Justin Watkins became the first commitment of the Longhorns' 2018 recruiting class last weekend during a visit to Austin for a Texas junior day. The news made waves among recruiting fans around the country, with Watkins flipping his commitment from Florida State shortly after stepping foot on the UT campus. It turns out, Watkins knew before he ever boarded his plane to Austin that he would be a Longhorn.
The Ocala (FL) Vanguard standout had pretty much given indication to the UT coaches that he was going to add his name to the Texas commitment list, and he said his friends back home even knew of his plans.
"They already knew I was going to commit," Watkins said when asked if his friends in Florida gave him any grief for switching his pledge. "I kind of gave them a heads up."
The 6-0, 160-pound Watkins has been in close contact with the Texas staff for a while, and once he spent some time with the UT coaches during the Longhorns' junior day, he said it was a pretty easy decision to change his commitment.
"It was easy when I actually came to see that this place is really what they had been telling me," Watkins said. "I was already leaning.
"I just feel like this is the best fit for me, the right place. I’m going to stand out here. I’m from Florida. I want to stand out, so this is going to be the right place to make me stand out. I want to be that different player on the offense."
A dynamic playmaker who can impact a game in a variety of ways, Texas plans to use Watkins as a slot receiver, as a running back and in the return game on special teams.
As the first commitment in the Texas class, Watkins is ready for some other prospects to follow his lead.
"It feels good. It feels great," Watkins said. "I’m sure a couple other guys are going to commit soon now that I’ve committed."
Prior to his Texas pledge, Watkins had been committed to LSU and then Florida State. Prior to leaving Austin, Watkins posted on Twitter that his Texas pled would be his "last and final commitment" and he felt the same way shortly after making his commitment official.
"I’m done with recruiting ... I’m with Texas," Watkins said.
Ranked No. 60 nationally, Watkins is a four-star prospect and the nation's No. 4-ranked athlete. During his Texas visit, Watkins spent some time with current Texas players and also got some advice from a Longhorn legend.
"I talked to Jerrod (Heard). I talked to a couple guys, the d-end (Roach). They just told me coach Herman, he’s a great guy. I saw Vince Young, he said coach Herman, he’s a guy who is going to take care of you, later in life," Watkins said. "He’ll help you find a job and things like that. That’s what I’m really looking into."
Watkins is hoping to return to Austin in April for the Longhorns' spring game, where he'll have an opportunity to recruit other prospects on UT's radar.
"I'm looking forward to helping this program any way I can," he said.
