4-star QB Grant Tisdale commits to Ole Miss

Phil Longo shocked the world last December when he landed four-star, Elite 11 finalist Matt Corral in the 2017 early signing period.

Now he’s done it again in 2018.

Four-star dual-threat quarterback Grant Tisdale has verbally committed to Ole Miss over a bevy of Power 5 offers including Baylor, Colorado, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech.

The nation’s No. 8 dual-threat quarterback was offered by the Rebels back in November and after visiting Oxford unofficially in March, he felt compelled to pull the trigger and join the 2019 signing class after taking in The Velvet Ditch with former Allen High School teammates Jaylon Jones and Greg Little.

Longo is adding to an already stacked quarterback room that will have the aforementioned Corral and now Tisdale, a starting quarterback from the reigning 6A Texas state champs who at one time was leaning towards Ohio State and Urban Meyer, has chosen to come to Oxford play Longo Ball.

Let that sink in.

Sure, Meyer and the Buckeyes might go out and get another quarterback eventually who is as good as Tisdale, but he had an opportunity to elect to pick them and become an Ohio State commit, but he decided to wait and go visit Oxford and now look. Longo’s ability to connect with prospects, appeal to them with his offense, and close has been fantastic in his two years on campus. And now that he is recruiting a few other positions, maybe he’s not done just yet.

The newest member of the #MississippiMade movement is a true dual-threat. The rising senior had an outstanding junior campaign, completing 124-of-188 passes for 2,100 yards, 30 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. He also toted the rock for 1,090 yards and 15 additional scores. He plays for one of the most successful high school programs in the country (three-time national champs) and is coming off a 16-0 year as the full-time starter.

How does he fit in?

The 6’1, 204-pounder is the ultimate fit for Longo Ball’s Air Raid, zone-read scheme and he has built a legitimate case to be a top 10 quarterback after a phenomenal junior year at Allen. He does a nice job of going through his progressions, staying quiet in the pocket, and delivering the ball with pace and accuracy.

Speaking of accuracy, Grant has fantastic deep ball accuracy and it’s not just when he’s stationary, he can make the throws when he is on the move as well. Despite being a dual-threat quarterback, he insists on reading the defense, letting the routes and windows develop and delivering the football to the open receiver. He is not someone who is going to take off at the first sign of trouble. On film, he has a mature look to him and will be yet another stud in Longo’s room.

He also has a legitimate dual-threat body. Those 204-pounds are solid ones. He is going to get upfield, gain positive yards, and lower the boom on potential tacklers. He is also physical in the pocket with defenders draped all over him. He can escape and make the big play happen. And once he does get to the second and third levels, he can outrun you, too.

He reminds me of South Florida’s record annihilator Quinton Flowers. Both are similar in stature, make the big throws with accuracy and ease, and when they tuck it and take off you better bring your legs or you’re going to get run over. He’s also got it between the ears and is not going to force anything when it’s not there, much like Flowers did in Sterlin Gilbert’s offense last season (just 6 INT, 142.1 rating).

Jordan Ta’amu’s extra year of eligibility is still up in the air for now and Matt Corral is already on campus, learning the offense and getting acclimated to college football so Tisdale will have ample time to learn the playbook, get in the weight room, and prepare to battle with Corral and/or prepare to take over for him after his leaves Oxford.

Highlights