How TCU football won over this three-star recruit, an offensive tackle from Houston area

TCU added to its 2024 recruiting over the weekend with the addition of offensive lineman Ryan Hughes.

Hughes is a three-star recruit and plays offensive tackle at The Woodlands outside Houston. Hughes credited his bond with offensive line A.J. Ricker and TCU’s 13-2 season as some of the reasons he ended up choosing the Horned Frogs.

“The relationships I built with the coaching staff and the success of the last season were the two biggest factors,” Hughes said. “Ricker has been recruiting me for a year and a half now starting last January when they came out to see me practice. It just built from there, I’m really looking forward to being coached by him.”

Listed at 6-foot-6, 295 pounds Hughes is rated the No. 61 offensive tackle nationally and the No. 117 prospect in Texas according to the 247Sports composite rankings. He held offers from Virginia, Nebraska and Houston among others.

Hughes was recently in Fort Worth the weekend of April 7 to take in a spring practice. He said that visit provided the confirmation he needed that TCU was the right spot for him.

“We got there Thursday night and had dinner with Coach (Sonny Dykes) and his family and some other recruits,” Hughes said. “Friday morning, we sat through team meetings and offensive line meetings and watched practice. That much pretty much sealed the deal for it.”

Hughes said the approach of Dykes and the rest of the coaching staff helped separate the Horned Frogs from the rest of the schools that were recruiting him.

“They just checked all the boxes for me,” Hughes said. “Their athletic and academic programs, the relationships I built with the coaches. No other school in Texas has made it to the College Football Playoff or the national championship. So that was a big deal for me.”

Hughes became Dykes’ second commitment for the 2024 recruiting class, joining three-star Aledo quarterback Hauss Hejny.