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Ketch's 10 Thoughts From The Weekend (Making a few bold predictions...)

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Following a weekend that proved to be fairly tame by the stands of the last six weeks or so, why not just throw myself to the wolves?

There can be no other explanation for what I'm about to do other than I'm a glutton for punishment and I just haven't had enough lately (well, with the exception of a few hard-core Texas baseball followers).

By my count, 10 of the top 20 uncommitted prospects on my recently updated LSR Top 100 list for the Class of 2022 have yet to make decisions.

I figured, not only would I make predictions on all 12 of the uncommitted prospects, but I'd enter in an official Rivals.com FutureCast in the process.

*Gulp*

It's the ultimate game of shoot the messenger and I'm not wearing a vest.



Prediction: Texas A&M

This feels like one of the worst-kept secrets in recruiting. Almost from the second that Alexander de-committed from Georgia, the expectations from almost everyone across the country were that he would end up at Texas A&M. Of course, Alexander will take his time, explore his options and that did include a recent trip to Austin. Yet, the lure of playing in the SEC and being able to stay close to home in doing so is going to be a tough combo to beat.



Prediction: Alabama

I've had Harris penciled into Texas since February, but I have to admit my confidence in the pick has been shaken. There are a lot of reasons to believe that the Longhorns could have a hard time closing the deal with Harris. For now, I'm putting my chips on an SEC team.



Prediction: Texas

Did you know that I'm the only one in the Rivals network that has made a FutureCast on Campbell? I'm not sure what that means other than no one else feels confidence in making any kind of pick, let alone one to Texas, but I'm out there on that island by myself.



Prediction: Ohio State

I've long thought that Dewberry would end up at Texas A&M, but the Ohio State buzz has been non-stop for the last month or so and it's easy to see why because Dewberry has made no bones about the fact that he really likes the Buckeyes. The Aggies could very well turn the momentum of this one around during the season, but this Ohio State thing with Dewberry is not some kind of unthought-out whim.



Prediction: Texas

It's rare when a kid that de-commits from a school actually re-commits, but I think the Longhorns are the favorite and I think when it is all said and done, Sark convinces him that he can be his DeVonta Smith.



Prediction: Alabama

Abor had such a good visit to Alabama in June that one of our Alabama recruiting experts (Andrew Bone) put in a FutureCast to the Tide. If not the Tide, it would probably be Oklahoma, but at this point I'll go with the school he last raved about, calling it "different" than everyone else.



Prediction: Texas A&M

Perhaps Perkins isn't as locked into A&M as we all thought entering the spring, but I'm not sure who I would flip my prediction over to. This still feels like a very safe bet. Keep an eye on Florida.



Prediction: Texas A&M

I'm prepared for the tomatoes being lobbed my way. I get it. I just can't ignore the ominous cloud that is Anderson twice backing off of commitment dates that seemed primed for a Texas announcement. All of my Spidey senses are going off. This feels like a 55-45 type deal in either direction, but I can't help but feel like if he really wanted to pull the string for the Longhorns, he could have done so and it could/would help the program significantly from statement-making standpoint. I might flip this pick in a week or two, but I'm not going to lie to you and tell you there's nothing to worry about. As someone mentioned to me over the weekend, "Do you really think he's not going to be at the Alabama game in College Station during the season after visiting both schools last month?"



Prediction: Texas A&M

This is a bit of a wild stab in the dark because making a stab in the dark is about the only thing anyone can do with Thompson at the moment. His recruitment will be decided in the fall, but the Longhorns are very squarely in the mix. It's just a guess at this point.



Prediction: Texas

Consider this one another stab into the blind unknown. It could easily be Texas A&M or Oklahoma when the dust settles, but the Longhorns probably need Bledsoe as much as anyone, a fact that could end up being the biggest deciding factor. Maybe this is where Bo Davis does his thing.

No. 2 - About the hiring process ...

In an effort to provide a little transparency to the work going on behind the scenes, I wanted to provide some insight into our search to fill several positions on the Orangebloods staff.

After receiving nearly 250 resumes over the course of the last month, I cut that list down considerably following July 4 and spent a lot of time last week interviewing three dozen candidates for a variety of jobs. Over the course of the next week, there are a few others that I want to have conversations with, but I'm starting to put together a bit of a plan that I feel very good about.

Things you should know ...

a. Although there are a couple of candidates I still need to talk with, the hire I plan to make with a special focus on football recruiting is going well and I'm really pleased with where we stand. This is a position that I'm hoping to wrap up in the near future, but I'm still vetting a few candidates and have several follow-up calls scheduled for this week.

b. I suppose I could have my mind changed if one specific scenario I'm exploring came to fruition, but at this point I'm not planning on hiring someone to cover both basketball and baseball together. It's too tough of a task when the two sports are playing at the exact same time in February/March and it flies in the face of what I'm exploring to do with the coverage of both sports. I've got what I believe are some really, really good options on the basketball front. One of the areas that most concerns me is making sure that we aren't naked on the basketball recruiting side of things, even if the team coverage outside of recruiting is top-notch. There's no single area of my search that includes me exploring as many possibilities as I am on the hoops front.

c. Other areas that I'm looking to address - steps that elevate our Youtube channel and coverage of all sports on the site.

d. Let's just talk baseball for a moment. No website or media outlet in this market has invested more than Orangebloods has in the last decade-plus towards sensational baseball coverage ... and it's not even close. In reality, Dustin McComas should have been involved in a lot more football and football recruiting coverage because those are the areas that 80 percent of Orangebloods has historically told us where it wants investment of our resources directed. Believe me, we explored the hell out of the idea of doing exactly that. However, it was just too important for both of us that he remained in a position to cover baseball full-time because the sport matters. You guys need to know that it's not some silly accident that outside of possibly Kendall Rogers, we've had the best college baseball coverage of anyone on the planet in the last decade. Finding the person who follows that kind of legacy takes time to map out. They don't just fall out of trees. It might take me some time to map out exactly what I want to do, which means filling this position might take the most time to fully accomplish my goals. With all due respect to the ongoing MLB Draft and the movement of transfers, there is no way that I was going to find the right replacement for this position by August 1, and by the time we hit that date the sport will likely keep a fairly low profile for the rest of the year. Of course, I'm not going to wait until the end of the year to have a decision in place, but I'm also in no rush to make a decision to meet an urgent finish line when it isn't remotely needed.

e. When all of this ends, you're likely going to find a supersized list of contributors to the site that is close to twice as large as anything we've ever had before. Stay tuned.

No. 3 - Blake deserves his own damn section...

It's flown a little under the radar, but @BlakeSkaggs is officially an Orangebloods full-time staff member as of today after graduating from college last month.

Although he will continue to contribute as a content provider with The 41st Acre, his main area of focus for is going to be with sales, marketing, social media and the official Orangebloods.com tailgate.

Help me give him an attaboy. He's going to do great things here and we're going to keep him very busy.

No. 4 - The little strange NIL cloud that won't go away ...

Where are all of these deals for athletes across the country that don't involve selling t-shirts out of the back of a car, shooting birthday videos on Cameo for someone's significant other or a school promoting a story for the headline and not because any kids actually got paid something besides lunch money?

As I wrote on Thursday night in the Texas Card House War Room, I'm expecting more deals to be announced in the next week once the Texas compliance office has fully vetted any deals that are turned into it, but I still expected to see more announcements across the country.

This thing has been a big snooze-fest thus far. Hell, not even the SEC has done anything worthy of a real headline yet.

No. 5 - Five things I'm looking for at this week's Big 12 media days...

a. Lots of NIL discussion among all of the players and coaches on hand. It'll be the first time we've heard from someone like Mike Gundy since the whole thing went live on July 1.

b. I'm just curious as to the vibe Steve Sarkisian projects on Thursday and whether he fully engages with any questions about the recent losses in recruiting.

c. Hello, Bijan Robinson. This is exactly why you came to Texas. Be that guy.

d. ESPN will have multiple SEC coaches in its studios on Wednesday and Thursday. It happens every year. Prepare yourself for the shouts of anger.

e. Is the best quarterback at Big 12 media days actually Oklahoma State's Spencer Sanders or TCU's Max Duggan? Is that the worst headlining quarterback duo at Big 12 Media Days in the history of the conference?

No. 6 - Just enjoy...



No. 7 – BUY or SELL …

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(Sell) Did it even ruin last week? I think the cries that the world is coming to an end are very overplayed.



(Sell) I don't think it's that many. I'm certainly not ready to put an offensive lineman on that list.



(Sell) Let's not make a bad guy out of the best single natural resource that Texas has at its disposal.



(Sell) I've sold almost all of my BJ Foster stock. I'm holding on to a little, but it's been a long time since I've seen him play at a very high level.



(Sell) I'd probably hold three, unless the recruits in their place are of the low four-star and high-three star variety. I'm not expecting Texas to save three spots.



(Buy) It feels like a sucker bet that I'm going to feel stupid for taking, but BUY!



(Sell) I'm just not expecting Texas to be a top-10 team and that's basically what you just described.



(Sell) With all due respect to Wright, what exactly do you believe he'd be saving at that point?



(Sell) Perhaps in other states like California, but not in the state of Texas. It's been full speed ahead for a while now.



(Buy) 100 percent.



(Sell) I don't know if you're Texas that you'll ever "expect" to recruit 50-percent of your talent from out of state. It isn't something Texas should do unless it's for elite-level talent. When in doubt, I'd always take a three-star from Texas over a low four-star from outside of the state (except in rare circumstances) because the success rate for each is so close that you're better off investing in your in-state infrastructure.

Why would be Miley be skanky? She's a 28-year-old multi-millionaire with all of the money and the means to make sure she's the exact opposite. She's mostly been in a long-term relationship for most of the last 10 years. She's never been in rehab ... never been arrested .... never really been tabloid fodder the way so many other pop stars have been.

Maybe you can explain it better because if you think she's skanky, I'd like to introduce you to a number of football players you've rooted for over the years with a reckless abandon that more than earned such a nickname.



(Sell) Meh. I just don't see it.



(Sell) It'll be at least a touchdown.



(Buy) I expected this class to be in the conversation for a top-five class (or higher) recruiting class and it is not headed in that direction.

No. 8 - Scattershooting on the sports weekend...

... Suns in 5.

... The biggest story of the weekend was Leo Messi getting his first major trophy on the international stage. Good for him. It was hard not to root for him.

... Italy beating England in penalties was cruel. It's hard for me to knock three really young players for missing penalties in the situations that they did. I really have no idea what Gareth Southgate was thinking when he asked a 17-year-old to take his final kick? Wow.

... Team USA lost to Nigeria in hoops. 🤷‍♂️

... For those of you that purchased the Conor McGregor fight, did you honestly expect more? It's been five-plus years since he's won a fight that matters. In addition to being a sleazy person, he only cares about cashing checks at this point in his career. It was always going to end with him broken in the Octagon.

... You'll forgive me if I wanted zero part of a UFC card that features McGregor and Greg Hardy.

... I've never really given Novak Djokovic the same kind of due that I give Nadal and Federer. I pretty much have to at this point, huh? The dude has earned it.

No. 9 - Top 10 NFL Wide Receivers of All-time ...

Damnit, let's just argue.

10. Andre Johnson
9. Tim Brown
8. Julio Jones
7. Marvin Harrison
6. Michael Irvin
5. Terrell Owens
4. Calvin Johnson
3. Larry Fitzgerald
2. Randy Moss
1. Jerry Rice

No. 10 - And Finally ...

I wanted to take one final moment today to announce that on July 9, the Orangebloods Benevolence Foundation wired $25,000 to the University of Texas to fund the Jim Stacey Excellence Fund for Texas Football. Nearly 100 people came together to donate the funds for this campaign and the university has executed a written agreement to formalize the fund.

Special shout out to @echeese, @pdhitt, @PeakAttys, @drunk randoke and @joeywa. It was probably joeywa's vision that kick-started the entire idea, but everyone on this list put a lot of sweat into making it a reality.

Way to go, Orangebloods.

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No one seems happy that I have Texas getting Campbell and Stewart! Those are 2 five stars!

Stretch to call Stewart a five star. I say that based on Rivals' 5.9 4-star ranking. But to your point, sure, it'd be great. I do have a gnawing feeling we lose out on Campbell. Granted, that might just be punch drunk from following OL recruiting in recent years, particularly last season. But it just seems like it.
 
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Fred Belitnikoff
Bob Hayes
Wesley Walker
Lance Alworth
Stanley Morgan

And on and on for the guys that played under the old rules. The contemporary WRs, I’m not sure how many would have had such long careers and stats back in the day? Some of them belong on the top 10, but so do some of the earlier pros.
Other than tackling the WR I don’t even know what “pass interference is anymore!
 
(Sell) I don't know if you're Texas that you'll ever "expect" to recruit 50-percent of your talent from out of state. It isn't something Texas should do unless it's for elite-level talent. When in doubt, I'd always take a three-star from Texas over a low four-star from outside of the state (except in rare circumstances) because the success rate for each is so close that you're better off investing in your in-state infrastructure.

Yep. If the HC at Texas EVER has to sign at least 50% of his classes on the reg from OOS then he isn't long for this job. Because it for sure means he's getting his ass kicked up and down in recruiting.
 
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Amazing how much the recruiting calendar has changed since then.
What's amazing is that Mack really thought they would be shitty on the field in 1998.

The word going around that summer was that he was taking kids that summer because they were worried after the season that no one would want to come there.

He didn't know what he had in Ricky and some of those monsters that Mackovic left him.
 
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Stretch to call Stewart a five star. I say that based on Rivals' 5.9 4-star ranking. But to your point, sure, it'd be great. I do have a gnawing feeling we lose out on Campbell. Granted, that might just be punch drunk from following OL recruiting in recent years, particularly last season. But it just seems like it.
He's be a 5-star by every service by September IMO.
 
Yes. He is. He whopped Deion Sanders' ass when he was with the Falcons and 49ers.
He should see what he did to Rod Woodson.

I still have the Thanksgiving game from 1991 on VHS. Few all-time great players have ever been worked as bad as Irvin worked Woodson that day.
 
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Not sure how many people remember this about Irvin but his Dallas career started in decidedly pedestrian average. He battled some injuries but he obviously also played on some REAL crap Dallas teams in seasons 1-3 ('88 to '90), where the QB play was less than stellar. Then in year 4, he sort of muddled his way through the first half or so of the season where he mixed in the occasion good game with a bunch of duds. Then in late November, the light switch literally came on and he lit up Darrell Green and the defending champs in RFK leading Dallas to an upset. THat was the start of a 5-game stretch to finish the regular season where Irvin was absolutely dominant as Dallas went 5-0 to make the playoffs. The rest is history.
 
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He should see what he did to Rod Woodson.

I still have the Thanksgiving game from 1991 on VHS. Few all-time great players have ever been worked as bad as Irvin worked Woodson that day.

He torched Darrell Green the week before which jumpstarted his career.
 
It's not a new thing. I know it's not cool around here, but I still think Texas wins out in the end.

Has ZERO to do with being "cool." It has to do with the reality of the current state of recruiting for Texas. Maybe we DO get Harris, but one has to be blind AF to not see that this is pretty much the textbook example of the type of recruitment we simply have lost the overwhelming number of times going back who the hell knows how long.
 
He should see what he did to Rod Woodson.

I still have the Thanksgiving game from 1991 on VHS. Few all-time great players have ever been worked as bad as Irvin worked Woodson that day.
No matter who covered Michael Irvin, Aikman was never afraid to throw his way.
 
He torched Darrell Green the week before which jumpstarted his career.
That stretch in 1991 was the best I've ever seen a Dallas receiver play. He was tremendous in future seasons, but he was manhandling all-time greats for sport in 1991.

Mike actually had a decent little rookie season. Caught three touchdowns and put it on Darrell Green (a regular occurrence) in a late season win, but then he tore his ACL.

Started to show flashes in 1990 a full year removed from the injury and then became a damn beast in 1991.
 
Not sure how many people remember this about Irvin but his Dallas career started in decidedly pedestrian average. He battled some injuries but he obviously also played on some REAL crap Dallas teams in seasons 1-3 ('88 to '90), where the QB play was less than stellar. Then in year 4, he sort of muddled his way through the first half or so of the season where he mixed in the occasion good game with a bunch of duds. Then in late November, the light switch literally came on and he lit up Darrell Green and the defending champs in RFK leading Dallas to an upset. THat was the start of a 5-game stretch to finish the regular season where Irvin was absolutely dominant as Dallas went 5-0 to make the playoffs. The rest is history.
I remember...
 
Ok, I'm going to play your game re the top WR of all time. I like your list, but I think you ranked TO too high - he's super athletic and had great stats but I never thought he was that great of a technical WR. Tim Brown, Andre Johnson and Julio Jones are all kind of interchangeable to me. I like Deandre Hopkins a lot because he's never had sustained time with a great QB but always has great production.

10. Terrell Owens
9. Deandre Hopkins
8. Julio Jones
7. Andre Johnson
6. Michael Irvin
5. Marvin Harrison
4. Calvin Johnson
3. Larry Fitzgerald
2. Randy Moss
1. Jerry Rice
No Deon Sanders? I would have had him in the top 5.
 
What's amazing is that Mack really thought they would be shitty on the field in 1998.

The word going around that summer was that he was taking kids that summer because they were worried after the season that no one would want to come there.

He didn't know what he had in Ricky and some of those monsters that Mackovic left him.


Yep. I remember well that recruiting narrative in the summer of '98.
 
1991

vs. Darrell Green - 9 for 130 and as TD
vs. Rod Woodson - 8 for 157 and the game-winning touchdown
vs. Saints - 5 for 101
at Philly (maybe the most important game for the Cowboys in the first three years of Jimmy) - 5 for 92 yards and a touchdown
vs, Deion - 10 for 169 yards and a touchdown

That was a 5 week stretch. Manhandled three of the best players that ever played CB for 27 catches for 453 yards and 3 TDs

almost all of it without Aikman. And no Alvin Harper yet as a starter to take pressure off.
 
That stretch in 1991 was the best I've ever seen a Dallas receiver play. He was tremendous in future seasons, but he was manhandling all-time greats for sport in 1991.

Mike actually had a decent little rookie season. Caught three touchdowns and put it on Darrell Green (a regular occurrence) in a late season win, but then he tore his ACL.

Started to show flashes in 1990 a full year removed from the injury and then became a damn beast in 1991.

No doubt. But overall, before that late November '91 game at RFK, his career 3.5 seasons was much more of a mixed bag of some good games sprinkled in with a lot of meh. AGain, not a lot of his fault given the crap around him and the injury. But even in the 3 games immediately prior to the career-changer in RFK, he only had a combined 14 catches for 184 yds and one TD. Over the 5 games after he caught 37 passes for 650 yds and 4 scores. If you look at his career arch, that game in RFK is the one that got him on track to stardom.
 
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No doubt. But overall, before that late November '91 game at RFK, his career 3.5 seasons was much more of a mixed bag of some good games sprinkled in with a lot of meh. AGain, not a lot of his fault given the crap around him and the injury. But even in the 3 games immediately prior to the career-changer in RFK, he only had a combined 14 catches for 184 yds and one TD. Over the 5 games after he caught 37 passes for 650 yds and 4 scores. If you look at his career arch, that game in RFK is the one that got him on track to stardom.
Irvin always played his best games against Philly and the Redskins. He thrived for the rivalries.
 
No doubt. But overall, before that late November '91 game at RFK, his career 3.5 seasons was much more of a mixed bag of some good games sprinkled in with a lot of meh. AGain, not a lot of his fault given the crap around him and the injury. But even in the 3 games immediately prior to the career-changer in RFK, he only had a combined 14 catches for 184 yds and one TD. Over the 5 games after he caught 37 passes for 650 yds and 4 scores. If you look at his career arch, that game in RFK is the one that got him on track to stardom.
That 1991 game at RFK is mostly remembered by me for Jimmy's YOLO attitude during the game. You had the onside kick and the Hail Mary.

The next week, I very much remember this as the Michael Irvin Game. National TV against Rod Woodson with no Aikman and Irvin just pistol-whipped him all game. He catches the long touchdown pass (66 yards, I believe) and they showed Irvin's entire family losing its shit at Texas Stadium.

One of my favorites performances of all-time.
 
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That 1991 game at RFK is mostly remembered by me for Jimmy's YOLO attitude during the game. You had the onside kick and the Hail Mary.

The next week, I very much remember this as the Michael Irvin Game. National TV against Rod Woodson with no Aikman and Irvin just pistol-whipped him all game. He catches the long touchdown pass (66 yards, I believe) and they showed Irvin's entire family losing its shit at Texas Stadium.

One of my favorites performances of all-time.

I remember that onside kick. Wasn't it to start the 2H or something? Nonethless Jimmy Johnson was in full river-boat gambler mode.
 
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