The Texas Longhorns signed one running back in the 2016 class with the late addition of Katy's Kyle Porter. Looking forward to 2017, the Longhorns will be in the market for at least one more back, and the staff will focus on finding a player who can be a home run threat in new offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert's offense.
La Grange standout J.K. Dobbins could fit the bill and he already holds a Texas offer. The recruiting process is again starting to heat up for the Rivals100 member ... where does Texas fit in, and does the fact that UT does not yet have a running backs coach affect the Longhorns' standing?
We checked in with Dobbins for an update.
Key quote: "I'm keeping a close eye on it. I want them to get a running back coach in so I can meet him and build a relationship with him like I did coach (Tommie) Robinson," Dobbins said.
Upcoming plans: Dobbins has yet to hit any of the in-state junior days that have taken place (Baylor, A&M, Houston), but he will take a visit to Oklahoma this weekend.
Texas has a junior day scheduled for February 27, and Dobbins is unsure if he'll attend that one.
"I haven't visited anywhere. I'll be going to OU this weekend," Dobbins said. "After that, I don't know where I'm going to go.
"I'll have to see (about Texas). It's up in the air right now. You never know what could happen between those days. I'm going to see how it goes, but I'll try to make it up there."
No RB coach, no setback: Dobbins is watching closely to see who Texas hires to replace Robinson, but he said he understands it's a process that cannot be rushed. More importantly, he said the vacancy on the UT staff is not impacting his thinking one bit. Most of his communication with the Texas staff goes directly through Charlie Strong and Dobbins said he and Strong have a very good relationship.
"That doesn't set them back at all. I just have to wait to see what happens and who they hire," Dobbins said.
"I talk to coach Strong a lot. We just talk about other stuff (than recruiting). That really isn't even the main focus for me. We just talk about other stuff, life in general."
Previewing the OU visit: Dobbins has been to Oklahoma a couple times already, so this weekend's visit will be about getting more comfortable with the OU coaching staff and getting a look at what the Sooners are doing with some of their facilities.
"It's just about getting back up there to get that feeling again, see what it's like again," Dobbins said. "I know they're building some stuff, renovating some stuff. I just want to get a feel for it again."
My thoughts: The 5-10, 195-pound Dobbins is a four-star prospect and a Rivals100 member, checking in at No. 67 overall. He'll have his pick of schools when it comes time to decide and while this one is too tough to call right now, I do expect he'll stay fairly close to home - meaning schools like Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma will be big players in his recruitment.
There were times last summer when Dobbins was actually considering committing, so an early commitment is always a possibility. However, he has said recently that he's not in a rush to make a decision. Texas just needs to stay on him, get him acquainted with the new coach when someone is hired, and continue to get Dobbins on campus whenever possible. Getting him in for the junior day next weekend would be big.
