Top 50 East Texas College Players of 2023

By far this is one of the more difficult lists to produce because the amount of schools in East Texas are of plenty, and the colleges are scattered all over America. I'm sure I left off someone, just not really sure who it is. But through long searches I believe I have found the best 50 football players from ETX on the college level. 

Back in 2019, Gabe Adams went crazy for Pine Tree racking 47 catches for a 1000 plus yards. After a trip to Commerce, 2023 saw Adams on TJC's roster where he made big splash plays in his limited opportunities. In 5 games, Adams produced a decent statline.

Haynes was a key cog in Gilmer's offenses in 2021 and 22 and worked his way into the rotation at TJC rushing for over 200 yards and 2 TDS in limited action. 

Logan Johnson was an incredible runner in 2020 for Pleasant Grove and received the most touches on TJC's team this past fall. Johnson almost rushed for 300 yards this past season for the Apaches. 

Peyton Christian was a man on Kilgore's front 4 in 2022 and in 2023 he made a couple of splash plays for Lamar. The staff loves him and I expect a big 2024 for him.

In 2020 Ryan Wilkerson and Bradan Manning tore up East Texas through the air at Elysian Fields. At Arkansas Tech, Wilkerson is splashing at wildcat QB, receiver and even doing some returning in 2023 for Ark Tech. 

Trey Fite spend time on special teams for Louisiana Lafayette, making the majority of his tackles on kickoff for the Ragin Cajuns. At 6'5 Fite still has an incredible frame to fill out and I expect his role to increase in 2024. 

Crawford was a big time 4 star prospect out of Carthage in 2020 and has been on the Razorback roster since 2022. This past year he got the opportunity to start at RT for 3 games and played good at times and bad at times. Crawford is returning to the Pigs in 2024 and looks to compete for a starting position. 

Meredith left Longview it's all time leader touchdown scorer with over 60. After a couple of detours Meredith was the leading rusher for running backs at Kilgore going for over 400 yards in 2023. 

Rawls was a 3 star prospect and finished #86 on the Top 100 List in 2020. After a couple of years in Stillwater he emerged as a big time player at safety and nickel. In 3 games before injury, Rawls amassed 20 tackles and a pick. 

KD Erskine was a big time playmaker on the 2021 Van defense. He finished number 31 on the Top 100 in 2021. The last two years he's been making plays for Trinity Valley and with added weight it'll be fun to see what roster he's on next year. 

Keshon was a QB/TE/Wildcat back at Pine Tree and after a couple of tour stops he wound up at SFA in 2023. Williams a big target and rac ability, in 5 games made a splash for SFA with 9 catches for 88 yards. 

Wilburn Smallwood was a dog for Lufkin and in 2020 finished in the Top 100 as the number 20 player. After a detour from Nevada, Smallwood found his self at Kilgore where he put up good numbers in 2023. In 11 games Smallwood registered 5 sacks leading KC this year. 

Back in 2019, Marje Smith was a 3 star prospect headed to Baylor. Fast forward to 2023 and Smith was a stat getter. In 8 games he managed to garner 3 sacks and 12 tackles specializing on 3rd downs as a speed rusher. 

Brandon King lit East Texas on fire in 2020 with 9 interceptions finishing 29th in 2020 on the Top 100 and 92 in 2021. King took his talents to Tabor College where he had a very productive 2023. With close to 50 tackles and 4 picks he had a solid freshman year. 

In 2020, Carr exploded onto the scene and had a huge senior season for Longview, landing number 55 in the Top 100. At ETBU he's been progressively doing more racking up 13.5 tfls and 7 sacks in 2023, landing first team All-Conference.

Aaron Sears in 2021 was a dog. He finished number 32 on the Top 100 making plays in various ways from Wildcat to CB to S. In 2023, in his redshirt freshman season, Sears amassed 55 tackles and 3 pass break ups in 8 games.  

In 2020, Jaymond Jackson was a key cog in a state championship runner up Lindale Eagle team, finishing number 26 on the Top 100. He's been a consistent contributor to Lamar for the past 3 seasons, this year racking up 3.5 sacks for the Cardinals in 2023. 

CJ Fite proved to be a man-child early in camp for Arizona State this time last year as an early enrollee. That spark led to play time in the fall, where Fite was a consistent starter and player for ASU. The plugger made 15 tackles in his debut season and will be looking to add more in '24.

In 2021, Josh Thomas led Longview 3 rounds deep in a classic against Denton Ryan. He finished 40th on the Top 100. After transferring from SAU, Thomas saw his self as the back up in 2023. Due to injury Thomas was inserted as the starter for the last 5 games and lit it up. He threw 6 touchdowns to 0 interceptions as well as becoming the team's leading rusher on the season in that short time. True ball player it'll be interesting where his career goes from here.

With the arrival of Shedeur Sanders, Owen McCown saw his self coming back to Texas and suiting up for UTSA in 2023. In a backup role, McCown through for a decent amount of yards in good play time in 2023. With Frank Harris gone, McCown has the leg up to be the guy in 2024. 

A beast for Pleasant Grove in 2019, Burris took his talents to Texas A&M before finding his self in Indiana in 2023. A solid producer, Burris in a rotational role made plays and was an integral part of the rotation in 2023. 

Kai was a perfect 30-0 during his career for Carthage in his 2 seasons as the QB. He finished number 22 on the 2020 Top 100. In his first couple of seasons Kai has served as the backup at Tulane making splash plays and leading the Wave to wins over his run. With Junior Pratt coming back, Horton likely will be the backup in 2024. 

Jalen Hale was officially him.com in high school, and showed all 4 years of varsity play. As a true freshman Jalen made plays when opportunity was brought his way, making a huge splash play against Ole Miss in 2023. His numbers were modest, but expect that to change in 24. 

Jam Miller was that guy at Legacy for 4 years and had a huge 2021 landing the 10th spot on the Top 100 and 18th in 2020. He's been a steady backup his first two years, contributing on special teams and running back. With starter Jase McClellan gone, Miller will have an opportunity to open up his role in 2024. 

If you asked me what Mineola's best football player Dawson Pendergrass was going to play in college I'd figure defense. Not only was I wrong, but Pendergrass emerged as the most productive of Baylor's backs in 2023. The true freshman accounted for over 500 yards rushing and receiving and scored 7 TDS. 

Jalen Carr shook up the world with his 10 interception season in 2017 in his first year as a defensive back. Carr stopped in SW Oklahoma first but ended up at Tarleton State. With 9 pbu's Carr challenged a lot of passes in 23 and even forced 2 fumbles.

Donovan Adkins was a ball player at Kilgore in 2021 and in his 2 seasons at Sam Houston he's been productive. In 12 games Adkins had 33 tackles in the nickel position and with 2 seasons left he should be a productive player for the Bearkats. 

Khalan Griffin was an awesome runner in high school for Coach Rio in 2019 and headed to Rice University. After a transfer he was the starting running back for Lamar University and had a great stat line rushing for over 800 yards. 

6 year veteran Max Quick is a special teams ace. Starting out as a snapper in Lufkin before converting to punter, Quick is a gem at punter. Quick averaged 44 yards per punt in 2023 for the SFA Jacks. 

Before leaving for SMU, Trevion Sneed was the number 5 player on the Top 100 of 2021 list. Before Northwestern State was forced to shut their season down early, Sneed was going off. Mineola's Trevion Sneed was a man at defensive end, racking up over 30 tackles in 6 games and 6 tfl. 

A true dual threat, OB Jones is the only quarterback to throw for a 1,000 and rush for a 1,000 from ETX. OB provided SAU with 30 touchdowns, 17 on the ground and 13 through the air while completing 63% of his passes in 2023. 

Crawford was an ace as a tailback, hitting the home run with easy back at John Tyler. He played corner as well, but was more known for his offensive skills in 2019. Fast forward to 2023 and the senior was a reserve DB while also being a special teams ace. He caught a pick and blocked a punt while providing key tackles on punts and kickoffs. 

Kaleb Ford-Dement wasn't a hot commodity leaving Whitehouse, and was a 2 star leaving juco. He went to Old Dominion and Washington State before turning to a starting corner at Texas State in 2023. He had 3 picks and 7 pbus while having 32 tackles. 

Devin McCuin finished in the Top 10 of the Top 100 in 2022 and was the receiver I was the most confident would go in and make a splash. He did just that catching 42 passes for 546 yards and 3 touchdowns in his true freshman season. That sort of production bodes well for an 18 year old and he should place even higher in 2024. 

Moochie Dixon is a top receiver in East Texas history after a monstrous career at Carthage. After going to Texas, Dixon transferred to SMU where he battled injury but became a consistent target in 2023 for the Mustangs. His 441 yards and 17.6 YPC average shows you he can make plays. 

The senior safety from Tyler spent his first 3 seasons at neighboring UIW before transferring over to UTSA. This year he was a consistent starter and made plays with 40 tackles and 2 interceptions on the year. 

Clayton Smith was the number 1 player on the Top 100 list for 2020, and after an underwhelming career at Oklahoma, Smith transferred to Arizona State for new life. Smith flashed greatness at times amassing 4.5 sacks and 5.5 tfl in 2023. 

San Augustine's Kevorian Barnes has emerged as a top runner for UTSA in the past 2 seasons, and was tough for the Road Runners in 2023. He ran for 715 yards and 6 touchdowns, and brings a physicality and swiftness to the running back position. 

Back in high school at Legacy, Jamal Ligon was a DE/TE for Legacy, but at UTSA they saw him as in inside linebacker. He started 9 games as a true freshman and remained a starter throughout his career. In 2023, Ligon provided 62 tackles a sack, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup. 

Savion Williams left Marshall in 2019 after playing Quarterback his senior year. He went to TCU and has a modest career. 2023 was his biggest season, finishing with 573 yards on 41 catches and 4 tds. 

Luke Watson finished number 48 on the Top 100 list for 2020 after a great season with Gilmer. After watching his first couple of seasons at SFA, Watson got on the field and absolutely balled. Luke had 67 tackles, 9.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks in 2023. He forced 2 fumbles and was a menace for SFA's defense. 

Kip Lewis was a 2 time member of the Top 100 finishing 16th in 2020, and 54th in 2021. He played 4 games in 2022 before redshirting, but in 2023 Lewis made his splash. He started 4 games for the sooners and had 66 tackles a sack and a fumble recovery in 2023. 

Bugg was a four year letterman for the Pack from 2016-19 and was a damn good safety. He took his savvy and playmaking skills to the 40 acres and got busy instantly. In 2023 as a senior Thompson notched 38 tackles and 3 picks, 1 being a pick 6. Thompson is playing his last season of eligibility at Auburn in 2024. 

Jermod McCoy finished 40th on the 2021 list and 4 on the 2022 Top 100 List. He was a baller at Whitehouse at both receiver and corner and went to Oregon State in 2023. In his first year McCoy took over as a starter the last 5 games of the season and had 31 tackles, 3 interceptions and 7 pas breakups. McCoy transferred from Oregon State after his first season and will be at Tennessee in 2024. 

Malik Jackson was him at Lufkin, playing slot receiver and a touch of running back back in 2016 and 17. Malik left Lufkin and headed to ULM where he played 5 seasons at slot receiver and running back. In 2023, with another year of eligibility, Malik went to Jacksonville State and went off at running back. Jackson had 896 yards on 146 carries for 7 yards. That's dang good production. 

Haynes King left Longview as one of the most touted prospects ever after winning Player of the Year and a State Championship in his career. He left and went to Texas A&M where injury and a rocky start saw him get benched. In 2023, King transferred to Georgia Tech where he was allowed to become comfortable as the starter. He ran for  737 yards and 10 touchdowns while throwing for 2,842 yards and 27 touchdowns. Haynes had a turnover problem in 2023 with 16 picks, but with another year in the system he should turn that number down and be even higher in 2024. 

Landon Jackson left Pleasant Grove as a 4 star lineman and took his talents to LSU. He transferred to Arkansas where he became a player. In 2023 Landon had 13.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks and a pass break up. At 6'7 282 Jackson is an intriguing prospect and should climb this list and will be drafted in 2024. 

As a senior in 2018 Tahj Washington went off for over 850 yards receiving and 225 rushing. He headed to Memphis from high school, and after a productive year he took his talents to the West Coast. In 2023, Tahj Washington went for a rack and 8 touchdowns averaging 18 yards per catch. He's projected to go in the middle rounds between the 4th-7th of this year's NFL Draft. 

In 2019 Ja'Lynn Polk lit up East Texas with over a 1,000 yards and finished his career 2nd behind KeKe Coutee for the most yards in school history. Polk left Lufkin and headed to Texas Tech and then transferred to Washington. In 2023, Polk was second on the team as a receiver, finishing with 69 catches for 1,159 yards and 9 TDS. Polk is expected to be drafted in the 2-4th round in this NFL draft. 

In 2020 Nick Martin finished number 24th on the Top 100 list. As a running back and outside backer, Martin was a ferocious ball player. Nick took that same ferocity with him to Oklahoma State and in his first season as a starter he went tf off. Martin had 140 tackles, 83 of them solos. He got to the passer 6 times in 2023 and also had 2 interceptions.