Wednesday was supposed to be the big recruiting day for the Texas Longhorns, with Charlie Strong and staff expected to pick up a handful of big commitments on National Signing Day.
It turns out, the fast and furious finish started a day early, with Texas picking up its second commitment of the day moments ago when defensive tackleD'Andre Christmas-Giles announced on television that he chose the Longhorns over LSU and TCU.
A Rivals100 member out of New Orleans St. Augustine, Christmas-Giles joins Katy running back Kyle Porter as players who committed to Texas on Tuesday, the day before NSD.
"He is just a big powerful force in the middle. He's very disruptive, takes on blocks very well," said Rivals.com regional recruiting analyst Jason Howell. "He comes off the ball low. He's able to anchor at the line and can get up and down the line of scrimmage to make plays. He's just really good."
At 6-4 and 290 pounds, Christmas-Giles gives Texas a much-needed boost at the defensive tackle position. The Longhorns currently have one other DT commitment in Gerald Wilbon, and Texas is incredibly thin on defensive tackle bodies on the current roster.
Christmas-Giles ranks as the nation's sixth best defensive tackle overall, and he should have a chance to step in and play right away.
"I think he's definitely a guy who could come in as an instant impact player," Howell said. "He really good, really disruptive."
A one-time Tennessee commitment, Christmas-Giles opened up his recruitment late in the process when his stock really began to soar. He took official visits to Texas, LSU, Tennessee and Texas A&M and had recently narrowed his focus to UT, LSU and TCU. The Longhorns had been long-believed to be the leaders for Christmas-Giles' commitment, and they officially won out on Tuesday night.
A four-star prospect, Christmas-Giles is the nation's No. 83-ranked player overall and he becomes Texas' first commitment from the Rivals100. He is the Longhorns' 17th commitment overall for the 2016 class.
