Louisiana state champion linebacker, hurdler commits to Texas Tech
Justin Horne displayed two qualities that Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire and his staff find irresistible: He's been highly productive on the football field and can often be found atop medal stands at the track.
Horne, a two-sport standout at John Curtis Christian in the New Orleans suburb of River Ridge, Louisiana, committed to the Red Raiders on Monday, two days before football's national signing period begins.
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound Horne switched his allegiance after he'd been pledged to Louisiana-Lafayette since mid-September. Horne, nicknamed "Sensei", also attracted scholarship offers from Baylor, Vanderbilt, Louisiana Tech, Troy, UT-San Antonio and Tulane.
John Curtis Christian just concluded a 12-2 season on Dec. 10 by winning the Louisiana Division I select state championship. Horne led the team with 144 tackles, 17 tackles for loss and six sacks. He also was credited with five quarterback hurries and three pass breakups.
During track season, Horne won the Louisiana Class 5A state title in the 110-meter hurdles with a wind-legal time of 14.06 seconds. His fastest time, which he ran in April at the Mobile Challenge of Champions Invitational, was 13.85, though no wind reading was recorded.
During the 2022 indoor season, Horne ran personal bests of 7.37 in the 60 meters and 7.93 in the 60-meter hurdles. He finished second in the latter event at the Louisiana Division I state meet in 8.08.
Horne took an official visit to Tech over the weekend. In his announcement Monday, he said plans to compete in both football and track and field for the Red Raiders.
The national signing periods this year are Wednesday through Friday and Feb. 1 through April 1. Horne's commitment is the Red Raiders' 25th. Rivals recruiting service ranks the Tech class 21st in the nation, and 247Sports ranks it 22nd.
Texas Tech commitments
The following high-school juniors have made non-binding oral commitments to Texas Tech for the Red Raiders' 2023 class. The national signing periods for high-school recruits are Wednesday through Friday and Feb. 1 through April 1.
Jake Strong, 6-2, 200, QB, Justin Northwest; Demarion "D.J." Crest, 6-3, 185, WR, El Paso Parkland; Kelby Valsin, 6-2, 175, WR, Arlington Bowie; Tyrone West, 6-2, 185, WR, Humble; Chris Palfreeman, 5-10, 160, IR, Fort Worth All Saints Episcopal; Kaden Carr, 6-5, 300, OT, Lubbock-Cooper; Nick Fattig, 6-5, 280, OT, League City Clear Springs; Dylan Shaw, 6-4, 290, OT, Corpus Christi Flour Bluff; Daniel Sill, 6-5, 260, OT, College Station; Amier Washington, 6-4, 260, DE, Orange Little Cypress-Mauriceville; Tre'Darius Brown, 6-3, 300, DT, Natchitoches (La.) Central; Jayden Cofield, 6-3, 325, DT, Manor; Ansel Nedore, 6-3, 255, DT, Round Rock; Braylon Rigsby, 6-3, 280, DT, Woodville; Isaiah Crawford, 6-4, 210, OLB, Post; John Curry, 6-3, 187, ILB, Coronado; Miquel Dingle, 6-2, 205, WLB, Duncan (S.C.) Byrnes; Justin Horne, 6-1, 200, LB, River Rouge (La.) John Curtis Christian; Anquan Willis, 6-1, 220, OLB-RB, Wichita Falls Rider; Marcus Ramon-Edwards, 6-4, 205, S-OLB, Trinity Christian; Jmaury Davis, 6-0, 180, S, Clarendon; Brenden Jordan, 6-0, 185, S, Mansfield; Chapman Lewis, 6-1, 170, S, Burleson Centennial; Jordan Sanford, 5-11, 185, CB-S, Mansfield Timberview; Marquez "Macho" Stevenson, 6-2, 170, CB, Shreveport (La.) Captain Shreve.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Louisiana state champion linebacker, hurdler commits to Texas Tech
