Let's start things out with some random scattershots from the weekend ...
* Everyone can relax about the visitors from this weekend. Things appear to have gone exceptionally well.
* It's just a matter of time for former Clemson safety Andrew Mukuba.
* I'm continuing to hear good things and words of confidence with regards to Texas landing UTSA edge Trey Moore. One Alabama source I spoke with echoed those thoughts earlier today.
* 2024 McKinney safety Xavier Filsaime is announcing his final decision on NSD at 3 p.m. and none of us have heard anything to think this thing is going to be anything other than a Longhorns win. Hey, it'll help make NSD less boring than it might otherwise be had he just announced a flip today. Thanks, Xavier!
* Yes, Orangebloods will have someone in attendance at his ceremony.
* If Longview Pine Tree defensive end Dealyn Evans flips from Texas A&M to Texas in the next six weeks, just know that no one (outside of maybe 247) has been higher on him throughout the entire recruiting process than me. He has exactly the kind of frame that projects ridiculously well from a historical level when it comes to players emerging into NFL-drafted players. At 6-4, 260 pounds, he has just the kind of non-Tweener frame you're looking for.
* Ole Miss might have landed a commitment from former South Carolina wide receiver Juice Wells, but for better or worse, the Longhorns never really showed any urgency in its pursuit of him. From the moment he hit the Portal, he was listed as the No.1 target from those actually in the Portal.
* The Longhorns would still like to add another receiver through the Portal, but it remains to be seen whether that happens in the early window, but I'm told that no one is remotely in panic mode. Stay tuned.
No. 2 - Let's talk wide receivers (2.0) ...
A week ago, the discussion about the wide receiver position centered on the fact that the Longhorns are light on experience and production coming into the 2024 season.
With only six scholarship wide receivers on the books coming into the weekend, the position obviously represents one that is a work in progress. Part of that work in progress was addressed on Saturday night when former Houston starter Matthew Golden committed to the Longhorns. That makes seven.
So, what does it all mean? Who projects as a starter? What is still needed? How is all of this going to work? Is there a No. 1 receiver on the roster?
Here's what the WR depth chart looks like before the 2024 incoming receivers arrive:
X: None
Z: Johntay Cook (So.)
Slot: DeAndre Moore (So.), Ryan Niblett (RS Fr.)
Here's how things could possibly/likely look when you add the three high school commitments and Golden:
X: Matthew Golden (Jr.), Ryan Wingo (Fr.), Parker Livingstone (Fr.)
Z: Johntay Cook (So.), Freddie Dubose (Fr.)
Slot: DeAndre Moore (So.), Ryan Niblett
When you consider that Golden has played on the outside for each of the last two seasons for Houston, it makes a lot of sense that he'll play opposite Cook at the X-position and probably split time with the true freshman Wingo. It's also important to remember that by the time the season starts, Wingo might have 40+ practices under his belt once you consider his practicing during bowl workouts, spring football and August camp.
So, what is Texas still missing?
It probably comes down to how the coaches feel about the "Z" and slot receivers. On paper, the Longhorns don't have an Adonai Mitchell-level receiver on the outside, but an Adonai Mitchell-level looked quite a bit different on paper 12 months ago than it does right now. Few teams in the country will have a better 1-2 punch than Texas' incoming 13-career receiving touchdowns transfer and a potentially outrageous true freshman.
If Cook holds down the "X" (no pun intended) spot as expected, then it probably comes down to a discussion about how comfortable the coaches are with what they have in the slot with two completely unproven second-year receivers in the 2023 recruiting class. While it might not make either player happy, you can absolutely make a case that bringing in a starting-level player in this position would make the team stronger/better.
Also, when you consider that the team might be up poop creek if an injury occurs to Cook, you could also argue for someone proven (to some degree) at the "X" spot. If the Longhorns land 2024 Rivals250 member Aaron Butler out of Calabasas, California, the added depth at the "X" is probably taken care of.
With the Longhorns likely to run more four-wide sets than they have in each of the last two seasons under Sarkisian because of the likely departure of Ja'Tavion Sanders, here's what the Longhorns could use from my perspective:
a. Someone to boost the talent level and numbers at "X"
b. Someone the coaches believe can replace Jordan Whittington in the slot without missing a beat.
c. Any wide receiver that the coaches believe would rank as a top-5 WR during the 2024 season.
Golden's commitment gives them a proven receiver opposite Cook and probably answered the biggest question about the position. He's going to offer up a different bag of skills at the "Z" than Mitchell, but different doesn't have to be worse by definition. From a productivity standpoint, Golden has been a more productive player than Mitchell at the same stages of their careers, even if Mitchell's big-game production can hardly be matched by anyone in the history of the sport.
No matter how you slice it, the Longhorns are almost certainly going to be young and unproven in the passing game, unless there's more Portal magic to be made.
No. 3 - The Final Frontier ...
In all of my nearly three decades covering recruiting and Texas football, I'm not sure I would have ever believed that the following two images could occur at the same time.
Image No.1 - Current Rivals 2024 Team Recruiting Rankings
Image No.2 - Current Rivals 2024 State of Texas Rankings
Somehow ... some way ... the Texas Longhorns have emerged as a favorite in the college football playoffs and are on the verge of posting a second consecutive top-3 recruiting class ...
And ...
And ...
The Longhorns are doing all of this while not dominating the state of Texas in recruiting. The numbers are fascinating.
* Only 1 of the state's top 5 players is committed to Texas
* Only 2 of the state's top 10 players are committed to Texas (it will become 3 if/when Xavier Filsaime flips to the Longhorns)
* Only 2 of the state's top 24 players are committed to Texas (it will become 3 if/when Filsaime flips to the Longhorns)
I know what you're thinking. Rivals sucks. Rivals hates Texas.
Well, it's not just Rivals. Here's a look at 247's state of Texas rankings:
* None of the state's top 5 players is committed to Texas
* Only 1 of the state's top 10 players is committed to Texas (it will become 2 if/when Filsaime flips to the Longhorns)
* Only 2 of the state's top 42 players are committed to Texas (it will become 3 if/when Filsaime flips to the Longhorns)
In case, you're wondering, here's a look at ON3's state of Texas rankings:
* Only 1 of the state's top 5 players is committed to Texas
* Only 1 of the state's top 10 players is committed to Texas
* Only 2 of the state's top 25 players are committed to Texas (it will become 3 if/when Filsaime flips to the Longhorns)
Maybe it just doesn't matter if you can cherry-pick the states of Colorado, Louisiana, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Utah and Hawaii for the best prospects in those states, but if there's a baby nitpick of Sarkisian's program through three seasons, it's that the in-state recruiting success doesn't look much better than it did in 2021 when Tom Herman was partly fired for having only one top-10 commit and two top-25 commits for the 2021 class.
I'm not making a big deal out of it (hell, I've slotted this discussion in section three of the column), I'm just pointing it out as a thing that exists and needs improving on, primarily because things in 2025 don't look terribly different. The Longhorns don't lead for any of the 4 five-star prospects that Rivals announced this week and you'd say they probably lead for only two of the top 10 in the state.
For whatever reasons, winning in the state of Texas has become the final frontier for Sarkisian and his staff. We'll see if playing in the playoffs and possibly winning a national championship helps him conquer it.
No. 4 - Winner of winners ...
There are a lot of reasons to like incoming 5-star edge Colin Simmons, but perhaps none bigger than his ability to rise up in a big moment.
A year ago in the state championship game against North Shore, Simmons took over the game in the fourth quarter with the entire world watching and wondering if he could/would live up to his enormous hype. Fast-forward 52 weeks later and Simmons was back at it on Saturday in another state title game.
Three sacks and a forced fumble later, Simmons departs his high school football career with back-to-back state titles and performances in championship games that will be remembered for years.
There have been five-star defensive prospects from the state of Texas that have won state titles over the years, but I'm not sure that I can remember a player that has ever carved out quite the high school legacy that Simmons will arrive on the 40 Acres with as he begins the next phase of his career. Only a loss to North Shore in the state title game of his sophomore year will keep him from arriving as the Cedric Benson of defensive recruits, but Simmons is the closest thing we've ever seen of such a thing.
Some guys have elite talent. Some guys are great players. Some guys are winners and have all of the intangibles. Some guys show up for big games. Some guys are great dudes. Simmons is all of these things.
It's time to begin the next phase of what has been a pretty storybook career thus far.
2023
2022
No. 5 - Hot Take: OU Matters Less Moving Forward ...
I don't mean for this to feel like the column's Stephen A. Smith Hot Take of the Day, but it's something that's been in my head for a while ... OU isn't going to matter as much in the future that awaits Texas football in the SEC.
Don't get me wrong. The weekend in Dallas will still be a hell of a good, important time. The rivalry will always exist. The hatred from north of the Red River will always run hot.
Yet, Texas is going from a world where the Sooners were widely considered the favorite to win the conference that Texas was in for two-plus decades to one where I'm not sure the Sooners will ever win a title. Just how important can a rivalry be if the stakes of the game are fairly limited on an annual basis?
When I was a student at Texas in the mid-90s, the OU game was always really important until the game was over. Once everyone left the stadium - win, lose or tie (hello, 1995!) - the game stopped mattering. The Aggies became the center of everyone's focus because they stood in the way of what Texas ultimately was trying to accomplish.
Moving forward, I have a hard time believing life will be much different than it was in the mid-90s.
Whatever Texas football becomes in the future, the Sooners will likely have only a sentimental role in it all. OU is no longer the mountain that Texas needs to climb. If the Longhorns are vying for a spot in the expanded playoffs, OU won't be an annual roadblock. Frankly, it works the other way as well. An OU win over Texas in the future doesn't mean that one foot is in the conference title game. It'll just mean that it won't have used one of its two get out of jail cards that it will have at its disposal each year.
If you think I'm wrong, just wait until next season when Georgia is waiting for Texas at DKR seven days after the Red River Rivalry.
Texas/OU will still matter. It's just going to matter a lot less than it has for the last 25 years.
No. 6 - In case you were wondering ...
Here's a look at the Rivals Top 20 Portal prospects.
No. 7 – An all-time great championship run …
Texas didn't just win the national championship in volleyball on Sunday.
What really happened is that the Longhorns emphatically made a statement that there's not a single team in America that truly belongs on the same floor as them.
Texas started by beating No. 1 seed Stanford in four sets in Stanford’s crib last week. It continued on Thursday when the Longhorns defeated No. 1 seeded Wisconsin in a dominant four-set beatdown. It concluded on Sunday when the Longhorns obliterated No. 1 Nebraska in a three-set sweep that was so one-sided you had to wonder whether the real Huskers players had been kidnapped.
Nope, that was just Texas revealing them to not be worthy of sharing the same stage.
Holy hell, where did this come from? A month ago, the Longhorns were struggling to seemingly stay interested against some of their Big 12 competition, as dropping a set or two to begin a match had become part of the normal routine. When the playoffs started, it felt like a trip to the regional finals might be the smartest bet. You couldn't have seen this coming in the win over Texas A&M to begin the Tournament or even in the regional semi-final against Tennessee when the Vols were serving for match point.
Yet, from that scary moment in the fourth set against the Vols, the Longhorns won 11 of their final 13 sets against the Vols, Cardinal, Badgers and Huskers.
It was as if the Longhorns became Rocky Balboa against Clubber Lang in the second fight. They weren't getting hurt, they were getting mad!
None seemed to be more mad than Madisen Skinner, who morphed into a volleyball version of Vince Young after he had been snubbed of the Heisman Trophy. That's three out of the last four national titles for Skinner, who is building an all-time great resume.
It's hard to imagine that any team has ever defeated three straight No. 1 seeds the way that the Longhorns did over the last three matches. At times, these games were barely competitive and these were supposed to be the teams everyone was supposed to be afraid of. Instead, the Longhorns became the nightmare that will haunt the dreams of their opponents.
What remains for the Longhorns is the first repeat champion in the program's history and one of the best runs of any non-swimming sport in recent school history.
No. 8 – BUY or SELL …
(Buy) I'm picking the Longhorns to win this game, partly because I think Ewers is going to have a monster game.
(Buy) Yes.
(Sell) Although I've heard nothing roughly official on the mater, I'm expecting him to go pro based on what I've heard from NFL Draft people who believe the injury won't hurt his stock much. On top of that, it's unclear when he'll be 100 percent for the 2024 season, so the smart money for the 2024 Longhorns is CJ Baxter.
(Buy) I think the Longhorns look good. Aeryn Hampton looks locked in. Try as Nebraska might, Brandon baker looks locked in.
(Meh) We'll see. Time is running out.
(Buy) It's not going to be easy, but let the good times roll. He'll be on campus in 2024 and it'll be on.
(Buy) Since 2008. Hell, maybe 2005.
(Sell) I'll believe it when I see it. Barion is the transfer's Portal's version of blue balls.
(Buy) Who else would we argue for at this point?
(Sell) Those dude's just aren't available.
(Buy) Even if I think the players might be used in a different arrangement, getting those players on the field all at the same time is 100-percent a goal of the staff.
(Buy) Without question. It'll be massively disappointing if things go backwards from here.
(Sell) Nope, not at this point.
(Sell) Personally, I still prefer the 2023 class to the 2024 class.
(Sell) Can't remotely say that right now. The No. 1 and No. 2 strengths on the team are at defensive tackle and wide receiver, which are two spots that are either unsolved or simply not as good on paper.
(Sell) Let's just let Ewers play 120 minutes. Can we do that?
(Sell) The in-state recruiting could be better. Just kidding. Things are pretty good at the moment.
(Buy) I suppose the competition would be Dan Lanning at Oregon, LSU's Brian Kelly and TCU's Sonny Dykes, right? That's advantage Sark.
No. 9 – Scattershooting on anything and everything …
... Kyle McCord leaving Ohio State for Syracuse feels like hustling backwards.
... It's so easy to love Bijan.
... As a Cowboys fan, I fully expected what happened in Buffalo on Sunday. Saw it coming from a mile away.
... Did Dalton Schultz save the season for the Houston Texans?
... Arthur Smith still sucks. Nothing has changed.
... I'm all for Aaron Rodgers throwing caution to the wind in coming back to play for this version of the Jets. What could go wrong?
... I've never felt more connected to Taylor than after this. Same, girl.
... Former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown graduated from Central Michigan on Saturday, Right on, Antonio.
... To be fair, it was raining...
... Are we ready to call Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a superstar?
... Get well, Kareem.
... Years of chasing Man City have programmed me to treat a draw as a loss as a Liverpool fan. There's no such thing as a good point, It's just two bad dropped points. Bah, humbug.
... Sorry, UFC. I fell asleep watching the Tech game and as I write this, I don't know who ended up winning that game.
... I've watched this video about 25 times.
No. 10 - The List: Best Songs of 2023 ...
Channeling my inner-Alex Dunlap, I went into the basement this week to out together my list of the top songs in 2023. Not just in one genre, but in five different genres and then a final Top 10 overall list.
I'm sure there will be disagreements or no-calling.
Let's do it.
Country
Honorable Mention: White Horse (Chris Stapleton), County Road (Margo Price), Cast Iron Skillet (Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit), Father's Son (Stephen Wilson Jr.), Need a Favor (Jelly Roll), Save Me The Trouble (Dan + Shay), 3 Feet Tall (Cole Swindell), If He Wanted To He Would (Kylie Morgan)
10. Fast Car (Luke Combs)
9. Next Thing You Know (Jordan Davis)
8. I Remember Everything (Zach Bryan and Kasey Musgraves)
7. Last Night (Morgan Wallen)
6. Heart Like a Truck (Lainey Wilson)
5. Sleep on my Side (Megan Moroney)
4. Loving You On My Mind (Chris Stapleton)
3. In Your Love (Tyler Childers)
2. If You Were Mine (Miranda Lambert and Leon Bridges)
1. Watermelon Moonshine (Lainey Wilson)
Pop
Honorable Mention:Houdini (Dua Lipa), bad idea, right? (Olivia Rodrigo), Not Strong Enough (boygenius, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus), This is Why (Paramore), Single Soon (Selena Gomez), You're Losing Me (Taylor Swift) and Super Shy (NewJeans)
10. CooCool (Róisín Murphy, DJ Oze)
9. Shy Boy (Carly Rae Jespen)
8. Red Wine Supernova (Chappell Roan)
7. Lana Del Rey (A&W)
6. Vampire (Olivia Rodrigo)
5. Is It Over Now? (Taylor Swift)
4. Dance The Night (Dua Lipa)
3. What Was I Made For? (Billie Eilish)
2. Get Him Back! (Olivia Rodrigo)
1. Flowers (Miley Cyrus)
R&B
Honorable Mention: Kill Bill (SZA), Love Language (SZA),Surprise (Chloe), Good Bye (Victoria Monet), Serious (Omarion), Good Good (Usher, Summer Walker and 21 savage), GLU (Usher), Da Girls (Ciarra), I'll Be on My Way (Shawn Stockton), Seven (Jung Kook, Latto), Masterpiece (Rueben Studdard) and Die For You (The Weeknd, Ariana Grande)
10. Nobody But You (Sonder and Jorja Smith)
9. Lipstick Lover (Janelle Monae)
8. ICU (Coco Jones)
7. 3 Boys (Omar Apollo)
6. Love Transaction (Tyrese)
5. Look My Way (Kevin Ross)
4. IYKYK (Alex Vaughn, Muni Long)
3. The Journey (H.E.R.)
2. Snooze (SZA)
1. On My Mama (Victoria Monet)
Rap/Hip-Hop
Honorable Mention
ut it on da Floor Again (Latto, Cardi B), JEALOUSY (Offset, Cardi B), Animal Flow (Ren), Just Relax (Lola Brooke), My House (Beyonce), Unavailable (Davido, Musa Keys, Latto), In Ha Mood (Ice Spice) and Princess Diana (Ice Spice, Nicki Minaj)10. Strike (Lil Yachty)
9. Meltdown (Travis Scott, Drake)
8. Patty Cake (Quavo, Takeoff)
7. Oh U Went (Young Thug Drake)
6. Demons (Doja Cat)
5. fukummean (Gunna)
4. I Know? (Travis Scott)
3. First Person Shooter (Drake, L. Cole)
2. Paint The Town Red (Doja Cat)
1. Hi Ren (Ren)
Rock
Honorable Mention: One More Time (blink-182)), Watch the World Burn (Falling in Reverse), Under You (Foo Fighters), Angry (Rollins Stones), Won't Take Me Alive (Dirty Honey), Rescued (Foo Fighters), The American Dream is Killing Me (Green Day), Panic Attack (Judas Priest), If You're Gonna Break My Heart (Inhaler), Love From The Other Side (Fall Out Boy), In My Head (Mike Shinoda, Kailee Morgue), Favourite Toy (Jazmin Bean), TK421 (Lenny Kravitz), The Narcissist (Blur) and Eyes Wide Shut (ILLENIUM, Avril Lavigne, Travis Barker)
10. I Got Heaven (Mannequin Pussy)
9. Ghosts Again (Depeche Mode)
8. Blame Brett (The Beaches)
7. Six Feet Under (Charlotte Sands)
6. Cry To Heaven (Creeper)
5. New York (The Kills)
4. Eat Your Young (Hozier)
3. Atomic City (U2)
2. Now and Then (The Beatles)
1. Sweet Sounds of Heaven (The Rollins Stones, Lady Gaga)
Overall Top 10
10. Watermelon Moonshine (Lainey Wilson)
My favorite country song of the year and this generation's Strawberry Wine.
9. The Returner (Allison Russell)
It's officially described as an Americana/Roots song. Whatever it is, it's a great song.
8. On My Mama (Victoria Monet)
THIS is the definition of a banger.
7. What Was I Made For? (Billie Eilish)
This song might win a Grammy, a Golden Globe and an Oscar. It's all on the table.
6. Get Him Back! (Olivia Rodrigo)
It's Olivia's year and you can't have a Top 10 without her being on it somewhere.
5. Flowers (Miley Cyrus)
Laugh all you want, but it became an anthem for self-love and it topped the year-end Radio Songs and Adult Pop Airplay charts, was the third most-streamed song in the United States on Spotify in 2023. and was iHeartRadio's most-heard song on the US radio in 2023, with over 1.4 billion audience impressions."
4. Now and Then (The Beatles)
I don't care how it was produced and included, it's a beautiful song. Give me more if they exist.
3. Sweet Sounds of Heaven (The Rolling Stones, Lady Gaga)
It's the best Stones song in... 40 years? I would pay money just to see the Stones and Gaga sing this in person? I'm not sure I would need anything else.
2. Paint The Town Red (Doja Cat)
It's the best pure rap song of the year and it might not even be close. It's the fastest solo female rap song to amass 100 million streams .
1. Hi Ren (Ren)
No song in years has moved me emotionally like this one. I've watched it over and over and over and over again. I've watched countless people watch the video. It's the struggle of good vs. evil inside the soul and it'll stay with me more in the future than any song that came out this year... by a mile.
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