Paxton Segina announced on Twitter Saturday his commitment to Stanford University, despite being previously committed to Rice University.
“It was always between Rice or Stanford for me,” Segina said. “I was committed to Rice until Stanford would offer. Because I see football as finding a way into a really great university.”
Segina originally was going to follow in his father Richard’s footsteps and play for the Owls, but Stanford was keeping a close eye on the young player and was able to flip his decision. After his third visit to Stanford and being able to meet some of the players, professors and see the campus one more time it was a done deal for him.
“(The official visit) is unbelievable,” Segina said. “The place sells itself. I love all the guys. Only a couple of guys are here because I missed (Stanford’s official visit) last weekend, but the guys that are here now I love and I love all of the coaches. It’s hard not to fall in love with the university. The professors are so awesome. I had breakfast with a couple of them (Saturday). And also the athletics facilities are top-notch, too. It’s just going to be cool playing for a top-five university, also a top-five football school.”
Segina will officially become a Cardinal when National Signing day takes place on Feb. 3.
The 6-foot-4, 205-pound wide receiver was recruited out of Vandergrift high school in Austin, Texas. As a junior he was an AP Class 5A Honorable Mention all-state selection, and in his senior year he racked up a total of 16 touchdown receptions and 925 receiving yard in his team’s first nine games. His season was cut short when he endured a concussion and had to be transported to a hospital.
Segina is under the radar compared to the other recruits of 2016 such as 3-star defensive tackle Bo Peek from Tampa, Florida and Jovan Swann from Greenwood, Indianapolis. 247sports ranked Segina with two stars, but that doesn’t mean we should underestimate him. Segina’s height alone directly serves as an advantage for the wide receiver, making him more versatile against the defense in the Pac-12.
Along with the freshman’s height he also does a great job on looking back for the ball and can quickly adjust to a short pass. What he does best though is catching the ball away from his body, making it harder to defend. This is something most players have to work at when they get to the higher levels, while he is only a freshman with these types of skills.
One thing Segina will need to work on besides beefing up is route running. His high school team used him mainly for deep long passes as a threat in the back, but that means he could lack some consistency with medium and short routes. He will need to work on gaining more experience with the tighter smaller routes if he wants to have some playing time.
Segina will want to look towards fifth year senior wide receiver Michael Sector for some advice on the game and route running. Sector was originally contemplating not returning for his final year with Stanford to enter into the NFL draft, but as of Saturday he announced that he will be returning to the home of the Cardinal.
Sector has played in every game since his sophomore year and recorded 38 catches in his first two seasons. Since then he has doubled his career total with 34 as Stanford’s full-time No.2 receiver last season. Sector has also been able to expand his short route game and averaged 18.25 yards per catch throughout his career so far.
As of right now Segina is the only wide receiver that Stanford has recruited for their 2016 class. While Stanford has Sector and Trent Irwin returning they will want to look for one more wide receiver to bolster their ranks. A possible recruit would be Donald Stewart. He is a 3-star recruit from Paramous Catholic School in New Jersey.
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