Harrison Sorge didn’t have many easy Friday nights playing offensive left tackle for Wichita Falls Rider last season.
That was just part of the challenge of competing in a tough District 4-4A, which included Lake Dallas and Wichita Falls, for a team that didn’t dodge the competition in nondistrict play.
Sorge played well against the likes of Abilene Cooper and Amarillo, but it was one district game against Ryan that put the 6-5, 296-pound junior on the map as a recruit. Sorge went up against Ryan defensive end Mario Edwards — arguably the best high school player in the country — and held his own.
“When we played Ryan last year, he did a good job on Mario,” Rider coach Jim Garfield said. “That really attracted everyone’s attention. He started to get looks from schools like Tulsa and Rice.”
UNT was the most persistent of those suitors and secured a commitment from Sorge late Monday. The Mean Green also recently picked up a commitment from Fort Bend Elkins wide receiver Darvin Kidsy.
Oral commitments are nonbinding. The first day recruits in the class of 2013 can sign national letters of intent is Feb. 6.
Sorge was a first-team All-District 4-4A selection last season. UNT was the only Football Bowl Subdivision school to offer a scholarship to Sorge, who said Texas State and New Mexico were showing the most interest other than UNT.
Sorge was recruited by UNT wide receivers coach Nick Quartaro and offensive line coach Mike Simmonds.
Sorge elected to commit to UNT early instead of waiting for another offer to come along because of the comfort level he felt with the Mean Green’s coaching staff and the proximity of the school to his hometown. Rider defensive tackle Dylan McDorman originally was scheduled to sit out the 2012 season as a grayshirt (a recruit who signs with his class but doesn’t report the following fall), but will join the team this summer instead.
While going to UNT with McDorman was not the key factor in Sorge’s decision, it is a situation to which he is looking forward.
“It helped that Dylan will be going there,” Sorge said. “We are excited about being able to play with each other again. We played against each other in elementary school and have known each other for a long time.”
The key selling point for Sorge was UNT’s coaching staff.
“I really like the coaches and how they are trying to turn the program around,” Sorge said. “I also like that my family will be able to come to games.”
The drive will certainly be a familiar one for Sorge’s family after making the trek to C.H. Collins Athletic Complex, where Ryan plays.
“It gave us some familiarity with North Texas,” Sorge said. “I drove by when we would go to play Denton and Lake Dallas. I thought that it was a place I could see myself playing.”
Garfield said that Sorge could play any position along the offensive line because of his size and quickness. UNT recruited Sorge as a tackle.
Elkins coach Dennis Brantley said he believes UNT has picked up another player who could be a key part of its future in Kidsy.
The 5-11, 170-pound receiver was overlooked while playing with his teammate and fellow wide receiver J’Mon Moore, who has committed to Missouri, and Chance Allen, who signed with Oregon last year.
“He’s the whole package, other than he’s not 6-3,” Brantley said. “He can high jump 6-8, has great hands and is very coachable. He has better hands and runs better routes than those other two guys.
“He will be a steal for North Texas.”
BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com.
NORTH TEXAS ORAL COMMITMENTS
The following is a list of players who have orally committed to become members of North Texas’ 2013 signing class:
Player Pos. School
Sed Ellis LB Paris
Darvin Kidsy WR Fort Bend Elkins
Calvin Minor LB Lewisville
Cody Nelson OL Keller
John Schilleci S Guyer
Hunter Siddons OL Lake Travis
Harrison Sorge OL Wichita Falls Rider
Dominick Walker OL Fort Bend Austin
Dajon Williams QB Pflugerville Connally
