TCU Football Adds 21 Recruits To The 2024 Early Signing Day Class
The Horned Frogs signed 21 high school student athletes with a strong Early Signing Day class.
The TCU Horned Frogs flashed their recruiting muscles once more. On Wednesday, twenty-one high school recruits signed their National Letters of Intent (NLI, not NIL), with 18 of them coming from in-state pledges. The recruiting class ranks second in the new Big 12, trailing only Texas Tech. Nationally, the class is ranked 31st.
Hauss Hejny (hay-nee), a four-star quarterback from Aledo, headlines the class; the Horned Frogs have signed three four-star recruits.
TCU signs a strong 2024 early signing day class.
While Hejny’s name may be the most well-known on the list, 247Sports ranks receiver Gekyle Baker as the top recruit. The Brownsboro, Texas native was ranked 23rd nationally among receivers, with 147 receptions for 2,616 yards and 30 touchdowns in his career, all Brownsboro records. Baker was also a state-ranked track athlete, qualifying for the Texas 4A regionals in the 200 metre hurdles and high jump as a sophomore.
Hejny led Aledo to its 12th 5A Division I state victory earlier this month. The Bearcats concluded 2023 with an undefeated 16-0 record and a convincing 51-8 state championship win over Smithson Valley. Hejny passed for nearly 2,800 yards and 27 touchdowns his senior year, despite missing the majority of second half due to Aledo’s dominance. He competed in the prestigious Elite 11 and is the nation’s 12th-ranked quarterback.
Running back Jeremy Payne (Missouri City, TX) completes the Early Signing Period’s four-star class. Payne received unanimous first-team All-District honours in 20-6A during his sophomore and junior seasons, averaging more than 10 yards per run. Not only was he the 20th-ranked running back in the country, but he was also an excellent baseball player, batting over.400 in his final two seasons.
Offensive Signees
Nate Palmer, a Decatur back, will join Payne in the backfield. Palmer carried for nearly 5,000 yards in his career, including 1,763 yards and 29 total touchdowns during his senior season. As a junior, he surpassed those numbers, rushing for over 2,500 yards and 33 total touchdowns in a season that saw Decatur reach the state playoffs.
Dozie Ezukanma, Erik’s brother, a Texas Tech receiver and current Miami Dolphin, is the other receiver signed in this recruiting class. Dozie played football at Timber Creek (Fort Worth), where he accumulated 877 yards and 12 touchdowns as a senior and also served as a kick returner. TCU also signed tight end Cole Snodgrass (The Woodlands, TX), a three-star dynamic athlete who was a receiving and rushing threat at College Park High.
The goal for this offensive class was clear: to strengthen the offensive line. TCU has signed five offensive tackles and another interior lineman. Tobias Steppes (Lancaster, TX), Wesley Harvey (Muskogee, OK), Ryan Hughes (The Woodlands, TX), Samir Camacho (Houston, TX), and Mitch Hodnett (Monroe, LA) are all listed as tackles, however some may be pushed inside. Creece Brister (Stephenville, TX) is an interior offensive lineman who won the 4A state shot-put championship.
The six inbound offensive linemen will have an opportunity to play early on, as the TCU offensive line thins out significantly this offseason.
Defensive Signees
Three prospects come in on the defensive line: Edge rusher Travis Jackson (Tyler, TX), lineman Tristan Johnson (Hurst, TX), and lineman Sterlin Brooks (Fort Worth, TX). Jackson logged 69 tackles (11 for a loss) and four sacks his senior year, a season in which he earned 10-6A First-Team All-District honors; he also ran an 11.68 100-meter dash at 240 pounds. Johnson recorded 60 tackles, 18 for a loss, and 10 sacks his senior year at L.D. Bell High School. Brooks played his high school football for North Crowley.
TCU signed two specialists this cycle: kicker Kyle Lemmermann (Southlake, TX) and punter Ethan Craw from Australia.
According to 247Sports, Lemmermann was the nation’s top kicker, going 92/92 on extra points and nailing a 50-yard field goal his final year. He also kicked off, converting 88 of 128 kicks into touchbacks. Lemmermann will most certainly be called upon as a kicker in 2024, as senior Gryphon Kell leaves.
Craw comes to Fort Worth from Tasmania, attending the same academy as former TCU punter Jordan Sandy.
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