KU lands dual-threat QB Tyriek Starks in 2016 class

By Matt Tait     Jan 26, 2016

Kansas University football recruiting

Tyriek Starks, a two-star quarterback from New Orleans who threw for more than 4,000 yards and ran for 1,000 more in 2015 orally committed to join Kansas University’s 2016 recruiting class on Tuesday night.

Starks picked KU over finalists Georgia Southern and Tulane and announced his decision with a note on Twitter.

“Behind every Principle is a Promise,” the note began. “I would like to thank every college who has given me the opportunity to play on the next level. With prayer and family guidance I have (decided) to spend my next four years at the University of Kansas. Rock Chalk Jayhawk.”

The 6-foot-2, 188-pound QB who led Warren Easton High to the state semifinals last season, took an official visit to KU last weekend. He attended the KU-UT men’s basketball game and said he was blown away by the atmosphere and excitement of the fan base.

“(KU) is a really nice school,” Starks told JayhawkSlant.com’s Jon Kirby prior to his visit. “Coach (David) Beaty told me they are in the process of rebuilding the program. I told him about my history here and how Warren Easton came from basically the bottom to build a program. So I am familiar with the situation and what they’re going through right now.”

With depth and a handful of different options piling up at the QB position, the Jayhawks were not believed to be in the market for a quarterback in the 2016 recruiting class. But a recent trip by Beaty to Louisiana, where he went to recruit a handful of prospects at powerhouse Neville High, led Beaty to discover Starks and KU put the full-court press on from there.

Clocked at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash, Starks seems to have the size, speed and athleticism to run the kind of offense Beaty and offensive coordinator Rob Likens began installing last season.

Starks’ commitment brings KU to within two spots of being full in the current class. A few 2016 prospects who remain undecided will visit KU this weekend, the final recruiting weekend before the Feb. 3 national signing day.

• Starks’ 2015 Hudl Highlights:

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.