LoneStarPreps: From the sidelines

LoneStarPreps started off the 2015-16 Texas High School Football season watching a couple of match-ups in the Houston area, Manvel vs. Westfield and Houston Episcopal vs. Plano Prestonwood, over the weekend. Each game featured prospects, both upperclassmen and underclassmen, that made their name known in week one. Let's take a look at some of the top performers and some of the notable recruiting updates from each program.

Manvel vs. Westfield

Ed Oliver

Houston (Texas) Westfield defensive tackle Ed Oliver committed to Houston this spring over other offers from some of the top programs in the nation. The Rivals100 defender made his presence known early making a diving interception in the first quarter, showing incredible athleticism for a 6-foot-2, 280-pound defensive lineman.

Oliver gave the Manvel offensive line trouble all night long and remained very patient throughout the night, shedding blockers and keeping Manvel dual-threat quarterback D'Eriq King in check for the majority of the night, and was easily the most impressive and consistent prospect we watched over the weekend.

He remains firmly committed to the Cougars and plans to join his brother, an offensive lineman at Houston, after his senior season.

Another solid performance from King

D'Eriq King

Although the Mavericks fell short, Manvel (Texas) athlete and TCU commit D'Eriq King turned in yet another solid performance - even lining up to return a kickoff on special teams and taking it back to midfield. King bought time and kept his eyes down the field for most of the game, often finding his receivers downfield or scrambling for chunks of yardage. The standout athlete scored a few early touchdowns, but a interception returned for a touchdown by Westfield in the 3rd quarter really changed the momentum and Manvel really struggled to move the ball for most of the second half.

King plans to compete at quarterback once he arrives at the next level in Fort Worth, despite TCU taking multiple quarterback prospects in the 2016 class. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound prospect has the ability to play multiple positions and could eventually become a dangerous weapon from the slot position, using his arm strength to keep defenses on their toes at all times.

Cleveland narrowing his list

Tyrie Cleveland

Houston (Texas) Westfield wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland has a top 10

of Arkansas, Texas A&M, TCU, Florida, Baylor, Arizona State, Georgia,

Oklahoma, Alabama and Houston, but the Rivals250 prospect plans to trim his list to a top 5 soon.

"Right now I'm looking at Ole Miss, A&M still, TCU, Baylor, Arkansas, Florida. I should

have a top five coming out probably next week or so," Cleveland said.

Cleveland is set to officially visit Arizona State for the weekend of Sept. 25

with teammate and Sun Devils commitment Dillon Sterling-Cole. He is trying to schedule official visits to Oklahoma, Baylor and

he plans to visit Ole Miss in November as well.

Cleveland mentioned that he might his decision at the Under Armour All-American game, but

he also said he could decide before then.

Hemphill-Mapps finds the endzone

Reggie Hemphill-Mapps

Manvel (Texas) four-star receiver and Texas commitment Reggie Hemphill-Mapps might not have ended with the type of numbers he is used to, but the standout prospect made several key catches when the Mavericks needed a spark, included a long touchdown reception where he kept the play alive while King scrambled to buy time late in the second half.

Hemphill-Mapps is a smooth route runner, not afraid to fight for the football in the air and remains one of the go-to receivers in the Manvel offense this season.

A longtime Longhorns commitment, Hemphill-Mapps is building relationships with his fellow Texas commits and has started to do some recruiting of his own.

"We have all built a great relationship over a long time," Hemphill-Mapps said. "Me, Shane Buechele, Collin Johnson, DeMarco Boyd and Gerald Wilbon all have a great relationship. I have been doing some recruiting, but honestly, now during the season I'm only focused on Manvel and my teammates for the time being."

Sterling-Cole leads the Mustangs to victory

Dillon Sterling-Cole

Houston (Texas) Westfield dual-threat quarterback Dillon Sterling-Cole had a very impressive evening against Manvel on Friday night. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound prospect showed improvements in every aspect of his game, standing tall in the pocket, reading the defense and keeping his eyes downfield while buying extra time with his legs. The Rivals250 quarterback and Arizona State commit certainly looked the part against a very talented opponent, staying calm and collected even when his team went down 20-7 in the second half.

"I told my team before we came out to let me lead them," Sterling-Cole said. "I learned a lot of things this summer at The Opening and feel that I really put a lot of those things into use this off season. It's helped me with my personal approach, but most importantly it taught me to work hard and stay focused during the week of preparation.

"I'm looking forward to watching the Arizona State game here in Houston next weekend and I'm taking my official visit to see them play USC on September 26. I have been recruiting a few guys for us, but I'm going to take a few official visits and make sure that I see a few other programs, maybe a few programs that were in my Top 5 before."

Underclassmen standouts

Derrick Tucker

This game was loaded with prospects that will end up playing on the next level, but there were a few senior prospects possibly flying a bit under the radar and several talented underclassmen on the field at Alvin ISD Memorial Stadium.

Manvel (Texas) 2017 safety Derrick Tucker played all over the field on Friday night, making plays in the secondary and crashing down into the box to make several plays off the edge for the Mavericks. The Rivals100 prospect holds seven early offers to go along with interest from several programs across the country.

Houston (Texas) Westfield 2017 running back Daniel Young did not have his best game, fumbling the ball on multiple occasions, but the standout back already has great size at 5-foot-11, 205-pounds and used that size to run downhill most of the night. He already holds an offer from Houston and should begin to receive more attention as the season continues.

Houston Episcopal vs. Plano Prestonwood

Giovanni Pancotti

Houston (Texas) Episcopal offensive tackle and Texas Tech commit Giovanni Pancotti held down the right side of the line all game long. The 6-foot-6, 290-pound tackle even helped to spell his teammates at defensive tackle throughout the line, making a few plays on defense in the process.

"Yeah, I don't want to say too much," Pancotti said. "There might be some teams scouting us for later in the season, but we have a few surprises coming on the defensive line this season. It was a tough, hard fought game and it feels good to come out on top because they actually beat us last year."

Williams suffers minor injury

Deonte Williams

Plano (Texas) Prestonwood outside linebacker and Baylor commitment Deonte Williams played a great game through three quarters, but a nagging foot injury kept him on the sidelines for most of the second half. Williams ended up wearing a boot on his right foot, making the injury seem severe at the time, but he cleared the air after the game.

"No, it's nothing serious," Williams said. "I wore some new cleats and got a pretty bad blister on my foot. It wasn't a big deal at first, but I took my shoe off during one of the breaks and it just didn't feel right after that. My coaches wanted me to take it easy because we have a whole season ahead of us and there was no reason to risk causing anymore damage."

The 6-foot-3, 215-pound linebacker showed tremendous athleticism while in the game, chasing down the ball carrier from all over the field. He lined up mostly off the edge, rushing the line and attempting to blow up the zone read from Episcopal.

He remains firmly committed to Baylor and spoke highly of his relationship with the Bears' coaching staff.

Underclassmen standouts

Marvin Wilson

Houston (Texas) Episcopal 2017 defensive tackle Marvin Wilson is the No. 1 junior prospect in the nation. The 6-foot-4, 320-pound tackle took on double teams the entire game, pushing back the offensive line and making multiple stops at the line throughout the day. Wilson even found time to play some offensive tackle in jumbo sets when the team needed his services during the game.

Wilson has no shortage of offers or suitors on the recruiting trail, but the five-star prospect remains completely open for the time being. He does plan to attend the Texas A&M vs. Arizona State game at NRG Stadium next weekend.

Plano (Texas) Prestonwood 2018 corner Verone McKinley III did not have the ball thrown his way for most of the game, but the standout sophomore made a couple of plays in the backfield and busted up a few screen plays by ripping through would be blockers. He showed great instincts at the corner position and even played some receiver when his team needed him late in the game.

McKinley III still has a ton of time left in the recruiting process, but offers from Oklahoma, LSU, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State over the summer have made him a name to watch this season.

Houston (Texas) Episcopal 2017 offensive tackle Walker Little held Deonte Williams in check off of the edge for most of the game. The Rivals100 prospect even helped to play some defensive end to start the game and came onto the field for the Knights' defense on multiple occasions. He already stands at 6-foot-7, 295-pounds and bends very well for a prospect his size, keeping defenders in front of him and often driving his man 10-15 yards down the field.

Walker is still wide open with his recruitment, but plans to visit Texas, Stanford and Alabama for games this season. He also plans to attend the Texas A&M vs. Arizona State game at NRG Stadium next weekend.