It has been a very weird year for the Baylor Bears with off-field scandal justifiably overshadowing a lackluster 7-6 campaign on the football field. The mess prompted the hire of former Temple head coach Matt Rhule to the same position in Waco, but as of late November, the Bears unbelievably had only one prospect committed as part of the 2017 recruiting class.
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Since Rhule was hired and Baylor raced to an impressive win over Boise State in the Cactus Bowl, though, recruiting has picked up and the Bears netted an impactful commitment on Saturday. The pledge came from four-star cornerback Harrison Hand.
It's time ! ! ! #YuuuHeard #BaylorGangOrDie 🐻😈 pic.twitter.com/rg8jQHOxFB
— Harrison Hand (@__harry22) January 7, 2017
Hand, who hails from Cherry Hill High School (N.J.), rates as one of the 25 best cornerbacks in the country according to Rivals, and this is a huge get for Rhule and his staff. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound cornerback reportedly chose Baylor over other top contenders including Rutgers, West Virginia and Virginia Tech, and Baylor winning any sort of recruiting battle in the Northeast should be counted as a huge win for the new staff.
With his commitment, Baylor now has seven commitments for the 2017 class with nearly a month to go until National Signing Day. While it may not seem like much, that signals a huge recent windfall for the program and Harrison Band is a crucial addition.