Cliffs Notes: New Texas wide receivers coach Chris Jackson nabbed his first wide receiver commitment on Sunday, as four-star Freddie Dubose of Smithson Valley HS made a verbal pledge to the Texas staff.
Rankings: Here's the industry breakdown...
LSR: (5.7) High 3 star, No.66 in the state of Texas
Rivals: (5.8) Low 4 star, NR overall nationally, No.59 in Texas
ESPN: (83) Low 4 star, No.153 nationally, No.28 in Texas
On3: (92) Low four-star, No.170 nationally, No.36 in Texas
247: (90) Low 4 star, No.209 nationally, No.39 in Texas
247 composite: (.9274) Low 4 star, No.189 overall nationally, No.36 in Texas
Notable offers: URSA (6/9 OV), Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, Houston, Iowa State, Nebraska, Oregon, TCU, Texas A&M and Texas Tech
Evaluation: This is an interesting situation/evaluation because DuBose tore his left ACL last year and missed his entire junior season. The good news is that the strength in his knee and his speed seem to be really good, as he improved his track times throughout his junior track season and he eventually finished 3rd in Class 5A in the 400 meters with a PR of 48.68 in May. When you look at his film from his sophomore season, you'll see a receiver that foes a lot of things really well. A strong runner after the catch, DeBose has both the ability to make guys miss in space, but also the ability to run through tackles. Although he's not an elite leaper, he does a very good job of battling for catches in traffic and making catches at their high point down the field. He's not quite as big as current Texas running back Savion Red, but they have similar games, although DuBose is a more explosive athlete, which is why he'll stick at receiver at the next level.
Why it matters: It's the first wide receiver commitment in the class for new Texas wide receiver's coach Chris Jackson, which is probably about as strong of a vote of confidence as one can get coming off of a major injury, especially since there was some thought that the Longhorns might want to wait until the fall when they could see him at full speed in game action.
Expectations: It's tough to say at this point because he hasn't played in a game since his sophomore year in high school, so I'm going to guess that he might need a year of continued recovery before he's truly ready to compete for playing time in the Texas program, which means that 2025 might be the first time we see him competing for reps in the rotation.
Math: (1) Smithson Valley HS has only produced one four-star prospect in the last two decades and that was 2023 offensive lineman Colton Thomasson, who signed with Texas A&M. That being said, former TCU star Trevon Moehrig-Woodard won the Thorpe Award in 2020 after being rated as a mid three-star prospect in 2018.
Must See: Sophomore highlights.
