Tech Lands Two Major Commitments

While other schools are getting their signed letter-of-intents this week from the Class of 2004, Texas Tech is busy working on the future. Over the weekend, the Red Raiders added to their haul from the class of 2005 by landing commitments from a pair of brothers from nearby Morton, Texas, in Calvin and Kendrick Johnson.

"Calvin and Kendrick made an oral commitment to Texas Tech earlier this week," said Morton High School head coach Gant Caraway. "Tech offered and (the brothers) thought it was a good fit for them. The reason (Tech) offered early is that they play great defense and they fit Bobby Knight's style of play. We're one-and-a-half hours away from Lubbock too and that was good. They just thought it seemed right at the time."

There's no question that the brothers, who are obviously very close, wanted to continue playing together in college. So when one brother chomped at the bit, the other one did as well. "Calvin was the one that instigated it," said Caraway. "He committed, and the brother followed. They've expressed that they wanted to stay together and it's worked out well for them."

Kendrick, at 6-foot-10, 225-pounds, is the bigger and elder of the duo (Kendrick was held back in the second grade, which explains why the two brothers are in the same class). A veteran of the AAU circuit with Team Texas and the Dallas Mustangs, he has often been physically head-and-shoulders above the competition. While his size has obviously been his key asset at his level of play - Morton competes at the 1A level in Texas' 5A system - Johnson has not taken anything for granted and has continued to work hard at improving his game.

"He's got great upside," said Morton head coach Dant Caraway. "He can finish at the goal and he shoots the ball really well. He's an intimidator but he's a gentle giant. He just keeps on improving."

Johnson averaged 18.7 points, 14 rebounds, and seven blocked shots a contest last season. Calvin, the younger and smaller of the two brothers at 6-foot-3, 195-pounds, is a talented combo guard who was district MVP and earned All-State honors as a sophomore. He averaged 25 points and seven assists a game last season. A multi-sport athlete, Calvin is also the starting quarterback for the Morton football team. But basketball is where his future will lie in college.

"He can play the one or the two, but he plays two guard for us," said Caraway. "He's a slasher and can really finish at the basket. But he can also shoot from the outside - he shot 42 percent from behind the three-point line. He plays great defense too - we put him on whoever we need to stop and he stops them."

In addition, Calvin has excelled in the classroom, ranking fourth in his class and already scoring a PSAT score over 1000. According to Caraway, by the time the younger Johnson graduates, he will already have 15 college credits on his transcript.

"He's just a great kid," said Caraway.

Both Johnsons are very familiar with the Tech program, having visited the campus multiple times for games, and are friends with many current players on the Red Raiders team. They join Justin Wilkerson from Greenville, Texas to give Texas Tech three commitments from the Class of 2005. Texas Tech's commitments from the Class of 2004, Damir Suljagic of Tucson, Ariz., Phil Harbaugh of Corvallis, Ore. and Martin Zeno of Sulphur, La., are expected to sign their letters-of-intent this week.

Jed Tai is a senior writer with Hoopville.com