Dec. 17, 2014 WACO, Texas -- Baylor's back-to-back Big 12 champion football program has added four student-athletes to its roster that will enroll for the spring 2015 semester, head coach Art Briles announced Wednesday.
Two early high school graduates, quarterback/receiver Blake Lynch of Gilmer (Texas) High School and quarterback Chad President of Temple (Texas) High School, have signed financial aid contracts and junior college transfer offensive lineman Dominic Desouza of City College of San Francisco has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the Bears program.
Lynch and President have each led their respective high schools to state championship games this weekend.
Lynch is a prep All-American and national top-100 recruit whose versatility is utilized all over the field by Gilmer. He is rated the 81st national recruit by 247Sports, the No. 8 "athlete" ranked. Lynch is a 2015 U.S. Army All-American Bowl invitee, who has led Gilmer to an undefeated season (15-0) and the 2014 Class 4A DII state championship game Friday vs. West Orange-Stark High School.
President has quarterbacked Temple to the 2014 Texas Class 5A DI state championship, where the 13-1 Wildcats will face Aledo Saturday at AT&T Stadium. President threw for 271 yards and five TDs in a 76-35 semi-final victory over Vandergrift High School. A top-300 national recruit (No. 200 by Rivals, No. 274 on ESPN300), President earned honorable mention Class 5A All-State recognition in 2014.
Desouza is rated the 34th-best recruit on Rivals' Juco 100 and No. 92 on Scout's Juco Top 100. The two-year starter at CCSF prepped at Terra Nova High School in Pacifica, Calif., and will have two seasons of eligibility at Baylor. Desouza helped CCSF to consecutive wins in the San Francisco Community College Bowl in 2013 and 2014, and this year's squad finished 11-2 and state runners-up.
Baylor has also received a signed financial aid contract from a member of its 2014 signing class, offensive lineman Devonte Jones of Bellaire High School in Houston, Texas, who is also expected to enroll for the spring semester.
Baylor, ranked fourth nationally, concludes the 2014 season by facing No. 7 Michigan State in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 1. Fans can purchase tickets and find bowl information at www.BaylorBears.com/bowlcentral.
BAYLOR 2014 MID-YEAR ENROLLEES
Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | Hometown (Previous Schools) |
Dominic Desouza | OL | 6-7 | 300 | Jr. | Pacifica, Calif. (Terra Nova HS / City College of San Francisco) |
Blake Lynch | WR | 6-2 | 195 | Fr. | Gilmer, Texas (Gilmer HS) |
Chad President | QB | 6-2 | 195 | Fr. | Temple, Texas (Temple HS) |
Devonte Jones | OL | 6-2 | 305 | Fr. | Houston, Texas (Bellaire HS) |