Why New UTSA Head Coach Frank Wilson Should Heavily Recruit San Antonio

It's hard to debate that UTSA has done a good job of recruiting the San Antonio area in recent years. The Roadrunners built their program around local athletes in the early years as guys like David Glasco, Cody Harris, Cole Hubble, Steven Kurfehs and Cody Rogers developed from two or zero star athletes into Conference USA stand outs. Despite having great results with local products in the past, UTSA signed just two San Antonio high school athletes in the 2015 recruiting class.

While San Antonio does put out several top flight recruits each year it's still wildly under recruited as a whole. A CUSA school like UTSA could easily pull 10 guys out of San Antonio and the surrounding area each year and build one of the most talented rosters in the conference. Here are a few suggestions to Frank Wilson and the rest of his coaching staff so that they can do just that.

Brandon Smyth - 2016 LB, Brandeis

Let's start off with a guy that UTSA is already recruiting. Smyth is set to take an official visit to UTSA next weekend. He won't have to drive far as Brandeis High is just one Loop 1604 exit away from campus. At 6'3", 220 pounds, Smyth has the ideal frame for a linebacker. He's incredibly athletic-- fast enough to contain the edge as an outside linebacker but also strong enough to play downfield at middle linebacker. Smyth looks like he could carry a lot more weight so a potential move to defensive end wouldn't be out of the question if Smyth bulked up in college. Smyth has FBS offers from Army, Navy, New Mexico, UNT, and UTSA.

Elijah Garcia - 2016 DT, Stevens

A Rice commit, Garcia has the potential to be either a strongside defensive end or grow into a massive defensive tackle. The 6'6", 268 pound athlete could be an all-conference talent if he's able to put on an extra 15 pounds or so and play the three technique at defensive tackle. It might be too late in the game for Frank Wilson to steal Garcia from Rice but these are the recruiting battles that he's going to need to win to succeed at UTSA.

Chance Lytle - 2016 OL/DL, Churchill

Lytle's recruitment, or lack thereof, to UTSA under the previous staff was one of the most strange recruiting sagas I've ever followed. Already 6'7", Lytle gained a ton of weight over the past summer as he blossomed into a dream of an offensive tackle prospect at 292 pounds. Lytle gained rave reviews from scouts at summer camps and the local athlete showed a lot of interest in UTSA. The school's former staff even invited him to the Alamodome for an unofficial visit but he left without a scholarship offer. He would then commit to Colorado soon after. I don't know if Lytle is still high on UTSA or not but Frank Wilson and his staff should definitely reach out and gauge his interest as 6'7" offensive tackles are few and far between.

Jeremy Garcia - 2016 WR, Warren

Garcia has great size at 6'3" and 195 pounds so it's confusing to see that his only offer is from Army. The Warren product shows great body control and straight line speed in his senior film so he should be able to develop into a nice deep threat at the next level. Garcia is a great example of the type of athletes that can fly under the radar in San Antonio. I think it's likely that he would be a three star recruit if he played for a big name program in Dallas or Houston with a pass-heavy offense.

Tyrone Middleton, 2016 RB, Southwest

A powerful 6'1" running back, Middleton has gone largely unnoticed playing in south San Antonio. Middleton committed to UNT under the Mean Green's previous staff but he may be a better fit at UTSA if the Roadrunners' offense ends up looking anything like what Frank Wilson ran at LSU. Middleton definitely fits into the mold of the incredible running backs that Wilson has coached in the past.

Frank Harris - 2017 QB/ATH, Clemens

Frank Harris is quickly becoming San Antonio's next star athlete and for good reason. He's the most electric athlete I've seen in person since Johnny Manziel at Kerville Tivy. Similar to Manziel, Harris has an unreal ability to make touchdowns out of broken plays and moves at an even faster rate than his 4.55 second 40 yard dash would indicate. While I disagree with the notion, there is some fair concern that the lefty isn't a strong enough passer to stick at quarterback at the next level. Personally, Harris' toughness and leadership qualities outweigh any mechanical ticks in his game for me. He improved tremendously as a passer after taking private passing lessons over the summer. There's no reason to doubt he'll show similar improvement heading into his senior season. If UTSA wants to lock San Antonio recruiting down, Frank Harris needs to be the cornerstone of that effort. The junior picked up his first offer from Texas State last week and UTSA threw an offer his way last night. UTSA needs to gain an early commitment from him to spark Frank Wilson's first full recruiting class in 2017. Harris's star power will help UTSA draw other local athletes to UTSA.

Matthew Huhn - 2017 OT, John Jay

Huhn's commitment may be hard to earn after he earned an early offer from Baylor but the 6'7", 270 pound offensive tackle has too much potential to ignore. The junior is still growing into his body but his quickness and wing span make him an elite talent along the offensive line. While Huhn will likely end up at a distinguished Power 5 program, UTSA needs to recruit these local talents as hard as a two-star kid that they could easily land. Relationships are key in recruiting and the staff needs to let guys like Huhn know that they'll always have a home at UTSA.

Julon Williams - 2018 QB/ATH, Converse Judson

The younger brother of stand-out Roadrunner running back Jarveon Williams, Julon is an elite athlete that is still learning how to play quarterback. At age 14, Williams led the Rockets to to the state semi-finals, turning heads across Texas. I'm bearish on Williams' ability to play quarterback at the next level but if he's anything like his brother his humility and work ethic will lead to success no matter where he ends up playing in college. There's no doubt that big name programs will come calling for Williams but if Frank Wilson is able to develop a strong relationship with Jarveon it may influence his younger brother to stay home as a Roadrunner.