New Tulsa head coach Tre Lamb and his assistant coaches have quickly proven three things when it comes to recruiting.
1. They are aggressively pursuing in-state talent.
2. They aren’t afraid of recruiting the highest-rated prospects in the region.
3. They are routinely beating multiple Power Four schools for commitments.
Prime examples are recent verbal pledges from Tulsa (OK) Union defensive back Daijon Gaines and Houston (TX) Elsik linebacker Reilarean ‘Speed’ Phillips. Both have numerous P4 offers, and both committed to Tulsa this week after taking official visits to the TU campus.
Gaines, a 6-foot-1 and 180-pound safety, is ranked as the No. 16 overall prospect in Oklahoma by Rivals.com and No. 54 nationally at his position. He chose Tulsa over offers from Oklahoma State, Utah, UCF, SMU, Purdue, Missouri, Kansas State, Kansas, Houston, Arizona, Baylor, Boston College, UNLV, North Texas, UTEP and others.
“I’d say the all-around support of the (coaching) staff,” Gaines said of why he picked TU. “It feels like home.”
Gaines was the second local defensive back to commit to TU this week, joining Keynan Farley of Booker T. Washington. Both were recruited by Tulsa DB coach Dominique Franks.
“Coach Franks is my guy,” said Gaines. “We actually had kind of a small relationship before they even started recruiting me, and it’s just taken off ever since. I love that dude to death.”
While staying close to home for college will be beneficial, Gaines says that wasn’t a factor in his decision.
“If I’m being honest, it wasn’t,” he explained. “It kind of just fell into place.”
As a junior last season, Gaines posted 75 tackles, 2 tackles for loss and 2 interceptions, including a pick-six.
“I let the playing speak for itself,” he said. “I want to prove everything and everybody that’s against me wrong. I’ve dealt with some shoulder adversity and just want to have a great (senior) season.”
Reilarean Phillips also had glowing comments about Tulsa. The 6-foot-1 and 205-pounder was recruited by TU linebacker coach Mike Gray.
“Everything was great,” Phillips said of his official visit to Tulsa. “The love was unreal, and all the coaches were just excited to see me. Even though it’s a small city, I feel like Tulsa is really slept on. (The coaches) are great. They show genuine love, and they really are trying to change the program around.
“I’m coming here to bring Tulsa its light back, so when you speak ‘Reilarean Speed Phillips,’ you speak Tulsa. We’re on a mission, and I believe in Coach Gray and Coach Lamb, and we’re gonna be the best team in our conference."
Phillips had a strong junior season, collecting 53 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, one sack, 2 forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and a defensive touchdown. He also scored five touchdowns on offense.
Like Gaines, Phillips had a boatload of scholarship offers. He committed to Tulsa over offers from Arizona State, Baylor, Boston College, Houston, Kansas State, Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, Pitt, SMU, Washington State, UNLV, UTEP, UTSA, North Texas and several others.
Of Tulsa’s first 10 commitments in the class of 2026, four are from the Sooner State. The aforementioned Gaines and Farley are joined by Jenks lineman Ryley Kester and Lawton MacArthur receiver Josh Rushing, who both also held multiple P4 offers, including Iowa State, Kansas State, Kansas, Texas Tech, Purdue, Houston and Georgia Tech.
The Hurricane’s other six commitments come from Texas, with the most notable being Phillips and Hutto running back Keilan Chavies, who chose TU over offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Boston College, Cal, Houston, Kansas, Kansas State, TCU, Texas Tech and others. Both are 3-star prospects.
Tulsa beat out many of its peers, including conference foes, for its other four commits from the Lone Star State:
• QB Kyden Barker – Tulane, North Texas, Colorado State, UNLV, UTEP, Southern Miss, Texas State
• DE Carson Dempsey – Pitt, UTSA, South Florida, Memphis, FAU, East Carolina, UNLV, UTEP, New Mexico, Wyoming, Texas State, Louisiana Tech, Coastal Carolina
• WR Lathon Latiolais – North Texas, Navy, Army, Air Force, Texas State, SFA, Penn, Yale, Dartmouth
• SAF Alonzo Welch – North Texas, UTSA, San Diego State, Texas State
Expect Tulsa to continue its impressive recruiting haul in the coming weeks, as the Hurricane hosts several more official visitors.
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MORE TULSA FOOTBALL RECRUITING:
• Farley discusses his commitment to Tulsa
• TU hosts impressive list of official visitors
• Tulsa gets early start on 2028 recruiting
• 3-star RB picks Tulsa over numerous P4 offers
