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*****
Texas is on its way to having its answer at the edge-rush spot. It isn't there yet, but you can finally see some viable options coming into focus and, from there, you can at least project SOME productivity coming in the future. Amazingly, this has never been the case with a Sarkisian/Kwiatkowski defense at Texas.
They came to Austin facing a Joseph Ossai-sized hole at the all-important weakside DE/LB hybrid position, and, thus far, have lived with the dangerous eyesore just sitting there like the pit in Pawnee that Andy Dwyer fell into. Now, with Ethan Burke looking to come online, with J'Mond Tapp finally showing signs of life ... with hints that we could see Anthony Hill used in a specialized role at more of an outside linebacker, allowing him to rush off the edge; with young pups like Colton Vasek (an elite developmental talent in the pipeline) alongside thus-far unknowns like Derrion Gullette, something is going to hit. And probably soon.
It's like taking all those chips and placing them down on the roulette board: you gotta have some really crappy luck to walk away from that particular table totally empty handed. Of course it's important to keep accumulating those chips, though. Every cycle. 2021 and 2022 showed us what it is like to have a defense devoid of an organic pass rush.
That's why it's encouraging to see the staff making at least some sort of headway with a few very strong-looking options for the 2024 class.
Jordan Ross (Alabama - Vestavia Hills), who is visiting Texas on the weekend of June 17th, recently revealed his Top 8 schools which included Texas. Whoever lands this dude is going to get a guy with really slick tools.
It's a pretty easy eval with Ross based on his highlights. The main selling point is his unteachable length coupled with what appears to be very good lateral agility and closing speed even while still seeming a little bit gangly. He has a frame that you could put in the dictionary as one that looks perfect to add good weight onto, and once that happens, the concerns you may have about his ability to hold up at the point of attack will likely be rendered moot. A little bit of a developmental-type player, but, at 220-225 pounds as a high school junior, you don't have to squint that hard to picture the guy coming into his freshman year of college closer to 245, especially if he can get to his college campus early for the spring semester. A terrific prospect.
Of course the biggest news of the day is also related to 2024 edge matters. Cole Patterson reported that Colin Simmons (Duncanville) is locked into his Texas OV the weekend after Jordan Ross comes to town (June 23-25). I've talked about Simmons in passing on the Modcast and have referred to him here on the board in articles based on other players. In a recent column about Michael Fasusi and some of the 2025 OL talent Texas has its eyes on, my mind wandered back to 2024 and Colin Simmons and this is what I said about his junior highlights:
"The bend around the edge, the elite quickness and lateral agility, the twitch and connection from the upper body to the lower body to be tricky with punches and moves, pivots and stabs -- and to do it all so damn fast with an economy of motion and the jungle-cat closing speed that seems too good to be true. Of course anyone with two brain cells to rub together would offer that guy based on his HUDL reel. Because, then you've seen it. Someone says he's too small? Don't care. They worry about how he'll stand up against the run? Get out of here. Meaningless. You've seen what he CAN DO."
Let me go on record now as saying I can't imagine a bigger priority for the 2024 class. Not only for addressing a need that, while on it's way to being addressed, is still not technically addressed. No, he'd need to be a priority even if Texas was stocked up with proven edge talent. Simmons is that good, and he will enter the college football world ready to go right off the bat.
Jason says that landing Simmons, for now, looks to be an uphill battle for Sark and the Horns. LSU is looking strong and it will take a big year out of the Longhorns to keep Simmons here at home in Texas. But, isn't a big season sort of the expectation this year? If the opening is there as it would appear to be, then all Texas needs to do is win games and then point to the fact that Simmons likely fits into the picture at Texas much sooner than he would with any of his other suitors. He's a Tasmanian devil who will be very, very hard for a place like Texas to keep off the field despite the developmental talent in the pipeline.
Forget LSU, forget the haters in the peanut galleries. Win in 2024 and keep recruiting the hell out of the guy.
Colin Simmons no matter what.
*****
Book Review: Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor (Book 1 of the Scot Harvath Series)
From the Publisher: On the snow-covered slopes of Utah, the President of the United States has been kidnapped and his Secret Service detail massacred. Only one agent has survived—ex-Navy SEAL Scot Harvath. He doesn’t buy the official line that Middle Eastern terrorists are behind the attack and begins his own campaign to find the truth and exact revenge. But now, framed for murder by a sinister cabal, Harvath takes his fight to the towering mountains of Switzerland—and joins forces with beautiful Claudia Mueller of the Swiss Federal Attorney’s Office. Together they must brave the subzero temperatures and sheer heights of treacherous Mount Pilatus—where their only chance for survival lies inside the den of the most lethal team of professional killers the world has ever known…
Alex's Thoughts: It's a rare occasion where a popular recommendation on these boards turned out to be terrible. After my last review, having finished the truly elite "Gray Man" series by Mark Greaney, this book was recommended as similar in style. In reality, it is like a children's book compared to the Gray Man and Sierra Six would roll Scot Harvath into a ball and slit his throat before Harvath even knew he was in the room if the two ever came face-to-face. The dialogue was so bad (and so unfitting of the urgency of the various situations) that this was a rare book I decided to abort before I was halfway through, as there was no way it was going to turn into an endeavor I found worth my time. Here, we have a secret service agent with a flair for snow-skiing (another red flag, the author is obviously super into snow-skiing -- a hobby that I think is fine but have zero personal interest in) who was in charge of the advance-site-prep for a presidential detail where 30 secret service members end up getting slaughtered on the slopes and ... the president is also kidnapped. Yet, back at the lodge, Harvath and surviving members of the detail along with other LEOs and intelligence personnel chat things up like they are in some staff break room rather than facing down an immense and unprecedented crisis. One thing that I did like about it is that it gave me confidence in the idea that one day, I might be able to write a best-selling thriller if this is the bar for success. I give it 1 star and it will not be added to the list.
- Alex's Daily Short Reading List (updated 5-25-2023)
Books I've read or listened to on Audiobook since I've been sharing these reviews on OB (this list is not encompassing of all of my favorite books although it certainly includes a few of them - books I recommend reading/listening to start at 3.5 stars - I will review every book I read, but only list those that I awarded 3.5 stars and up here).
Lonesome Dove (5 stars)
Joe Pickett Series by CJ Box (5 stars)
The Undoing Project (5 stars)
The Accidental Superpower (5 stars)
I Am Pilgrim (5 stars)
Empire of the Summer Moon (5 stars)
Gridiron Genius (5 Stars)
The Cartel (5 stars)
Disunited Nations (5 stars)
Lone Survivor (5 stars)
The Terminal List Series (5 stars)
The Gray Man Series (5 stars)
The Son (4.75 stars)
The Lincoln Highway (4.75 stars)
The 4-Hour Work Week (4.75 stars)
Astroball (4.75 stars)
Project Hail Mary (4.75 stars)
Shantaram (4.75 stars)
Dueling With Kings (4.5 stars)
Wanderers (4.5 stars)
Back of Beyond (4.25 stars)
Blue Heaven (4.25 stars)
The Border (4.25 stars)
Wrath of the Khans - Dan Carlin Podcast Series (4.25 stars)
The Time it Never Rained (4.25 stars)
Hard Country (4.25 stars)
Unfreedom of the Press (4.25 stars)
This Tender Land (4 stars)
Supermarket (4 stars)
Ready Player Two (4 stars)
When Christmas Comes (4 stars)
Hollywood Park (4 stars)
Fields of Fire (4 stars)
The Great Alone (3.75 stars)
Hunting El Chapo (3.75 stars)
The President is Missing (3.75 stars)
The First Conspiracy (3.75 stars)
REAMDE (3.75 stars)
American Wolf (3.75 stars)
The End is Always Near (3.75 stars)
Second Wind (3.75 stars)
The End of the World is Just the Beginning (3.75 stars)
A Strange Habit of Mind (3.75 stars)
The River (3.75 stars)
The Lost City of the Monkey God (3.5 stars)
The Summer That Melted Everything (3.5 stars)
The North Water (3.5 stars)
Deep Survival (3.5 stars)
The Boy From the Woods (3.5 stars)
The Frackers (3.5 stars)
Arliss Cutter Series (3.5 stars)
AS ALWAYS, PLEASE LET ME KNOW ANY BOOKS YOU WOULD RECOMMEND, PREFERABLY THAT ARE AVAILABLE ON AUDIOBOOK. MANY OF THE BEST BOOKS ON THIS LIST HAVE COME VIA RECOMMENDATIONS ON ORANGEBLOODS.
