The first day of the early signing period went off without any real surprises for the Texas Longhorns, with all of the UT commitments sending in their letters of intent in the morning hours. The second day of the three-day window brought some excitement, with Texas landing a surprise commitment from linebacker Jaylan Ford. The Frisco Lone Star standout had been committed to Utah, but decided last week to flip his commitment to the Longhorns and the University of Texas announced the news on Thursday morning after Ford sent in his letter of intent to make his commitment official.
When news of Ford’s signing broke, it looked as though it was something that had come together very quickly. It turns out, the wheels had been in motion on this one for a few weeks.
“It’s been since November (that Texas had been talking to him). I want to say coach (Jeremiah) George, one of the interim coaches, he came to my school, him and coach (Tim) Beck. They came to my school, said they watched my film and liked it,” Ford said. “That same week, like two day later, coach (Tom) Herman gave me a call and we had a long talk. That’s when they offered.”
Ford did a good job of keeping the news of Texas’ interest under wraps. In fact, in early December, he told OB that he hadn’t been talking to the UT staff. At the time, Lone Star was still alive in the Texas state playoffs and Ford said he wanted to remain focused on his team’s playoff run. Once Lone Star’s season came to an end on December 14, Ford began to focus on his upcoming decision and he didn’t finalize his decision to commit to Texas until Tuesday of last week.
“It was really right before I was going to go sign. At that point, football is over, I finally had some time to sit down and think. The day I didn’t sign, the first day of signing day, I had to call Utah and Texas. It was a little bit chaotic,” Ford said.
Interestingly, Utah and Texas have had a back-and-forth recruiting cycle, with two former UT commitments signing with the Utes and Ford going the other direction, from a Utah commitment to a Texas commitment. For Ford, there were several reasons that led him to Austin.
“Texas is such a prestigious school as far as education goes, and the football program. And the fans. Just everything about it is prestigious,” Ford said. “What really did it, there was never anything wrong with Texas, I was just thinking about if I did go to Utah, how often would the people, like my family, be able to see me play?”
Up next, Ford will take his Texas official visit the weekend of January 24. The 6-3, 220-pounder feels he has a skill set that can transfer over to the collegiate level, including his mental grasp of the position.
“I played middle linebacker for a few years now, but as far as linebackers go, I feel like I’m a true linebacker. I have good instincts, had a really good coach, have been able to pick up things from him and learn offenses, just be a student of the game,” Ford said. “I have an ability to read plays and recognize stuff quicker than most. Then obviously be strong enough to play the position.”
