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(Ketch)
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If Texas defensive coordinator Todd Orlando is interested in the vacant head coaching position at SMU, he is not talking to anyone of importance about his interest.
We spoke to multiple key sources within the program on Thursday, and if Orlando did interview with SMU this week, nobody is aware of those discussions. We are still digging and talking to sources, but everyone we spoke with who is associated with the program said Orlando has assured them he has not spoken to anyone at SMU.
Not only did Orlando inform coworkers he had not spoken to anyone at SMU, the defensive coordinator told his players he is not interested in the job. In addition, he told them not to believe any report linking him to another job. Everyone we spoke with who is associated with the program believes Orlando will remain at Texas after this season.
Texas football coach Tom Herman was asked about Orlando’s reported interview by Austin American-Statesman reporter Brian Davis on Thursday and said, “Any assistant that’s going to interview for another job would tell me about it. ... I would’ve been the first to know if it were true.”
Orlando was at the home of Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas defensive end Nikolas Bonitto on Wednesday from 4 to 6:30 p.m. It is possible Orlando spoke with SMU officials before or after his visit to Florida. If so, it would have been an informal interview as opposed to an official conversation.
One person associated with Texas who I spoke to on Thursday told me losing a coach like Orlando is always a concern, and added, “These things change fast.” That person did not want to discount the possibility that there could be something going on behind the scenes nobody knows about.
While sourcing inside the Texas universe were reporting there was nothing to see as it relates to the ides of Orlando interviewing with SMU, we did speak with sources from outside the program who said Orlando did speak with SMU this week. They did not specify if the talks were informal, or elaborate on where they heard the information.
Regardless, if Orlando did leave the program after one season, it would be a major blow to this defense, and Longhorn players could be on their fourth defensive coordinator in the past two seasons (Vance Bedford, Charlie Strong and Orlando). It would also be a huge disappointment to Herman, who as of Thursday night was unaware of Orlando’s interest in coaching at SMU, and players who believe a coach who told them he was not going anywhere.
We will continue to dig and report any new information when available. (Richardson)
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After Texas was defeated by Texas Tech in a season-ending loss last month, the unhappiness that had been suppressed by Longhorn players surfaced after another disappointing setback.
Well, things are better within the locker room right now.
Running back Chris Warren III did not hesitate to part ways with Texas because he wanted to find happiness at another program. Former team captain Connor Williams became the first junior from this year’s team to announce he will not play in the Texas Bowl on December 27. Williams had to be convinced to play in Texas’ final two games, but after the loss, he decided to skip the bowl game and focus on his NFL career.
Texas safety DeShon Elliott, who was also unhappy with another losing season, told Texas football coach Tom Herman he was leaving, and did not want a discussion about it. To nobody’s surprise, suspended cornerback Holton Hill decided to leave, too. Right now, Texas is waiting for linebacker Malik Jefferson to officially announce his decision, but his stint in Austin is over. In addition, defensive end Charles Omenihu is seemingly waiting to hear back from the college advisory committee before making a decision.
Of course, there are rumors of a mass exodus at Texas after this season. Junior offensive linemen Jack McMillon and Terrell Cuney walked on Senior Day and appear ready to leave the program, but we are waiting for official announcements. We have heard the name of multiple starters and contributors who are unhappy – those reasons vary from playing time to not feeling respected by the staff – but we are hesitant to name them and speculate about their future. We have decided to give these young men time to make their decisions without adding additional spotlighting to their situations while they try to make decisions. After all, sometimes college players just need to blow off some steam at this time of the year or often change their minds.
However, it appears the players are more focused on the big picture now than anything else, which is a positive.
From what I was told, players on this team, even the disgruntled ones, are more focused on finishing this season 7-6 than their unhappiness with a disappointing season. For now, the talk about transferring, or complaining about the program, has ceased.
Instead, I have been told the team does not want to finish with another losing record. Players have been sharp and attentive during practice. Nobody is complaining about the program. Guys just want to win and not close out the season with another loss. (Richardson)
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It is becoming more unlikely Jefferson will appear in the Texas Bowl in a few weeks.
From what I heard, Jefferson has told those associated with the program he needs to see a specialist about his turf toe injury. Jefferson will fly to Wisconsin on Monday to see a foot specialist to determine the extent of the ailment. It remains to seen if surgery or rest will be prescribed.
Considering Jefferson intends to turn pro after this season, it is very likely he shuts down playing football at Texas to get physically ready for the NFL combine. If for some reason Jefferson can not perform at the combine, he will have to push back his performance to Texas’ pro day. If he does, that could give potentially undrafted players, like Armanti Foreman, a chance to get a look by assistant NFL coaches and general managers.
We will learn more about Jefferson’s health in the upcoming weeks. (Richardson)
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If you are curious about what kind of media coverage you should expect for the Texas Bowl, that answer is not very much.
So far, media members have been told there will be one coach and player availability prior to the game. The tentative date is Dec. 24, a day before the Houston Texans face the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Texans’ media relations staff also handles this game, and NFL reporters do not have team access to teams one day before a game.
When Texas previously appeared in this game, media members received a limited about of time with coaches and players, and it may not change this year. (Richardson)
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We’re officially less than two weeks away from the early signing period (December 20-22), and things are moving at a fast and furious pace with a number of prospects. Let’s go position by position on where things stand with the Horns’ top targets …
Quarterback
Casey Thompson (UT commitment) – The Newcastle (OK) product will take his official visit to Texas this weekend. Thompson has never given any indication that he’s looking around and I don’t expect that to change at this point. He’ll enroll at Texas in January.
Cameron Rising (UT commitment) – Every time I’ve talked to Rising over the past several months, he’s said the right things about his UT commit and he’s never really given any reason to be concerned. When I spoke with him this week, it was more of the same, but he has yet to completely rule out the possibility of taking a visit to a place like LSU or Arizona State. Texas has done a couple in-homes with him in the past two weeks and Tom Herman is scheduled to do another next week. I feel confident that he sticks with Texas due to his relationship with the coaches, but the slight chance that he may visit elsewhere means this one is still worth watching.
Running back
Keaontay Ingram (UT commitment) – I’m still expecting Ingram to be the only back in this class, and I’d still be shocked if he didn’t wind up at Texas. That being said, he did tell me this week that he’s unsure if he’ll sign in December or wait until February, and he hasn’t completely ruled out the possibility of taking other visits either. Even with all that, Ingram landing anywhere other than Texas would be a shock.
Craig Williams – He’s committed to Baylor, but a coach at his school told another Rivals reporter he had been invited in for an official visit by Texas. I’ll be a little surprised if anything comes of this one, but probably a name worth filing away just in case.
Wide receiver
Brennan Eagles (UT commitment) – He’ll take his official visit this weekend and has been locked in for a while.
Al'Vonte Woodard (UT commitment) – Pretty much the same status as Eagles.
Rondale Moore (UT commitment) – As we mentioned earlier in the week, Moore is not planning on signing in December, per someone close to him. Texas did a good job of tightening up its grip on Moore’s commitment when Moore took his official visit in October, but sources told us this week that Purdue is still a major factor in this one and Moore may visit Purdue next weekend (“That’s the plan as of now,” I was told on Thursday night). Texas is going to have to work to hold onto this one. If he does wind up taking a Purdue OV, the guess here is that calling this one a coin-flip may be a bit generous.
Jaylen Waddle – Expected to visit A&M this week, which pretty much closes the book for Texas.
Terrace Marshall Jr. – Texas is pretty much out of this one.
Tommy Bush – Things have quieted down with this one. It’s not out of the question that the Longhorns could circle back to him and show more interest, but right now there are other areas on which the staff is focusing.
Julon Williams – He doesn’t have an offer, but has been in talks with Texas and he could be a guy the coaches try to target if something happens with Rondale Moore.
Tight end
Malcolm Epps (UT commitment) – He’ll take his UT official visit this weekend. Epps has been solid for a long time.
Luke Ford – Ford recently listed a top three of Alabama, Georgia and Auburn, but the Longhorns aren’t giving up. Corby Meekins has done in-home visits the past two weeks, but this one doesn’t look like it’ll fall UT’s way.
Dominick Anderson – Anderson doesn’t talk much, but according to a teammate of his, Texas is still in the mix. It would be a pretty odd story to see him re-commit to the Longhorns, and he’s supposed to take an official visit to A&M this weekend. I’m not expecting Texas to be much of a factor in this one, but Anderson’s a bit of a ghost so it’s hard to tell what he’s thinking.
Nic McTear – He visited for a game recently and really likes Texas, but doesn’t have an offer at this time.
Offensive line
Reese Moore (UT commitment) – He’ll visit this weekend and is locked in.
Rafiti Ghirmai (UT commitment) – He’ll visit this weekend as well. He has talked about taking other visits, but I’ll be a little surprised if that happens.
Junior Angilau – I’ve long-believed that Texas was the team to beat for Angilau. If his mother has her way, he’ll be a Longhorn. He’s planning to take some other visits, but the guess here is that he winds up at Texas.
Badara Traore – Committed to LSU on Thursday evening. Tough blow for Texas there.
Cameron Wire – He’s committed to LSU and may visit Texas at some point, but pulling a committed player from Louisiana away from LSU seems unlikely.
Mikey Grandy – A new JUCO offer, Grandy is supposed to visit Texas next weekend. A recent UCLA offer muddied the waters a bit on this one, but Texas still has a very good chance at landing him based on my conversation with Grandy last week.
Jahmir Johnson – Ultra-athletic JUCO tackle told OB he’ll take a Texas official visit on December 15. He has already visited Arkansas, will visit Missouri this weekend and USC on January 19. Too early to predict how this one will play out but Johnson becomes a bigger priority with Traore off the board.
Kaitori Leveston – He told Rivals.com last week that he’ll be sticking with his Kansas State pledge, but I don’t expect Texas to just throw in the towel. If the Longhorns can get him on campus, he’d be a strong flip candidate.
Trevor Elbert – There’s been talk that JUCO OL Elbert could join Johnson and Grandy on an official visit next week, but I’m still working to confirm that one.
Defensive line
Keondre Coburn (UT commitment) – Coburn will visit Texas this weekend. As of right now, he’s planning on taking other official visits and it may be tough for UT to talk him out of that since he’s been saying for months he wanted to see other places. Having a key DL commit take visits isn’t good, but I wouldn’t lose too much sleep about Coburn flipping elsewhere. He said this week the other visits would just be so he could verify that he made the right choice with Texas, which I expect will happen.
Moro Ojomo – Texas offered this week and this one looks to be heading in the right direction. Ojomo told OB he’ll take a UT visit in January and he’s been hoping for the Texas offer for a while. Would be a nice addition to the class and I think it happens.
Vernon Jackson – He’s still committed to Alabama but is planning to visit Texas in January. If Bama starts to fill up before then, or if Jackson just decides he wants to stay closer to home, this one looks pretty good for Texas.
Bobby Brown – Texas is staying on him but I don’t see that one happening. He likely sticks with A&M.
Max Wright – Same story as Bobby Brown.
Daniel Carson – He visited UT, but he doesn’t tip his hand at all so it’s tough to say what he might be thinking. He’s supposed to visit Miami this weekend.
Jarrett Jackson – The current Louisville commitment has visited Texas and South Carolina. He’ll take his official visit to Louisville this weekend and told us everyone will know of his final decision on December 20. Jackson says he’s torn, but if his twitter action means anything, Louisville looks like a safe bet to hold onto his pledge.
Joshua Landry – He doesn’t have a Texas offer yet, but could factor in if things don’t shape up well with some other guys.
Linbacker
Byron Hobbs (UT commitment) – Nobody is more locked in to his commitment than Hobbs.
Ayodele Adeoye (UT commitment) – He’s supposed to visit this weekend but it’s hard to tell what Adeoye is thinking. The last time Rivals interviewed him, he said the right things about his commitment status but he has already taken one other official visit. This is one we’ll be watching until he actually signs his LOI.
DaShaun White – The coaching change at A&M has made this one tough to predict. Whereas I thought White would wind up at either Texas or Oklahoma before Jimbo Fisher was hired, I’m not quite sure where he’s leaning now. Texas continues to make him a priority but there’s a lot of buzz about OU, and he is still technically committed to A&M.
Joseph Ossai – There’s been talk for a while that Ossai would be making a decision, but things have slowed down a bit with A&M’s coaching change. It’ll be either Texas or A&M, and if the Aggies retain DL coach Terry Price (which appears likely), Ossai probably sides with A&M.
Nikolas Bonitto – He has already visited Texas and Louisville. He’ll visit OU next weekend and may visit Alabama as well. Louisville has been on him the longest so a lot of people think that’s where he’ll wind up, but Bonitto told OB on Thursday that he doesn’t have any favorites.
Amari Gainer – He was going to visit Texas this weekend but FSU did an in-home and shut that one down.
Damone Clark – Clark enjoyed his Texas official visit, but it’s hard to see the Longhorns pulling a Baton Rouge kid away from his LSU commitment.
Defensive back
Caden Sterns – He’s locked in. Nothing to worry about here.
DeMarvion Overshown – He tweeted this week that he’s all ready to sign in a couple weeks.
B.J. Foster – Arguably the highest upside of anyone in the class. Locked in, will enroll early .
D'Shawn Jamison – Texas’ most recent commitment, from back in October. Will visit this weekend and is locked in.
Jalen Green – There’s talk of schools like LSU and A&M trying to make a run at Green but I’m not expecting anything crazy to happen. He’ll visit this weekend as well.
Anthony Cook – Same story, different day for Cook. I wish I had something new to report, but I don’t. Texas or LSU, with Ohio State on the outside looking in. His decision could literally come at any moment, and it’s an extremely close race. I continue to feel that Texas looks good with Holton Hill opening up an opportunity for early playing time.
Kicker
Cameron Dicker – Locked in.
(Suchomel)
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A quick update on quarterback Tanner McKee, out of Corona (CA) Centennial …
McKee, who will be a member of the 2020 class after taking a two-year mission following his high school graduation, was paid an in-home visit by Tim Beck this week.
“The visit went great. Really enjoyed it,” McKee said via text.
McKee said Beck spoke to him about how well he would fit into what Texas does on offense.
So far, he has taken official visits to Texas, Texas A&M and Alabama. He’ll visit Stanford in January but that will be it (no BYU official visit).
As for the Longhorns …
“Texas definitely fits in. That’s why I’m still talking with them,” McKee said. “I like what they are doing and I like the coaches.” (Suchomel)
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Keaontay Ingram and his Carthage teammates continue to march on in the state playoffs. Last week, Carthage won handily, and Ingram had a huge game, going for 161 yards and 2 TDs on just 8 carries, along with a 59-yard TD reception.
For Ingram, it was just another day at the office.
“I felt like I had an okay game,” Ingram said.
Okay? What would he consider a good game?
“Probably like 275 yards,” Ingram said.
Tom Herman and Stan Drayton did an in-home visit with Ingram last week, and Ingram said things went very well.
“It was awesome. We had a family bond, got to know a little about them, asked questions that needed to be asked,” Ingram said. “I felt like they answered some questions and we had a good time.
“I didn’t really have questions. My grandparents had questions - how they feel about academics, schooling, lifestyle, asked about church as well. My family is big on church. They mentioned the churches they have on campus.”
Other schools, like Oklahoma State, LSU, USC, Baylor and Michigan continue to work Ingram. The standout back said he’s “pretty solid” with his Texas commitment, and as of right now he’s unsure if he’ll take any other visits.
“I still don’t know (about visits), to be honest with you. I’m still so solid right now,” Ingram said.
The 6-0, 190-pounder said he’s considering signing in December, but he’s not certain if he’ll do that or wait until February. I did ask him if A&M might be a school he’d consider if the Aggies reached out.
“That doesn’t have too much of an impact. I did have an FSU offer, but they weren’t on me too hard,” Ingram said. “I’m really not too worried about that right now.” (Suchomel)
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A few hoops notes:
As we reported earlier today, sophomore guard Andrew Jones (right wrist) continues to be evaluated by the Texas training staff, and attended practice today (didn’t participate) with the UT training staff. Jones visited a doctor yesterday to help asses the injury, but the Texas training staff has yet to release any specific injury information. Although there was some concern in the day after the injury, I don’t believe there’s reason right now for Texas fans to panic.
Obviously, Texas can’t afford to lose Jones for a long stretch of time.
Wanted to pass along a tidbit I think Texas fans will appreciate:
Dylan Osetkowski, who played 34 minutes and scored 17 points Tuesday night at VCU, didn’t practice the few days leading up to the contest. And he wasn’t 100-percent against VCU either. That’s a big-time effort, and should help Osetkowski’s already strong voice and leadership presence improve even more.
Also, I wouldn’t underestimate the environment Texas played in at VCU. I had a couple people tell me it was the loudest hoops environment they’ve ever been in, and finding a way to win that game after blowing a big lead should help Texas grow, and it’ll need to with Michigan coming to town next week. Speaking of that game, you can bet on Texas getting a good scouting report on Michigan because VCU played Michigan earlier this season at the Maui Invitational. Shaka Smart remains very close to VCU head coach and former VCU assistant Mike Rhoades. (McComas)
