ESPN: TCU, Texas and Oklahoma are least likely to redshirt freshmen
Brandon Chatmon ESPN Staff Writer
February signees have been arriving at campuses across the Big 12 with bright eyes and hopes of stepping onto the field to make an immediate impact.
But what programs have made playing true freshman a common practice? And which ones prefer to redshirt the bulk of their recruiting classes with the hope of maximizing their potential by the end of their fifth season in the program?
Here is a school-by-school look at which programs have played the highest percentage of true freshmen since TCU and West Virginia joined the Big 12 in 2012. To be clear, only freshmen who arrived on campus are included in the following breakdown with no junior college signees included.
1. TCU: 53.1 percent (38 redshirts, 43 played as true freshmen)
Notable true freshmen: S Derrick Kindred (2012), WRÂ KaVontae Turpin(2015)
Notable redshirts: CB Ranthony Texada (2013), RB Kyle Hicks (2013)
Summary: The Horned Frogs go in cycles with 16 true freshman playing in 2012 and 17 playing in 2015. It’s clear Gary Patterson is willing to turn to first-year freshmen with the confidence he can mold them into productive players in Year 1. Even though TCU has a high percentage, it’s hard to say the Horned Frogs consistently — year in and year out — play a lot of freshman after playing three in 2013 and seven in 2014.
Read the rest at http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/post/_/id/127523/tcu-texas-and-oklahoma-are-least-likely-to-redshirt-freshmen