Horns247 Board

I first met Will Lyles on Jan. 31, 2005.

I was set to be on television that night to cover the college decision of Martellus Bennett.

But before I went over to the Fox Southwest studios, I wanted to cover another press announcement.

Myself and a few other recruiting reporters went to an area restaurant to see where two Houston area recruits – Westside’s R.J. Jackson and Lamar’s Brandon LaFell – would decide to play their college ball.

At the restaurant, Lyles was running the show.

Things seemed sketchy. It was unlike anything I had seen in Texas high school football before. I had a lot of questions.

* Where were the high school coaches?

* Why was this happening here at a restaurant instead of at a school or even in a TV studio?

* How did these two kids from different high schools decide to commit together at a Houston restaurant?

Eventually, Lamar coach Tom Nolen showed up, but it was obvious he wasn’t running the show. He was just a bystander in one of his prize pupils’ recruitments. That was odd. If you know Tom Nolen, that’s not how he likes things to be done.

Gerry Hamilton, then a member of the Orangebloods staff, was there covering the event, too.

He and I looked at each other. Neither of us had a positive feel for what was taking place.

It could have been just a bad gut feel. I have no proof it was anything more than that. But it was a bad gut feel.

**

Later that same evening, Alief Taylor tight end Martellus Bennett was set to announce his college decision on Fox Sports Southwest.

That was another circus entirely, but Lyles knew the Bennetts, too

How much, I don’t know.

But after that night, it was obvious to me that Houston area high school football, and recruiting in the area, was changing in a way that I didn’t think was in the best interests of high school athletes and their families.

**

The list of players rumored to be involved at one time or another with Will Lyles is staggering. I want to stress “rumor” because that is what some of these are.

Martellus Bennett – Alief Taylor – Texas A&M
Michael Goodson – Klein Collins – Texas A&M
Lache Seastrunk – Temple – Oregon
Daniel Campbell – Aldine – USC
Trevon Randle – League City Clear Springs - LSU
Donte Williams – Aldine – Oregon
Ahmad Dixon – Waco Midway – Baylor
Terrance Tolliver – Hempstead – LSU
Craig Loston – Aldine Eisenhower – LSU
LaMichael James – Texarkana Liberty-Eylau – Oregon
Danny McCray – Spring Westfield - LSU
Patrick Peterson (Johnson) – Pompano Beach. Fla/Ely - LSU
Trent Richardson – Pensacola, Fla./Escambia - Alabama
Trovon Reed – Thibodeaux, La. - Auburn

I have absolutely no proof of any wrong doing in any of these cases.

However, these are the players I have heard personally that have been “involved with”, worked out with or were counseled by Lyles at some level during their recruitment.

**

Lyles’ presence has had a profound effect on how some colleges recruit Houston and certain players in the state.

Some college coaches who recruit Houston and the state of Texas heavily have become weary enough of Lyles that the schools will essentially cross players off their list if there is a known relationship with Lyles. One school will do so even if there is merely a “rumored” association with Lyles and nothing proven.

Again, I have no proof that Lyles is doing anything wrong. The schools, to my knowledge, have no proof either.

**

This year, Lyles is “rumored” to be involved with Spring Dekaney running back Trey Williams and Klein Forest quarterback Matt Davis.

Another player that has been rumored to be involved with Lyles is Fort Bend Hightower’s Bralon Addison.

Addison’s father says that he was unaware that any such relationship with Lyles could potentially effect his son’s recruitment. After all, his son had never worked out with Lyles, had never been trained by him, gone on unofficial visits to campuses with him or generally done anything with Lyles.

According to his father, Bralon Addison had never done a single thing with Lyles. Except there was film of his son on a website supposedly run by a player’s dad that Lyles was rumored to be involved with (the site is actually registered to Trey Williams’ dad and asks for $200 to promote a player via video posting, yet Addison says he was not asked for nor did he pay any money to Williams to have his son’s video posted).

Addison’s father told us this morning that Lyles had telephoned him several weeks ago and the two spoke about Lyles taking a group of players to Auburn this year and Lyles wanted to see if Bralon wanted to join them. Davis, the Klein Forest quarterback, was one of the players Lyles told Addison he was taking to Auburn. Addison said he declined the offer on behalf of his son.

The offer to give a ride to a player to another school seems benign on the surface.

But at what point does offering a ride to a player or players to schools, when simultaneously charging for services for another school – Oregon – constitute an NCAA infraction?

I don’t know if it does. I’m not an NCAA expert.

Addison committed to Oklahoma State roughly two weeks ago. And, according to our sources, Lyles has yet to take any players, including Davis, to Auburn.

**

Patrick Peterson and Trent Richardson are both guys who Will Lyles tried to “reach out to” when he was attempting to move beyond Texas borders, supposedly.

When we first heard the rumor about Richardson, myself and another reporter – Tim Watts at BamaOnLine.com -- followed up immediately. Richardson’s brother was helping significantly with Trent’s recruitment. The brother had heard of Lyles but said he had decided not to speak with him again after an initial discussion or discussions.

There is no proof that either Richardson or Peterson were involved further with Lyles.

**

I first mentioned Will Lyles to the Yahoo Sports investigative team two or three years ago, right when Lache Seastrunk’s recruiting was picking up.

I’d heard rumors of both Seastrunk and Trovon Reed being involved with Lyles. It was clear to me at that point that Lyles was no longer just sticking around Houston to run a training business, which is what I had been told many times previously, beginning with my discussion with Lyles that night in January of 2005. Temple is a three-hour drive from Houston, and while Reed and Seastrunk are reported to be cousins, it was yet another star recruit with a tie to Lyles.

So I called Josh Peter. Peter was then a lead investigative reporter for Yahoo. Peter is no longer with the company, but he played a role in breaking some of the biggest pieces in sports in the last handful of years, including finding that a Big 10 referee who made controversial calls on consecutive weekends owed a casino money. That Big 10 referee did not make another season in the Big 10 and the league ultimately changed its background-check rules for referees.

Yahoo Sports as a organization also led the way on the Reggie Bush scandal/investigation that ultimately led to Bush no longer having the Heisman Trophy. Suffice to say, Yahoo has been outstanding as it relates to investigative reporting.

What I mean by saying all of this is that Will Lyles is not a “new” thing in the college football recruiting landscape.

Whether it’s five-plus years ago at a Houston restaurant or two years ago when there was more talk about Seastrunk and Reed, Lyles has been part of the landscape for a while.

I believe this story is only breaking now because of the money trail – a $25,000 or so check – that was found between Oregon and Lyles. That is something tangible for reporters to sink their teeth into and it’s an amount that is large enough that it’s not considered merely a “going rate” in the industry for recruiting services.