Let's start off with an out-of-state recruiting note that you all should like.
A few weeks ago we mentioned that UT is (and has been) actively recruiting Rivals100 cornerback Geno Smith of Atlanta. The Longhorns' interest began back in February and Stacy Searels stopped by Smith's school this spring.
On Thursday, Smith talked to UT defensive backs coach Duane Akina, and Smith said it's a matter of when, not if, he'll visit Texas this summer.
"I may come to their camp the first week of June," Smith said shortly after talking to Akina. "If not, he said to just come out this summer whenever I can.
Texas has sent Smith a camp brochure and Akina specifically mentioned the June 5 camp, where UT will host its commitments and top targets. Smith is going to talk to his family about the possibility of making that event with the hopes of making an impression on the Texas coaches.
"Coach Akina said they'd like for me to meet Mack Brown face to face, that's how they like to do things," Smith said. "I'm coming, I just need to figure out when."
Smith is also planning to camp at Alabama and USC, and he said he may take unofficial visits to Tennessee and Notre Dame this summer.
My take: Getting Smith out of SEC country won't be an easy chore, but Texas is really working hard on this one. And Smith's plan to visit UT isn't just lip service ... in talking to him on Thursday night, I'd be surprised if a summer visit didn't happen. (Suchomel)
******
We've been trying for a couple weeks to get in touch with five-star safety Landon Collins (Geisman Dutchtown H.S.) to get a few more details on his interest in UT (and vice versa), and we were finally able to connect this week.
For those that have missed it, Collins told the Rivals.com LSU site a couple weeks ago that he had picked up a UT offer, and on Thursday his father told us that Landon would be making a camp visit to Texas.
Collins did say he'll be visiting UT soon, but he said it will likely be an unofficial visit in July.
"I'm going to take a visit over there. They came out kind of late, but when Texas comes out of state to watch you, you have to pay attention," Collins said.
Duane Akina visited Collins' school this week and Collins said he wants to take all his official visits. As for where UT fits in at this early stage, Collins said it's too early to say until he sees the Texas campus.
"I don't really know right now. They just came into the picture. I have to really do my evaluations on them," Collins said. "I know it's a big school, I know they're a powerhouse and they're in the Big 12. They get a lot of TV exposure and it's great education over there."
Collins detailed how Texas came into the picture ...
"My coach said Texas called him and wanted to talk to me. He gave me their number. I gave them a call and left them a message. After that, they came to the school for a visit, to evaluate me on the field," Collins said. (Note ... here's a quote Collins' coach gave us last week with a bit more detail: "I sat him down and made him give me a list. Texas hadn't called at that time. He walked out and five minutes later, the coach from Texas had called. I asked if he wanted to put Texas on and he said 'Why?'. I told him they they just called and they have some pretty nice facilities there. So he wanted them on there too.")
Collins said he has more than 20 scholarship offers at this point, including one from Texas.
"They gave me an offer when (Akina) came to the school. My coach and I were in the office, and he told my coach that I have an offer," Collins said.
Most insiders feel LSU is the team to beat for Collins, but he said he's not opposed to taking his talents outside the state of Louisiana.
"They just have to show that they're willing to give everything that I want in a school. All I want is to be at place that I feel like home," Collins said. "Academics will be key. Playing time is not a factor because I'm a competitor. It will be the chemistry of the team."
My take: This visit seems a bit more touch and go, since the information given to us on Thursday (camp vs. unofficial visit) was a bit different. And the offer is likely a conditional offer that if Collins does make it to campus, he'll pick up a formal offer from Mack Brown. This one still feels like a longshot for Texas. Collins plays in the shadows of the LSU campus and he's facing a lot of pressure from those around him to stay in state. (Suchomel)
******
A couple other 2012 notes in case some of you missed them during the week ...
Five-star offensive lineman Andrus Peat told us this week he's still working to finalize plans for a possible UT camp visit. Peat is planning to talk to his father to iron out the logistics, see if a visit for UT's June 5 camp is possible. We'll follow up next week to see if there's any update.
UT commitment Tim Cole still has schools trying to work their way in with him (I'll give you one guess who is trying the hardest) but Cole says he's not interested. The Rivals100 LB is hoping to camp at UT on June 5, but may not be able to make it depending on how the camp date works with American Legion Boys State, which is set for June 5-10 in Austin. (Suchomel)
******
We ran a story on top national prospect Derrick Griffin earlier this week, but here are a few comments that hit the cutting room floor.
"Right now, Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas and maybe Oklahoma and Oregon and USC," Griffin said when asked what schools have caught his attention. .
Griffin watched a UT home game against Colorado in 2009 and came away impressed.
"I liked all of it. The fans, the stadium, the coaches, the team, all of it," he said.
One of Griffin's most memorable games came last year against UT freshman Quandre Diggs (Griffin was a sophomore, Diggs a senior).
"Texas signed another outstanding youngster from Angleton. Quandre Diggs is going to carry on the great tradition of Angleton (at Texas)," Terry head coach Tim Teykl said. "It was a majestic match-up with Quandre and Derrick this year. The place was packed, that was a neat time, it was a watermark of where he was. Sometimes Derrick got the beset of Quandre, sometimes Quandre got best of Derrick. But it's a pretty bold statement to compete with a player like Quandre. He ran away from Quandre on one long catch and run and that doesn't happen."
Griffin is being raised by his great grandmother, and coach Teykl credits her with much of his success and his ability to stay grounded.
"She'll take your breath away," Teykl said.
Griffin is a freakish athlete who is a legitimate Division I prospect in both football and basketball. He said this week that a Terry assistant coasch is helping him set up visits and he's planning to camp at Texas. (Suchomel)
******
A quick update on top 2013 DT Ben Hughes, out of Waco University.
Hughes recently checked in at 6-3 and 310 pounds. He sports a bench press of 345 pounds and a squat of 610 pounds.
Texas, TCU, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State and Baylor are among the schools that have stopped by University during the spring evaluation period. Hughes said his father wants him to hit a lot of camps, but he does not have any stops locked in just yet. A stop at Texas is very possible.
******
Today I made a few stops and it looks like a few of the top 2013 prospects will be making their way to Texas for camp this summer.
Look for DeSoto to be well represented. Running back Dontre Wilson has mentioned the possibility of camping at Texas and it sounds like that is still the case. Also look for guys like WRs Kyle Collins and Tavares Royal, LB Taylor Young, and OL Sergio Phillips.
On another note DeSoto also has a talented 2014 class which includes ATH Desmon White (no relation to A.J. White), who has been working at QB, DB Nick Orr, who at 5-10, 170 pounds has been catching a lot of attention at DB, 6-2 WR Chris Lacy, and OL Marcus McGarity.
Dallas Skyline also has a few 2013 prospects planning to make the trip down to Austin. WR Ra’Shaad Samples mentioned he plans to attend the Texas camp. He is coming off an ankle injury, but will be cleared within the next few days and hopes to compete at the Texas camp. Also 6-1, 223-pound LB Isaiah Williams is mentioned he is planning to camp at Texas. He was recently offered by SMU.
Mansfield 2013 safety George Baltimore mentioned possibly attending a Texas camp. He plans to attend a few camps this summer and says he is hearing the most from LSU. (Howell)
******
Spoke to someone who talked to Greg Davis this week, and Davis has moved to Dallas. It looks like he will sit on the sidelines this season. He has been on several trips to watch practice, including a trip to Gainesville, Florida, to speak to the Gators and observe Will Muschamp's spring workouts. For all those who thought Will and Greg Davis had a poor relationship, they didn't. Muschamp had an issue with the strength and conditioning staff because he felt some players were allowed to come into camp out of shape. But when it came to getting along with the rest of the coaching staff, Muschamp had good relationships, including Davis. (Brown)
******
As OB has reported previously, Cleve Bryant, Mack Brown's former director of football operations, will not be coming back to Texas (his wife, Jean, continues to work in life skills in the Texas football program). The question has been if Bryant will seek to take any legal action against Texas over his termination. My sources say Bryant is fuming over the ordeal but is being advised to seek a nice settlement from UT and retire. Bryant is 64. (Two sources close to the program have told me the woman who filed a complaint against Bryant has received a six-figure settlement from Texas in the matter. But UT officials and the woman's attorney, Gloria Allred, won't confirm that, and requests for open records on the matter have been appealed to the state attorney general's office. The woman who filed the complaint has since left UT and moved to Dallas.) (Brown)
******
Well, the day has turned to night, and once again, we're left without any sort of public announcement from DeAndre Daniels. On Wednesday, we were scheduled to get an announcement. On Thursday, we were scheduled to get an announcement. Now, it looks like the earliest we get word from the Daniels camp will be Friday. At this point, this goes without saying, but I don't think anyone will be shocked if another day passes with no official word.
So, what's the hold up? Well, it still seems that everyone in the Daniels camp is trying to "get on the same page." You can probably read between the lines, but I think there are still people around DeAndre that aren't satisfied with his decision. When you consider that the only person that has really been quoted on this recruitment recently is former AAU coach Dinos Trigonis, I think you can count him as part of the Daniels camp. Well, IMG coach Andy Borman has been releasing updates about the announcement, but hasn't really been involved in the recruitment. Throughout this entire process, one thing has remained constant - DeAndre liking Texas. Other schools have come and gone, but UT and Kansas have been the two that remain.
According to a source, Texas still feels pretty good about its position in this recruitment. However, it is a bit nervous/skeptical, and with good reason. I wouldn't blame any coaching staff for being confused about what in the world is going on with this recruitment. I'd still consider this a UT/KU recruitment with the slightest edge to Texas. (McComas)
This post was edited on 5/20 8:58 AM by Ketchum
A few weeks ago we mentioned that UT is (and has been) actively recruiting Rivals100 cornerback Geno Smith of Atlanta. The Longhorns' interest began back in February and Stacy Searels stopped by Smith's school this spring.
On Thursday, Smith talked to UT defensive backs coach Duane Akina, and Smith said it's a matter of when, not if, he'll visit Texas this summer.
"I may come to their camp the first week of June," Smith said shortly after talking to Akina. "If not, he said to just come out this summer whenever I can.
Texas has sent Smith a camp brochure and Akina specifically mentioned the June 5 camp, where UT will host its commitments and top targets. Smith is going to talk to his family about the possibility of making that event with the hopes of making an impression on the Texas coaches.
"Coach Akina said they'd like for me to meet Mack Brown face to face, that's how they like to do things," Smith said. "I'm coming, I just need to figure out when."
Smith is also planning to camp at Alabama and USC, and he said he may take unofficial visits to Tennessee and Notre Dame this summer.
My take: Getting Smith out of SEC country won't be an easy chore, but Texas is really working hard on this one. And Smith's plan to visit UT isn't just lip service ... in talking to him on Thursday night, I'd be surprised if a summer visit didn't happen. (Suchomel)
******
We've been trying for a couple weeks to get in touch with five-star safety Landon Collins (Geisman Dutchtown H.S.) to get a few more details on his interest in UT (and vice versa), and we were finally able to connect this week.
For those that have missed it, Collins told the Rivals.com LSU site a couple weeks ago that he had picked up a UT offer, and on Thursday his father told us that Landon would be making a camp visit to Texas.
Collins did say he'll be visiting UT soon, but he said it will likely be an unofficial visit in July.
"I'm going to take a visit over there. They came out kind of late, but when Texas comes out of state to watch you, you have to pay attention," Collins said.
Duane Akina visited Collins' school this week and Collins said he wants to take all his official visits. As for where UT fits in at this early stage, Collins said it's too early to say until he sees the Texas campus.
"I don't really know right now. They just came into the picture. I have to really do my evaluations on them," Collins said. "I know it's a big school, I know they're a powerhouse and they're in the Big 12. They get a lot of TV exposure and it's great education over there."
Collins detailed how Texas came into the picture ...
"My coach said Texas called him and wanted to talk to me. He gave me their number. I gave them a call and left them a message. After that, they came to the school for a visit, to evaluate me on the field," Collins said. (Note ... here's a quote Collins' coach gave us last week with a bit more detail: "I sat him down and made him give me a list. Texas hadn't called at that time. He walked out and five minutes later, the coach from Texas had called. I asked if he wanted to put Texas on and he said 'Why?'. I told him they they just called and they have some pretty nice facilities there. So he wanted them on there too.")
Collins said he has more than 20 scholarship offers at this point, including one from Texas.
"They gave me an offer when (Akina) came to the school. My coach and I were in the office, and he told my coach that I have an offer," Collins said.
Most insiders feel LSU is the team to beat for Collins, but he said he's not opposed to taking his talents outside the state of Louisiana.
"They just have to show that they're willing to give everything that I want in a school. All I want is to be at place that I feel like home," Collins said. "Academics will be key. Playing time is not a factor because I'm a competitor. It will be the chemistry of the team."
My take: This visit seems a bit more touch and go, since the information given to us on Thursday (camp vs. unofficial visit) was a bit different. And the offer is likely a conditional offer that if Collins does make it to campus, he'll pick up a formal offer from Mack Brown. This one still feels like a longshot for Texas. Collins plays in the shadows of the LSU campus and he's facing a lot of pressure from those around him to stay in state. (Suchomel)
******
A couple other 2012 notes in case some of you missed them during the week ...
Five-star offensive lineman Andrus Peat told us this week he's still working to finalize plans for a possible UT camp visit. Peat is planning to talk to his father to iron out the logistics, see if a visit for UT's June 5 camp is possible. We'll follow up next week to see if there's any update.
UT commitment Tim Cole still has schools trying to work their way in with him (I'll give you one guess who is trying the hardest) but Cole says he's not interested. The Rivals100 LB is hoping to camp at UT on June 5, but may not be able to make it depending on how the camp date works with American Legion Boys State, which is set for June 5-10 in Austin. (Suchomel)
******
We ran a story on top national prospect Derrick Griffin earlier this week, but here are a few comments that hit the cutting room floor.
"Right now, Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas and maybe Oklahoma and Oregon and USC," Griffin said when asked what schools have caught his attention. .
Griffin watched a UT home game against Colorado in 2009 and came away impressed.
"I liked all of it. The fans, the stadium, the coaches, the team, all of it," he said.
One of Griffin's most memorable games came last year against UT freshman Quandre Diggs (Griffin was a sophomore, Diggs a senior).
"Texas signed another outstanding youngster from Angleton. Quandre Diggs is going to carry on the great tradition of Angleton (at Texas)," Terry head coach Tim Teykl said. "It was a majestic match-up with Quandre and Derrick this year. The place was packed, that was a neat time, it was a watermark of where he was. Sometimes Derrick got the beset of Quandre, sometimes Quandre got best of Derrick. But it's a pretty bold statement to compete with a player like Quandre. He ran away from Quandre on one long catch and run and that doesn't happen."
Griffin is being raised by his great grandmother, and coach Teykl credits her with much of his success and his ability to stay grounded.
"She'll take your breath away," Teykl said.
Griffin is a freakish athlete who is a legitimate Division I prospect in both football and basketball. He said this week that a Terry assistant coasch is helping him set up visits and he's planning to camp at Texas. (Suchomel)
******
A quick update on top 2013 DT Ben Hughes, out of Waco University.
Hughes recently checked in at 6-3 and 310 pounds. He sports a bench press of 345 pounds and a squat of 610 pounds.
Texas, TCU, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State and Baylor are among the schools that have stopped by University during the spring evaluation period. Hughes said his father wants him to hit a lot of camps, but he does not have any stops locked in just yet. A stop at Texas is very possible.
******
Today I made a few stops and it looks like a few of the top 2013 prospects will be making their way to Texas for camp this summer.
Look for DeSoto to be well represented. Running back Dontre Wilson has mentioned the possibility of camping at Texas and it sounds like that is still the case. Also look for guys like WRs Kyle Collins and Tavares Royal, LB Taylor Young, and OL Sergio Phillips.
On another note DeSoto also has a talented 2014 class which includes ATH Desmon White (no relation to A.J. White), who has been working at QB, DB Nick Orr, who at 5-10, 170 pounds has been catching a lot of attention at DB, 6-2 WR Chris Lacy, and OL Marcus McGarity.
Dallas Skyline also has a few 2013 prospects planning to make the trip down to Austin. WR Ra’Shaad Samples mentioned he plans to attend the Texas camp. He is coming off an ankle injury, but will be cleared within the next few days and hopes to compete at the Texas camp. Also 6-1, 223-pound LB Isaiah Williams is mentioned he is planning to camp at Texas. He was recently offered by SMU.
Mansfield 2013 safety George Baltimore mentioned possibly attending a Texas camp. He plans to attend a few camps this summer and says he is hearing the most from LSU. (Howell)
******
Spoke to someone who talked to Greg Davis this week, and Davis has moved to Dallas. It looks like he will sit on the sidelines this season. He has been on several trips to watch practice, including a trip to Gainesville, Florida, to speak to the Gators and observe Will Muschamp's spring workouts. For all those who thought Will and Greg Davis had a poor relationship, they didn't. Muschamp had an issue with the strength and conditioning staff because he felt some players were allowed to come into camp out of shape. But when it came to getting along with the rest of the coaching staff, Muschamp had good relationships, including Davis. (Brown)
******
As OB has reported previously, Cleve Bryant, Mack Brown's former director of football operations, will not be coming back to Texas (his wife, Jean, continues to work in life skills in the Texas football program). The question has been if Bryant will seek to take any legal action against Texas over his termination. My sources say Bryant is fuming over the ordeal but is being advised to seek a nice settlement from UT and retire. Bryant is 64. (Two sources close to the program have told me the woman who filed a complaint against Bryant has received a six-figure settlement from Texas in the matter. But UT officials and the woman's attorney, Gloria Allred, won't confirm that, and requests for open records on the matter have been appealed to the state attorney general's office. The woman who filed the complaint has since left UT and moved to Dallas.) (Brown)
******
Well, the day has turned to night, and once again, we're left without any sort of public announcement from DeAndre Daniels. On Wednesday, we were scheduled to get an announcement. On Thursday, we were scheduled to get an announcement. Now, it looks like the earliest we get word from the Daniels camp will be Friday. At this point, this goes without saying, but I don't think anyone will be shocked if another day passes with no official word.
So, what's the hold up? Well, it still seems that everyone in the Daniels camp is trying to "get on the same page." You can probably read between the lines, but I think there are still people around DeAndre that aren't satisfied with his decision. When you consider that the only person that has really been quoted on this recruitment recently is former AAU coach Dinos Trigonis, I think you can count him as part of the Daniels camp. Well, IMG coach Andy Borman has been releasing updates about the announcement, but hasn't really been involved in the recruitment. Throughout this entire process, one thing has remained constant - DeAndre liking Texas. Other schools have come and gone, but UT and Kansas have been the two that remain.
According to a source, Texas still feels pretty good about its position in this recruitment. However, it is a bit nervous/skeptical, and with good reason. I wouldn't blame any coaching staff for being confused about what in the world is going on with this recruitment. I'd still consider this a UT/KU recruitment with the slightest edge to Texas. (McComas)
This post was edited on 5/20 8:58 AM by Ketchum
