The Texas Longhorns signed a terrific recruiting class in February, with Charlie Strong and staff bringing in a group that ranked among the best in college football.
It was a talented group overall, but the class may prove to be even more valuable than its ranking due to the fact that Texas signed a number of players at positions where the Longhorn program has very little depth. No position was more important than defensive tackle, where Texas loaded up with five signees.
It's a safe bet that more than one of those commitments will see the field in 2016, and D'andre Christmas-Giles is confident he'll be one of the true freshmen making an impact.
A Rivals100 member, Christmas-Giles played at about 290 pounds as a senior (on a 6-4 frame). He's been utilizing the workout plan and diet sent to him by the Texas strength and conditioning staff, and Christmas-Giles has seen quick results.
"I feel like I'm gaining more muscle," Christmas-Giles said. "I did gain some muscle. I'm at 305 pounds now, but still slim. I got faster too. I tested it. I ran a 5 flat, but the second time was a 4.9. I was running like a 5.1 or 5 flat before."
Christmas-Giles goes through the UT workout plan five days a week. Some of the exercises are things he had been doing previously, but he admits there are other elements to the workouts that are new to him and pretty difficult to master.
With five incoming defensive tackles, the battle for early playing time could very well come down to who puts in the most work in the off-season. Christmas-Giles stays in touch with the other UT signees but said he's only focused on his own efforts.
"I'm working hard right now. I'm not sure how hard the other guys are working. Nobody is really pushing each other, but we're all working," Christmas-Giles said. "I talk to them a lot though. I'm just going to come in there and work hard. I'm ready for it. I'm going to give it all I've got."
A four-star prospect, Christmas-Giles ranked as the nation's No. 83 prospect overall. The New Orleans St. Augustine product was ranked as the No. 3 overall prospect in the state of Louisiana.
Originally, Christmas-Giles made an early commitment to Tennessee but when his stock shot through the roof during his senior season, he decided to open up his recruitment. Despite heavy interest from a long list of schools, including LSU, Texas A&M and TCU (he took official visits to all three), Christmas-Giles had a pretty good idea all along that he'd wind up signing with Texas.
"I pretty knew for a while after I decommitted from Tennessee," Christmas-Giles said. "When I took my official visit (to Texas, it was so different, unique. I liked it. The coaches and players were really cool. I got really close with them. It's a nice city, a nice campus, a nice place to be."
Blessed with a quick first step to go along with his impressive frame, Christmas-Giles recorded 5 sacks and 49 total tackles in 11 games last year. He's hoping to carry that productivity over to the Forty Acres when he reports in late May.
"I'll bring a good attitude on the field. My style of play, my strength is my pass rush. I'm in the backfield a lot," Christmas-Giles said. "I don't know how it's going to be in college, but hopefully it will be the same at Texas."
It was a talented group overall, but the class may prove to be even more valuable than its ranking due to the fact that Texas signed a number of players at positions where the Longhorn program has very little depth. No position was more important than defensive tackle, where Texas loaded up with five signees.
It's a safe bet that more than one of those commitments will see the field in 2016, and D'andre Christmas-Giles is confident he'll be one of the true freshmen making an impact.
A Rivals100 member, Christmas-Giles played at about 290 pounds as a senior (on a 6-4 frame). He's been utilizing the workout plan and diet sent to him by the Texas strength and conditioning staff, and Christmas-Giles has seen quick results.
"I feel like I'm gaining more muscle," Christmas-Giles said. "I did gain some muscle. I'm at 305 pounds now, but still slim. I got faster too. I tested it. I ran a 5 flat, but the second time was a 4.9. I was running like a 5.1 or 5 flat before."
Christmas-Giles goes through the UT workout plan five days a week. Some of the exercises are things he had been doing previously, but he admits there are other elements to the workouts that are new to him and pretty difficult to master.
With five incoming defensive tackles, the battle for early playing time could very well come down to who puts in the most work in the off-season. Christmas-Giles stays in touch with the other UT signees but said he's only focused on his own efforts.
"I'm working hard right now. I'm not sure how hard the other guys are working. Nobody is really pushing each other, but we're all working," Christmas-Giles said. "I talk to them a lot though. I'm just going to come in there and work hard. I'm ready for it. I'm going to give it all I've got."
A four-star prospect, Christmas-Giles ranked as the nation's No. 83 prospect overall. The New Orleans St. Augustine product was ranked as the No. 3 overall prospect in the state of Louisiana.
Originally, Christmas-Giles made an early commitment to Tennessee but when his stock shot through the roof during his senior season, he decided to open up his recruitment. Despite heavy interest from a long list of schools, including LSU, Texas A&M and TCU (he took official visits to all three), Christmas-Giles had a pretty good idea all along that he'd wind up signing with Texas.
"I pretty knew for a while after I decommitted from Tennessee," Christmas-Giles said. "When I took my official visit (to Texas, it was so different, unique. I liked it. The coaches and players were really cool. I got really close with them. It's a nice city, a nice campus, a nice place to be."
Blessed with a quick first step to go along with his impressive frame, Christmas-Giles recorded 5 sacks and 49 total tackles in 11 games last year. He's hoping to carry that productivity over to the Forty Acres when he reports in late May.
"I'll bring a good attitude on the field. My style of play, my strength is my pass rush. I'm in the backfield a lot," Christmas-Giles said. "I don't know how it's going to be in college, but hopefully it will be the same at Texas."
