6’1” height, then he’s going to be a real endzone threat by the time he gets to Baylor.

Bo Onu (OLB) - Hebron - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 87

Brian’s Grade: 90

I don’t know where to put Bo on defense and that’s a good thing. He has the vision and ball hawking skills for OLB. He has the speed to come off the edge and disrupt and make plays in the back field. He can hit and be an enforcer at MLB. This might be one of the most complete packages to fill that ever important STAR role since Pitre left.Time will tell, but I love the potential combined with on field talent.

Trent Spence (MLB) Klein Collins - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 85

Brian’s Grade: 87

Not a whole lot to say about Trent, good or bad. He fills the gaps well on runs but is more impressive when sent on blitzes. Very little to no pass coverage is shown in his highlights which, to me, is caution lights going off. Not saying he can’t do it, but not seeing it does leave some doubt.

Leo Almanza (CB) Byron Nelson - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 86

Leo carries himself with an attitude and swagger that Baylor DBs have been missing in my eyes. He has a lot of offensive highlights, which is good that it shows that he has hands and can go make a pick. In his defensive highlights he looks better in zone. He settles in and hides in plain sight and lets the QB make a mistake. I can see him staying at corner, but I wouldn’t mind watching him slide back to safety and let him play center field out there.

Harrison Cluff (OL) Columbia - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 91

To make it short and sweet, you take a Tate Williams senior film and hype and add in a much better pass pro and you get yourself a Harrison Cluff. He has nine and a half minutes of highlights…nine and a half. That’s insane. This man puts people on their back for fun and he does it in a variety of ways. His film is still playing as I type this, and I’ve already bumped his rating once and I’m not against going back and doing it a second time in the future.

Jackson Blackwell (DT) Lorena - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 88

Brian’s Grade: 88

This young man is a bully. For a 300 pounder, he sure as heck does not move like it when he is coming off the line. Jackson also displays a variety of ways to shed blocks to be able to make the play. Once he gets through the line, his big boy status shows a little bit in the open field, but you don’t need him to be fast if he’s already disrupting the play in the backfield right off the snap. I’m usually pretty hard on lower A ball, because of less competition, but Jackson does everything he needs to to show up and show out.

Jacorey Watson (WR) Shadow Creek - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 88

Brian’s Grade: 89

Watson made the move to QB last year for his team so you have to go back to when he was a sophomore for WR film, but both sets of film show off the same killer combo: speed and cuts. When he gets in the green and gold and can focus on his WR spot, he’s going to shake some dudes out of their jocks if they take a bad angle on him.

Kamauryn Morgan (Edge) South Oak Cliff - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 93

Brian’s Grade: 93

He is the personification of the meaning behind “Slow feet don’t eat” for offensive lineman. He will straight up cook an OT who isn’t ready for Kam coming off the end. Even if they do lock up, Kam shows the ability and knowledge to shed blocks in multiple ways. If I’m really going to nitpick, the only thing I worry about is sometimes he slings players for tackles and that likely won’t work at the next level. Other than that, he’s a beast and one of the top pieces of this 25 class.

Taz Williams (WR) Red Oak - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 89

Brian’s Grade: 91

Arguably the MVP of the class just in terms of what he has done off the field to help this class take a huge leap with the next few commits after him. But while he shines bright off the field, he still makes insane plays on the field. Taz will bring a legitimate deep threat to this offense again. His body control in the air as well as his vision allows him to make some incredible dynamic catches out there. He has the knack of always finding the open part of the field with his routes.

Michael Turner (RB) Richland - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 91

Brian’s Grade: 93

Turner might be one of the hardest runners that Baylor has ever had. He makes guys bounce off of him left and right out there. He has some finesse and can put on the moves but he’s mostly a strong, hard, downhill runner that will put you on your back at a moments notice. Michael “Thunder” Turner and Caden “Lightnin” Knighten are going to be an unbelievable 1-2 punch coming in together.

Matthew Parker (OL) Jackson Prep - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 86

Matthew shows great footwork on his pass defense, which honestly, hasn’t been a strong point for Baylor o line commits in the past, but that’s the best part of his game that he brings to the table. His first year of varsity ball was last year and he’s a Vandy flip, so look for him to have a big senior season and his recruiting could take off even more with offers. I like the potential he has to really develop into a strong addition to the line. Note: none of this should be taken as a negative as I’m not gushing over him like I have the others, just more of a developing piece that I see having a bright future.

Kaleb Burns (LB) Cy Falls - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 88

Brian’s Grade: 90

Last name needs to be changed to Afterburner. He flies off the ball to make plays and he isn’t out of control when he does so either. He still shows the ability to break down and read the play as it’s happening to not go flying by. I think he could have a chance to be a STAR, but need to see his man coverage first. His zone coverage in his film at OLB, however, is great. Baylor stands a very good chance at being very versatile with their linebackers on where they want them to go and what they can do. That swarm the ball speed is coming back real soon.

Rhett Armstrong (K) Palmer Ridge - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I need to apologize to Rhett right now… because I have no idea what to put here… or what to say about kickers in general. But when I watch his film, he is BLASTING the ball. Kicking is incredibly under-appreciated part of the game. I’m sure there are plenty of Baylor fans, myself included, ready to see more drives end with 3 instead of zero.

Baylor was one of if not the hottest team on the trail this summer, bringing in a ton of top talent for next year. But wait… there’s more.

This staff went out and got themselves three incredible players, including the potential best running back duo in the Big XII for the 2026 class.

How about a sneak peek?

Class of 2026 Scouting Sneak Peek

Davis Penn (RB) Southlake Carroll - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 86

Brian’s Grade: 90

If you look up the definition of a downhill running back in the dictionary, it’s just a picture of Davis Penn. Very much a one cut and go type of running back and I’m here for it. Goes North and South and makes you look bad when you take a good angle on him. Yes, I said when you take a good angle, because you’ll need a great angle to cut him off. Speed is his game but he isn’t impatient. He waits for the hole to develop, makes his one cut, and then lights you up.

Ryelan Morris (RB) Honey Grove - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 90

Brian’s Grade: 91

While Davis will hit you up the gut, Ryelan will straight up embarrass you with his cuts. He stops on a dime and changes direction with a quickness. It’s truly an unbelievable duo that can get even better with killer senior seasons. If 2025 is thunder and lightning, then 2026 is Flash and Gas with these two at running back.

Quinn Murphy (QB) Liberty Christian - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

247 Sports Grade: 84

Brian’s Grade: 90

Once again, Baylor gets one of their top targets early for the 2026 recruiting cycle. Quinn has incredible touch on the ball and fires it just right. Lasers over the middle. Perfect lobs dropped right over the top. TAPPS can be looked down on some in terms of talent like lower A ball, but with a school change and going up against teams like Parish and Legacy Christian in district, Quinn can easily show off his talents against other top teams in the state. For Baylor and outstanding quarterbacks, it’s a matter of making it to signing day. So, while Baylor won the battle for now, it has been and will continue to be a war for them until signing day.