Cliffs Notes: The Longhorns landed commitment No.15 on Tuesday by flipping South Oak Cliff defensive end Billy Walton from his two-month commitment to Oklahoma State.
Rankings: Here's the industry breakdown...
Rivals: (5.6) Mid Three star, No.40 WDE, NR in Texas
ESPN: (78) Three-stars, No.60 DE, No.77 in Texas
On3: (88) High three-star, No.51 edge, No.78 in Texas
247: (88) High three-star, No.36 edge, No.62 in Texas
247 composite: (.8756) High three-star, No.586 nationally, No.50 edge, No.102 in Texas
Notable offers: Texas (6/24 OV), Oklahoma State (4/23 OV), Texas A&M, Louisville, TCU, Texas Tech and Tennessee.
Evaluation: At 6-3, 210 pounds, Walton is a classic tweener as an edge player, but he brings a ton of toughness, athletic ability and upside as a pass rusher to the table as a prospect. In the history of the Rivals ranking, the only player with a similar profile as Walton that made the NFL was none other than future Hall of Famer Von Miller. The big task for Walton is going to be adding the type of size to his frame that will allow him to be an option as an edge rusher without getting blown up by bigger linemen a the point of attack. He'll need a lot of time in the weight room, but if he can grow his body out to the 240-pound range without losing his quickness/athleticism in the process, you might be cooking with grease. As football player at the high school level, it's important to note that he's a hell of a player for one of the best programs in the state. The big question is merely whether his combination of size/skill can translate to the next level. In order to pull it off, he's going to need to be the exception to the rule. That being said, there is a part of me that wonders whether he might get a full-time look at linebacker for the Longhorns, even if he mostly plays with a hand on the ground at the high school level. If he can make the transition to playing linebacker, his physical profile at the next level becomes much more enticing. He'd need some coaching to get there, but I've kind of talked myself into this being his best path to reaching his ceiling as a prospect.
Why it matters: If the Longhorns end up adding fellow SOC star Malik Muhammad, it'll be one hell of a 1-1 punch from a program that the Longhorns have had limited success with over the years. Given that Oak Cliff is in the middle of one of its best runs in program history, establishing a pipeline can't be a bad thing.
Expectations: Until he gets bigger and stronger, it's a tough question to realistically answer. While it's easy to see Walton developing into a special teams ace because of his natural football instincts and general thirst to stick his nose into the action, it'll take more time before he likely carves out a spot in the rotation at any spot on the defense, whether it be edge or linebacker. .
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