University of Houston Athletics
Houston Signs Four Midyear Transfers
12/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
HOUSTON - Tom Herman's first full year of recruiting at Houston got off to a bang Wednesday with the signing of four midyear transfers. Exactly one year after being announced as the Houston head coach, Herman signed three junior college transfers and one four-year transfer.
Offensive tackle Na'Ty Rodgers (Iowa Western CC), cornerback J.J. Dallas (Blinn CC), defensive back Terrell Williams (Northeastern Oklahoma A&M) and tight end Alex Leslie (Iowa State) will all begin classes at the Tier One University and Phi Beta Kappa member in January.
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Rodgers, a four-star recruit by ESPN, Rivals, Scout and 247Sports, is ranked the No. 7 overall junior college player in the nation by ESPN and No. 4 junior college offensive tackle by ESPN and 247Sports. The 6-5, 290 lb. offensive tackle helped lead Iowa Western to back-to-back ICCAC Conference Championships after spending the 2013 season at South Carolina where he redshirted before two seasons at Iowa Western CC where he was coached by Scott Strohmeier. Rodgers played high school football at McDonough High School in Pomfret, Md., where he was coached by Luke Ethington before playing in the Chesapeake Bowl All-Star game and in the Under Armour All-America Game following his high school career. Rodgers chose Houston over Arizona State, Louisville, Missouri, Ole Miss, TCU and West Virginia among others.
Rated the No. 9 junior college cornerback by ESPN, Dallas is a three-star recruit by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports and will have three years of eligibility remaining after leading Blinn Community College with two interceptions in eight games, one of which was returned for a touchdown. He also had 17 tackles, including one for loss in 2015. A native of San Diego, Dallas played for Eddie Hesseltine at Corpus Christi King High School, earning all-district honors while leading his program to the state semifinals in 2011 and the first round of playoffs in 2013.
A three-star recruit by Rivals, Scout and 247Sports, Williams was rated the No. 9 junior college safety by 247Sports after totaling 51 tackles, four pass breakups and two interceptions as a sophomore in 2015. Williams received all-SWJCFC first team honors following the season. The Lawton, Okla., native had 24 tackles, two pass breakups and an interception as a freshman. Williams played high school football at Lawton High School where he had 56 tackles and five interceptions as a senior. Williams chose Houston over Iowa State, Purdue and West Virginia among others.
Leslie will have two years of eligibility remaining after spending two seasons at Iowa State, redshirting in 2013. Coming out of New Braunfels High School, Leslie was ranked the No. 31 tight end in the nation by ESPN. He earned all-district 25-5A first team honors as a wide receiver during senior season after catching 56 passes for 720 yards and 10 touchdowns. Leslie played on Team USA in the International Bowl in addition to earning all-district first team honors as a tight end as a junior when he caught 25 passes and four touchdowns.
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No. 14/16/18 Houston faces No. 9/8/9 Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 31, at 11 a.m. CT in Atlanta.
