Texas tried, but failed, to flip this TCU OL commit late in process
Andrew Coker kept his options open to the end.
He had committed to TCU in May, but that didn’t stop programs from pursuing him. After all, any team would want to land an athletic 6-foot-7, 308-pound offensive lineman.
Coker visited Texas last weekend, but the Longhorns couldn’t pry him away from TCU.
“I knew TCU was it all along, but I did take a visit to Texas,” Coker said. “Coming out of that, I still feel that TCU is a better place for me.”
So it came as no surprise when Coker made his TCU commitment official when he signed his national letter of intent on Wednesday morning.
Coker is expected to push for playing time as early as next fall, particularly with the inconsistencies TCU’s offensive line showed throughout the season.
“Coker is one of the more underrated offensive linemen in the nation in my opinion,” recruiting czar and Horned Frog Blitz publisher Jeremy Clark said. “Prior to his senior season, he worked hard to lose weight and become more mobile. The hard work paid off as he lost nearly 40 pounds and his footwork improved dramatically. There’s a reason programs including Texas were trying to steal him from TCU late in the process.
“He will be a guy I feel that will remind folks of Matt Pryor. He will ultimately play tackle, but he’s got a big enough frame and he’s strong enough to play inside, just like Pryor did. TCU always wants to have at least eight to 10 guys that can fill its depth chart on the offensive line, and I feel like he will be one of those guys to have an immediate impact.”
The Star-Telegram caught up with Coker, a Katy Taylor product, about his decision to sign with the Frogs.
Why TCU? “Because of that family atmosphere that the coaches and fans bring to it. A lot of schools don’t have the longevity of a coaching staff like TCU does. That’s something that I admire. It’s a better fit for me in that sense. I like the area of Fort Worth and have a chance to make an impact early with the Horned Frogs.”
Do you feel like you can push for snaps next fall? “I feel like at tackle, I might need a year to get into tackle, but at one of the guards, I could probably get in and get some playing time right off the bat. It also depends on Lucas Niang, if he goes to the NFL draft, I might have to step in at tackle earlier.”
What’s your weight at now and what would you like it to be? “I’m 6-foot-7, 308 pounds right now. I’d like to be a little bit heavier but with it being good weight. I need to put muscle on, not just any weight, and be at around 315.”
How much did TCU’s success of putting O-lineman in the NFL sway you? “It sure helped, but it wasn’t one of the top factors that drove me to TCU. It helps to go to the NFL, but NFL stands for ‘not for long.’ Realistically, you might play four years so TCU’s success is nice, but it wasn’t one of the driving forces that pushed me to play at TCU.”
Describe yourself as an offensive lineman. “I like to finish blocks, that’s definitely my mindset. But I’m a very tech savvy guy, too. I get very precise with a lot of the things I do with my hands, pad level. There’s always things I can get a lot better at too.”
What offensive linemen do you look up to? “For hands, I look at Joe Thomas. I watch a lot of his film, where he places his hands for different types of sets. I look at Tyron Smith for his 45-degree sets. He’s very good at that.”
Finally, what hobbies do you have outside of football? “I like playing video games with my little 13-year-old brother. He’s not very little, he’s got a big frame. But I’m a family man and we do a bunch of things together. And I’m a big basketball guy. I can dunk, actually posted one on Twitter of me dunking.”