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Top 2019 running back Noah Cain spent Wednesday on the Texas campus and once again came away impressed. Perhaps more importantly, Cain said his father was impressed with what he saw and heard from the UT staff. It was Cain’s father’s first time on campus.
“We just visited really about my dad seeing the campus. I had seen the campus before, so I knew the new facilities they had coming,” Cain said. “This was mostly about my dad seeing everything for himself.
“He definitely enjoyed the visit up there. We spent the day with (Stan) Drayton and met with coach (Tom) Herman. They definitely have a vision for the future. My dad really enjoyed the visit.”
Earlier this week, on Monday, Cain visited LSU, another program that will factor heavily into his recruitment.
“I’m from there. I’ve been to LSU a lot of times,” Cain said. “Really it was just meeting with the coaches, coach Orgeron. T-Rob (Tommie Robinson) wasn’t there because he was on vacation, but we were really just around the coaches.”
It’s still very early for Cain, but he did tell me Texas and LSU were “neck and neck,” with a few other schools also on his radar. He’ll take his last visit of the summer to Oklahoma on July 29. (Suchomel)
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In case you missed our Thursday updates on the board, the Longhorns will host a few key visitors this weekend …
Carterville (IL) tight end Luke Ford will make his way to Austin on Friday for a two-day visit. He’ll head to Michigan next week to see the Wolverines. When I spoke with Ford at The Opening, he spoke very highly of Texas and tight ends coach Corby Meekins, and said the Longhorns’ chances of getting an official visit are “very, very high.”
Ford has Alabama, Auburn and Georgia atop his list right now. He’s a former Arkansas commitment. Obviously, he likes the SEC, but if Texas can sell him on getting a lot of early playing time – which should be pretty obvious to Ford once he sits down with the staff this weekend – as well as everything UT and the city of Austin have to offer, I’ll be mildly surprised if the Longhorns aren’t in his group of leaders coming out of this weekend.
Also scheduled to visit this weekend are two 2019 defensive ends who hold UT offers - Braedon Mowry (Katy Taylor) and Marcus Stripling (Houston Mayde Creek). Obviously, both players are young so there’s a long way to go in their recruitments, but getting them both on campus should help Texas lay a pretty good foundation. (Suchomel)
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Noticeably absent from this weekend’s list of visitors is safety Trey Dean, who told us earlier in the week he would be in town.
Dean confirmed he would no longer be visiting Texas and the Longhorns are no longer under consideration.
In talking to a UT source, this was more of a UT decision than it was a Dean decision. Dean is set to announce his commitment on July 31, and simply put, Texas isn’t quite ready to take his pledge. Dean’s a very good player and Texas likes him – those thoughts were conveyed to Dean, but the Longhorns are in a very good spot with their in-state defensive back recruiting situation, meaning there’s no need to rush into taking Dean’s commitment.
Had the Longhorns pushed, Dean would have visited UT this weekend and almost certainly would have committed to Texas in a few weeks, but with three DB commitments already on the board and Texas heavily involved with D’Shawn Jamison, Jalen Green and Anthony Cook, the timing of Dean’s decision just wasn’t right. Best of luck to Dean wherever he winds up. (Suchomel)
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Reminder … Rivals100 WR Al'Vonte Woodard will announce his decision on Saturday. I’m told it should happen at 6 p.m.
Woodard has a top five of LSU, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Texas and Texas A&M, but this one’s really a one-team race. Anything other than an announcement for Texas in his video will shock everyone, including those extremely close to Woodard.
Get your party hats and confetti ready for Saturday evening. (Suchomel)
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A quick note … Texas will host its mid-July night camp next Friday (July 21). In the past couple years, the event has become known as the “Under the Lights” camp, but it’s getting a new name under the current staff.
Drum roll …
The Longhorns will host their first ever Stars at Night Showcase next Friday, which should see quite a bit of talent on hand. Look for more coverage on that event over the course of next week. (Suchomel)
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We updated our 2018 Recruiting Board on Thursday morning, and it’s already outdated with the news that Texas and Trey Dean are parting ways. As a supplement, let’s go through the Longhorns’ top offensive targets and explain why I have UT’s chances with each ranked the way I do (Note: We’ll do the same with the defense next week) …
QB Casey Thompson – Not much new to report here. Every time we talk to Thompson, including a few weeks ago at the Texas Heat Wave, he’s solid with his commitment and excited about being a Longhorn.
QB Cameron Rising – There’s some chatter that Rising could take other visits, but I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it just yet. He was on campus a few weeks ago and was actively recruiting for Texas. I expect him to stick.
RB Keaontay Ingram – Like Rising, there’s been talk of Ingram taking other visits. But he’s told people behind the scenes that he won’t be going anywhere but Texas, and he probably won’t even step foot on any other campuses. Ingram won’t be in for next week’s camp, but no need to worry about this one.
WR Rondale Moore – Moore is thrilled with his commitment to Texas and he told me on Thursday there’s a chance he could return to Austin with his parents for next week’s camp. He’s going to talk to them to see if they can make it work.
WR Brennan Eagles – Some people panicked a bit when Eagles delayed his commitment date, but I haven’t heard anything that makes me think Texas isn’t still the overwhelming leader. The Longhorn backpack at The Opening is tough to ignore. Texas’ chances … 70% and that’s probably too conservative.
WR Al'Vonte Woodard – See the section above. Texas’ chances … 99%
WR Terrace Marshall Jr. – He’s supposed to visit Texas at some point this summer. Not sure that will happen, but I do expect him to take an official. Even with the multiple visits, I think it’ll probably be LSU or TCU in the end, but Texas does have a shot. Texas’ chances … 25%
Jaquayln Crawford – He told me on Thursday he won’t be at next week’s camp, but he did visit for the Texas Heat Wave. Oklahoma has surged in this one. Texas is still in the mix, but WR recruiting numbers may work against Texas when he commits, which could be this summer. Texas’ chances … 40%.
Tommy Bush – This one will be interesting to follow. I’m not sure Texas is really pushing for a commitment from Bush at this point, but if he has a big senior season and the coaches like what they see, I could see him becoming part of the plan. There is a lot of talk behind the scenes about Baylor, but Bush isn’t in a hurry and wants to take a bunch of visits. Texas’ chances .. 35%.
Jaylen Waddle – He told me on Thursday he won’t be at UT’s camp next week. This one just doesn’t appear to be trending UT’s way. Lots of talk about A&M but I’ve said for months I thought FSU would eventually win out and I’m sticking to that prediction for now. UT’s chances … 35%.
Jalen Preston and Miles Battle – Neither will be at Texas’ camp next week. Battle’s an intriguing prospect to me. I thought he was outstanding at the Under Armour Camp I watched him in back in March. I could see him factoring in if he has a productive senior season. Preston’s pretty much locked in for A&M.
Mustapha Muhammad – He’s not sure yet if he’ll be at next week’s camp. Nothing new here … I think it comes down to Texas and Michigan, and UT’s only shot is if it wins games this fall and shows progress, which I expect. Texas’ chances … 50%.
Malcolm Epps – Epps has maintained all along he wants to take visits and won’t commit early, but I’m hearing behind the scenes that things could be picking up steam. I think the Longhorns get him. Texas’ chances … 65% and rising quickly.
Luke Ford – He’ll visit Texas this weekend and doesn’t want to commit until January, at the earliest. Maybe even NSD. I have Texas at 30% coming into the weekend but I expect those chances to go up after his visit.
Dominick Anderson – He’s a tough one to predict, because he seems to really like every school he visits. Texas, Oregon and Alabama are the three favorites and he’ll decide on August 1. This one makes sense for UT because the Longhorns can sell a TE-friendly offense and immediate playing time, but a last-minute visit to Alabama looms so I’m not quite ready to declare Texas the leader. Texas’ chances … 35%.
Reese Moore – He’s locked in to his commitment. Nothing to worry about here.
Rafiti Ghirmai – He’s tough to pin down and give an accurate prediction on because he doesn’t tip his hand to anyone. I’ve always thought in the long run Texas was the team to beat, especially as others begin to fill up. I’ll stick with that for now. Texas’ chances 60%.
Junior Angilau – When he visited UT for the spring game, I spoke with his mother and felt the Longhorns were the team to beat. There was even talk of him possibly committing late in the spring (not sure where that came from … that’s never been mentioned to me), but he’s taking things pretty slowly. He did visit USC recently, which has me lowering UT’s chances a bit. However, his mother told me on Thursday night there’s an outside shot they’ll be back in Austin for next week’s camp, so Texas’ chances are still high. Texas’ chances … 50%.
Cameron Wire – He’s committed to LSU but has taken two visits to Texas already. Texas needs to keep chipping away here and hope LSU struggles while the Longhorns surge in 2017. Do that, get him in for an official visit, which should happen, and Texas can flip him. Texas’ chances … 40%.
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The first of three July evaluation periods began on Wednesday. That means college coaches are currently evaluating (this is actually more babysitting than anything) their top targets in person. Most importantly for coaches during this period is to make sure top targets see they’re in attendance for their games, and coaches gather more intel about the player’s abilities and also where he fits on a priority list for other programs.
With just one scholarship open for the 2018 class right now, Texas is working on a fairly small list of prospects. Of course, we can project that the available number will go to three when Mohamed Bamba (extremely likely) and Andrew Jones (likely) move on to the NBA following the 2017-18 season.
After publishing the 2018 Hoops Board about two weeks ago, I don’t believe much has changed. Texas’s main focus, in my opinion and based on the information I’ve gathered, still focuses on the following group of prospects:
G/F Keldon Johnson (Oak Hill Academy; Mouth of Wilson, Virginia)
G/F Gerald Liddell (Cibolo Steele)
C David McCormack (Oak Hill Academy)
G Kaden Archie (Midlothian)
G/F Brock Cunningham (Austin Westlake)
G Quentin Grimes (College Park, The Woodlands)
F Kamaka Hepa (Jefferson; Portland, Oregon)
G Jared Butler (Riverside Academy; Reserve, Louisiana)
Because Texas signed transfer guard Elijah Long to join incoming point guard Matt Coleman, it doesn’t have to sign a true point guard in the 2018 class. That position is in good hands for at least the next two seasons, which allows Texas to go all-in, if it chooses, on top 2019 point guard De’Vion Harmon.
The Longhorns have the luxury to focus on a small group of 2018 prospects, and don’t have to be married to signing a specific player as it relates to a position. That being said, Bamba’s departure after the upcoming season will leave Texas with one true center-type (James Banks), although it could have an athletic and skilled frontcourt made up of Dylan Osetkowski, Royce Hamm, and Jericho Sims. Texas would really, really like to land McCormack, but so would pretty much every other top program in the country thanks to a lack of bigs in 2018. Texas does have recruiting weapon Coleman working in its favor, who is close to McCormack and his former high school teammate.
Texas remains in good shape or better for Archie, Cunningham, Johnson, Liddell, Butler, and Hepa. Grimes and McCormack are tougher tasks for UT and tougher to project. Could other names, like Jaedon LeDee, jump into the list? It’s possible, but since Texas has been able to recruit the 2018 class knowing it will be tight on numbers, it seems those are the main names at this point. (McComas)
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