New AI-Powered School Disrupts Houston Baseball Landscape

By Dave Fanucchi

In a move sending shockwaves through Houston-area public and private high school baseball circles, Karson Reeder—a University of Texas commit and one of the region’s top prospects—announced he will forego his senior year at Tomball High School to attend The Bennett School, a new academy and untested model built on AI-driven academics and professional-level baseball training. The school's website says that it is based at Baseball USA, the well-known Houston field complex and training facility located off the Sam Houston Parkway, that has partnered with Marucci, a leading baseball bat and equipment company for Major League Baseball.  

Reeder, the son of longtime coach Russel Reeder, is leaving behind a traditional high school program and his upcoming senior season at Tomball - where he was part of a 6A UIL State Championship Team in 2024 and the 6A UIL State Runner-Up in 2025. The transfer underscores both the draw and the controversy surrounding The Bennett School: a program that compresses academics into a two-hour daily schedule, maximizes athletic development, and pitches itself as a launchpad to either future bigger dollar NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) opportunities at the college level, or potential early MLB draft pick signing bonus money that can easily reach into the $$ millions. Reeder is just one of several high-profile commitments fueling questions about whether The Bennett School is disrupting high school sports by luring away elite talent.

A Recruiting Class Before Playing a Game
The Bennett School has already landed multiple high-profile baseball athletes for its inaugural classes:|

• Class of 2026 (Seniors):
* Karson Reeder (Tomball, TX) – Texas commit
* Harper Gates (Tomball, TX) – Texas A&M commit
* Jud Dowell (Houston, TX) – Texas A&M commit
* Aiden Reed (The Woodlands, TX) – VCU commit

plus numerous other players that are uncommitted to college programs as of yet. 
 
• Class of 2027 (Juniors):
Numerous players - many with ties to the Twelve Baseball club program out of College Station. The connection to Twelve Baseball—a nationally recognized travel-ball powerhouse—suggests that The Bennett School is not just filling rosters but actively building a recruiting pipeline of elite players from across Texas.

The Texas Sports Academy Model
The Bennett School is powered by the Texas Sports Academy, which markets a radical approach: “What if your child could crush academics in just 2 hours and spend the rest of their day improving at their sport?” The school’s carefully structured day looks like this:
• Morning Academic Mastery: Two to three hours of AI-powered personalized learning covering all core subjects, completed by noon.
• Afternoon Athletic Excellence: Professional-level training with coaches who’ve competed in the MLB, NFL, NBA, and Division I programs.
• Life Skills Development: Late afternoons focus on public speaking, financial literacy, leadership, and career preparation—developing what the program calls “complete student-athletes.”
Texas Sports Academy claims its model allows kids to “accomplish twice as much” compared to traditional six-hour school days.

Branded as a “Player Development Prep School”
The Bennett School brands itself as more than just an athletic academy, describing its vision as a “player development prep school.” Its mission statement emphasizes preparing aspiring and elite athletes for their futures by “fostering positive player development through a holistic approach that nurtures mind, body, and spirit.” In practice, that means balancing AI-driven academics with athletic training, life skills, and leadership development — positioning itself as an all-encompassing pipeline for both personal growth and athletic success.

Two Paths for Baseball Talent
At Baseball USA, The Bennett School offers a tiered baseball curriculum:
• Elite Baseball Development Program (Grades 5–8): Focused on fundamentals, advanced techniques, mental game development, and conditioning.
• College Prep Baseball Program (Grades 9–12): A recruitment-driven track with showcase events, advanced analytics, and direct connections to college programs nationwide.
Paired with the compressed academics, athletes are promised the chance to train year-round at a level typically reserved for college programs.

High-Profile Coaching Staff
The school has already secured well-known names in Texas baseball circles:
• Russel Reeder (Player Development/Academic Guide): A 26-year classroom teacher and coach, former professional pitcher, and former head coach at Magnolia West High School.
• Scott Moore (Baseball Coach): A former Oakland A’s draft pick and Top 50 prospect who later coached at Episcopal High School and with Twelve Baseball.
The addition of Karson Reeder—Russel’s son—provides the program with immediate visibility, and also controversy, as a Division I–bound athlete leaves a powerhouse public program to gamble on a new academy.

The NIL Promise - At a Distance
It is not clear whether the Bennett School brokers NIL deals for its baseball players who choose to attend college, but its model does emphasize preparing athletes for bigger opportunities at the collegiate level. The implication is clear: by attending Bennett, players may be better positioned to command high-value NIL contracts once they reach NCAA competition. This future-facing pitch is already drawing athletes away from public and private schools, raising concerns about recruiting and competitive fairness.

What Students Give Up
Despite the appeal, the model comes with tradeoffs:
• Diploma Uncertainty: It remains unclear whether Bennett graduates will earn a state-recognized diploma or transferable credits.
• No traditional social experience: Students forgo the social experiences of a typical high school, as well as proms, UIL sporting events, and a graduation ceremony.
• Unknown Competition: Without an established district or league, it’s unclear who Bennett’s teams and athletes will compete against, and if the athletes will even form a team to represent the school. It is likelier that the group of players will simply play a “club” or “travel” baseball schedule against other club teams or just continue to compete with Twelve.
These uncertainties leave families weighing short-term athletic gains against long-term academic and social costs. 

By pulling in prospects like Reeder, The Bennett School is already shaking the foundation of Texas high school baseball. Supporters see it as an innovative blend of academics and athletics that prepares players for the realities of modern recruiting. Critics argue it risks professionalizing teenagers and hollowing out the high school experience.

A Blueprint or a Warning?
Whether The Bennett School becomes a trendsetter or a cautionary tale, its presence at Baseball USA represents a seismic shift: AI-powered academics, professional training, and the lure of future NIL money now competing directly against traditional high schools for top talent. And with players like Karson Reeder making the leap, the rest of Texas high school athletics is paying close attention.

Dave Fanucchi is a freelance sportswriter covering Houston-area high school and college athletics and is a former Sports Editor for Houston Community Newspapers. He also serves as a play-by-play announcer for Texan Live. He can be followed on X at @davefanucchi.