2014 Waxahachie OT Patrick Lawrence commits to Baylor

In the last two weeks, three prospects that I'm aware of have visited Baylor unofficially: TE Jordan Feuerbacher, QB Aaron Sharp, and OT Patrick Lawrence. The first and last of the trio have now committed, and the middle one (Sharp) likely would at any time Baylor tells him what he wants to hear: that he can play QB (and nothing else) for the Bears.

Lawrence is what we've come to know as the prototypical Art Briles tackle recruit. He's tall at 6'5", relatively thin at "only" 255 pounds, and extremely quick. Eerily reminiscent of Tre'Von Armstead, a 2012 recruit for the Bears, Lawrence's frame allows him to put on significant weight and (hopefully) not lose the quickness he has now, exactly what Briles and OL coach Randy Clements look for in a tackle. If you assume, and I think you should, that he has 3 years to add weight/strength (senior year, redshirt, and redshirt freshman), the fact that he weighs 255 pounds now is definitely not a bad thing. It seems we focus on guys who are already big for the guard spots and guys who have excellent feet and can add weight on the outside. It's the difference between Josh Pelzel, who projects at guard for us, and Lawrence, who is definitely a tackle. If you're worried about his power with a relatively small size, don't be.

Bringing Lawrence into the fold gives Baylor 8 recruits in the 2014 class, 7 of which are on the offensive side of the ball. Lawrence is a 3* recruit by 247Sports and a 2* by Rivals, something that doesn't really match up with his offer sheet. Lawrence chose Baylor over Michigan State, Texas Tech, Washington State, Arizona State, and Oregon State, among others.

Check out his HUDL highlight videos when you can, and if you feel like it, throw him a congratulations on twitter about his commitment. I really do think Baylor is getting a quality tackle prospect in Lawrence, and I know our staff targeted him as one of two we'd really like to have in this class. Hopefully the other sees the light and joins him!