Gun to your head, who do we end up with at RB this year?
You might find me saying this a lot right now, but I just don’t know. For the past few weeks, ever since speaking to Jase McClellan after his official visit, I’ve felt the Longhorns’ chances there were much better than most realized. And I’ve been told that people inside the OU program are genuinely concerned over the possibility of losing him. If I’m having to pick one, I’d go with him over guys like Bijan Robinson and Zachary Evans.
Evans is and will continue to be a wildcard until he signs his letter of intent. Bijan Robinson appears to be trending strongly towards Ohio State with him set for an August decision. While he doesn’t strike me as the type of young man who is going to be flippant with his decision, if Texas really turns it on this fall and Ohio State struggles, he would take notice. I feel confident in that.
In 3 words, describe OB crowd?
In 3 words, why can’t we land a 5 star?
In 3 words, why can’t we land a RB?
Good one …
In 3 words, describe OB crowd? … passionate, unique, united
In 3 words, why can’t we land a 5 star? ... recent wins/losses
In 3 words, why can’t we land a RB? … championships, specific scenarios
How many more commits do we have before practice starts?
All the talk of some huge June and July appears to have been overblown. Texas did pick up two commitments this week (one from the 2021 class) but I’m not expecting a huge flood of commitments in July and August. Chris Thompson seems like a pretty safe bet. Chad Lindberg is a strong possibility and guys like Vernon Broughton are still in play. If I’m putting an over/under on 2020 commitments in July, I’d set it at 1.5.
Why is Texas struggling to successfully recruit and land that ELITE running back and defensive linemen?
There are a variety of factors that go into play here, and really, no recruit is exactly like another. By and large, a few things are hindering UT’s overall efforts.
At the running back position, Texas hasn’t exactly had a recent run of a dominant running game. Even when the Longhorns had D’Onta Foreman going for 2,028 yards in 2016, it was for a team that went 5-7. People around Austin were certainly well aware of Foreman’s efforts, but a guy like Bijan Robinson was probably barely paying attention. On top of that, other schools have pointed to Texas’ reliance on the QB run game in the past couple years, and it’s probably resonating with some backs.
If we’re talking defensive line, Texas’ scheme (which features a lot of 3-man fronts) has been used against the Longhorns this year by schools like Texas A&M, and it is having an impact. Oscar Giles has found some good talent towards later in each cycle, but the bottom line is that he has missed on some key d-line targets and he has to absorb some of the blame as well.
Do you expect any more July commitments?
Chris Thompson Jr. is a possibility but I’m not sure even he will announce in July. He could carry things over to August. Vernon Broughton is a possibility, although he doesn’t have a firm date and right now I probably wouldn’t pick Texas.
Does the Texas staff have a plan that it is confident in at running back for 2020?
Same question for DL.
I’m not sure what exactly the plan is, but if there’s one thing I can say comfortably about this staff, it’s that it always has a recruiting plan. More than any other UT staff I've covered, this group always does its homework and covers its bases.
Is Drayton on the hot seat? Seriously, who has he delivered?
I’m thinking Ingram only signed here because Texas was his dream school as a kid.
He couldn’t get a talented runner like Toneil Carter ready to play.
Switching gears: Herman make a huge mistake letting Jeff Traylor go? He’s killing it for Arky recruiting East Texas.
I don’t have the answer to what Tom Herman is thinking about his assistants, but after how glowingly he spoke of Drayton when he was first hired, my guess is that he’s not yet on the hot seat. Remember, we’re still in July of the recruiting cycle … let’s see how the rest of this year plays out. Now if Texas fails to land a premier back, and if the ground game struggles this fall, that could certainly change things.
As for Jeff Traylor, he was always a very good recruiter from the day he made the jump to the collegiate ranks, especially in East Texas. That area is a bit of a natural recruiting ground for Arkansas so it plays into Traylor’s strengths, but I can’t really think of any players from East Texas that Arkansas has stolen away from Texas.
Do we land 25+ commits in this year’s class?
I’m not expecting this class to be that large.
Is the preference to play 4-3 compared to 3-4 for guys like Leal and Broughton a reasonable take or more a recruiting tactic that we’ve failed to counter effectively?
I lean towards the latter. I can certainly see how a young player would be enamored with the idea of playing in a four-man front, especially a defensive end who falls in love with the idea of having one-on-one match-ups on the edge. But the fact is the game is changing, a lot of NFL teams favor versatile defensive linemen and playing in a system like Texas’ where a lineman can showcase his ability in both 3-man and 4-man fronts could help a player’s NFL stock. Texas has to combat that and has done a good job doing just that, per guys like Princely Umanmielen and Vernon Broughton.
Do you agree with the lack of Texas buzz at recent Rivals camp? Is it as “shocking” to you as the other analysts were quoted as saying so?
***Warning*** Skip this answer if you’re a glass-half-empty type
I have to admit, while in Atlanta for the 5-Star Challenge, I was surprised by the number of players who were mentioning schools like Oklahoma, Texas A&M and LSU – three of UT’s biggest regional recruiting rivals. You expect to hear schools like Georgia and Alabama mentioned often, but quite a few players were wearing gear representing schools like A&M (and equally surprising, a TON of Florida State gear), while there wasn’t much Texas representation to be found. Some of that was obviously due to UT not having a commitment at the event, but I’d be lying if I said there was a ton of Texas chatter. Remember, most of the guys there (like Mookie Cooper, Bryson Washington) are likely not going to wind up at Texas so it was a bit of a result of which players were in attendance as much as anything else.
Which two recruits on offense and defense that are committed elsewhere will UT continue to push hard for until NSD?
If Texas misses on Lathan Ransom and Bijan Robinson, they’d be on the list. But if we’re talking about players who are currently committed, give me Jase McClellan and Dominic Richardson on offense. It gets a little tougher on defense, but I’ll go with LB Josh White and then I’ll throw in Ryan Watts, although I honestly don’t think anything will happen with UT and Watts.
Has the Herman staff made deep enough connections throughout the state that high school coaches contact them about their top players early in the recruiting process (freshman and sophomore years)? Usually the young studs become the blue chips ...
I can’t say if high school coaches are actively reaching out to promote their younger players (I’m sure it happens quite a bit), but yes, this staff has done a good job of establishing connections and earning the respect of high school coaches in the state. That’s not an issue.
Now that Ransom is Columbus bound, Texas should get on Jerrin Thompson. Actually, it’s a tad puzzling why the staff wasn’t on him earlier. Thoughts?
What’s the path for flipping Jase McClellan?
What is Chad Lindberg waiting on? He has to know we need all the juice we can get esp. with Vernon nearing a decision.
Achane, Jordan, Cooper and Dixon... all candidates for H-WR. I have Achane to aggy. Cooper and Dixon have committed. Jordan could go SoCal. I’m under the belief Texas could flip Dixon and/or Jordan in the fall. But, this LV Bunkley-Shelton kid looks like an excellent prospect. Thoughts?
Hullaby is going to start at LB’er. The Whitehead kid killed it at the Opening, but we all know he’s a Georgia offer away. What are you hearing on Josh White? Any hope? I would think step one is getting him in on an OV for LSU followed by step 2... beating the Tigers.
Johnston... please tell me Texas is recruiting the hell out of him. This kid is the perfect Z-WR. Wilson being the perfect X-WR.
What’s the latest on Jahari Rogers?
Thompson pulls the trigger before August. He knows we need some momentum.
Whew, lots to digest. Here we go ...
Now that Ransom is Columbus bound, Texas should get on Jerrin Thompson. Actually, it’s a tad puzzling why the staff wasn’t on him earlier. Thoughts? - Thompson’s a tough one to figure out. He had talked about committing on July 6 but that obviously didn’t happen. Early on, there was some thought that LSU might land him but he never visited. Texas hasn’t been in the picture, which I can only assume is due to the staff’s early confidence in guys like Chris Thompson and (at the time) Lathan Ransom and Bryson Washington. With Thompson still on the market, it might be worth Texas gauging his interest. I’ve reached out to him to see if there’s been any contact but haven’t heard back.
What’s the path for flipping Jase McClellan? – Win a bunch of games in the fall.That was pretty much what McClellan told me when I spoke with him recently.
What is Chad Lindberg waiting on? He has to know we need all the juice we can get esp. with Vernon nearing a decision. – Lindberg has ALWAYS said he may wait until late in the summer or beyond and he wasn’t going to force his decision. All this talk about him committing to UT super early was way overblown by others, IMO. And he’s not near the slam dunk to Texas everyone thinks he is.
Achane, Jordan, Cooper and Dixon... all candidates for H-WR. I have Achane to aggy. Cooper and Dixon have committed. Jordan could go SoCal. I’m under the belief Texas could flip Dixon and/or Jordan in the fall. But, this LV Bunkley-Shelton kid looks like an excellent prospect. Thoughts? – Achane is a tough one to figure because he really hasn’t even invested himself into the recruiting process yet. I honestly don’t have a good feel for what he’s thinking. I do think Texas could flip Kelvontay Dixon and possibly Ty Jordan (if Jordan commits to USC). Bunkely-Shelton is a bit different than most of those guys in that he’s more of a true slot receiver (who can also play outside), but I’m sold after seeing him at the Five-Star Challenge. He does have some academic work to do though.
Hullaby is going to start at LB’er. The Whitehead kid killed it at the Opening, but we all know he’s a Georgia offer away. What are you hearing on Josh White? Any hope? I would think step one is getting him in on an OV for LSU followed by step 2... beating the Tigers. – Hullaby has been told he’ll start out on offense, but that’s probably yet to be decided. On Josh White, I’ve never been given the impression that he’s a likely flip. Beating LSU would help, but everything I’ve heard is that he’s pretty solid with his decision.
Johnston... please tell me Texas is recruiting the hell out of him. This kid is the perfect Z-WR. Wilson being the perfect X-WR. – Texas is definitely making Quentin Johnston a priority. He’s visited a couple times already and will likely be back a couple more, including an official.
What’s the latest on Jahari Rogers? - Not much new to report there. In my recent talks with him, I still favor UT’s position over Florida.
Thompson pulls the trigger before August. He knows we need some momentum. – Not sure if it will be before August, but I do like where Texas stands there.
How many beers in are you and how much was the bonus @Ketchum paid you to start this thread?
No beers yet, but with the negative tone of these questions, I may have to start drinking soon.
B/S: Stan Drayton is legitimately on the hot seat if he misses out on Robinson, Evans and McClellan?
Not sure, honestly. If Keaontay Ingram and Jordan Whittington go out this year and tear it up, that’ll alleviate a lot of concerns. As would a commitment from Camar Wheaton, who is as good as any of those backs you mentioned.
If Texas strikes out with Bijan Robinson, Zachary Evans, and Jase McClellan are there any under the radar 2020 targets Texas is looking at?
I’m sure the staff has a number of other backs on its board, but those names really have not yet surfaced yet and there’s been no real movement that I’m aware of with “under the radar” backs. Those guys could pop up in the fall. Ty Jordan and Dominic Richardson are still in the mix, but those guys aren’t really every-down backs like the ones you mentioned.
Does Herman just not push for early commits and let the process play out or is UT really struggling this year like most OB posters think? Reason for asking is the early momentum seemed to be big for UT with a number of kids but very few commits. If memory serves me right Herman closed with a fury right before signing dates.
This staff generally does a good job with both early recruiting and in closing, so I wouldn’t panic just yet. But if I’m being honest, it’s not that Texas isn’t necessarily pushing for early commitments, it’s just that the staff has missed on a few guys like Bryson Washington, Troy Omeire, Mookie Cooper, etc. Regardless, this will still be a very good class when the dust settles.
Simple question: what is the elephant in the room in regards to recruiting? I respect that you can’t be too detailed but can you give insight?
It’s really not anything too sexy, in my opinion. You have to remember, this Texas program has been mediocre or worse for most of these recruits’ lives, and since the years when most of these players were in middle school, Texas has really been a non-factor in the conference scene, much less the national scene. Tom Herman and his staff have UT heading in the right direction and a 10-win season last year definitely helped, but there are a lot of bad memories that need to be done from the previous regime in these recruits’ most formative years. The Longhorns SHOULD be a national power, but Texas doesn’t quite carry that weight just yet. Another step forward in the way of a Big 12 title and being in consideration for the CFP would probably change that and you’d see the Longhorns dominating recruiting year in and year out. It also doesn’t help when OU has been so successful with a young coach and a potent offense, and A&M bringing in a coach who is known to be a terrific recruiter and has a national championship under his belt (plus has the advantage of being able to sell playing in the SEC).
Basically, winning trumps everything. Texas under Herman is making progress after the program was put in a hole, but there’s still some work to be done.
B/S: Other programs pay (or have 3rd parties who pay) for the best recruits, but TX doesn’t play that game, which is part of the reason why we see so many confusing late stage shifts from strong leader to bridesmaid in the recruitments of high 4*s and 5*s?
Mostly buy. I can’t speak to what other programs specifically do, but you’re correct that Texas absolutely does not play that game. And there are instances, in my opinion, when it’s absolutely not a level playing field, although it’s not nearly as often as fans like to think.
Are Lindberg and Thompson the next two to commit this month???
If I’m guessing on the next two commitments, those would be the two I’d pick (I’d feel more strongly about Thompson than Lindberg), but there’s a very real chance that both could take it beyond this month. As of this week, Lindberg doesn’t have any sort of timetable and Thompson has only said he’d like to have a decision sometime this summer.
Obviously it’s way too early but what is the percent chance the Horns land both Brockermeyer AND Savion Byrd?
That might as well say “both Brockermeyers AND Savion Byrd” since if you get one Brockermeyer, you’re almost certainly getting the other. Right now, I’d put it at greater than 50 percent since I have Texas as the leader for all three, but I have never felt the Brockermeyers were the stone-cold locks others have indicated. Do I think Texas leads? Absolutely. But the family is also doing its homework on several schools.
@Suchomel -Of the recruits who once had us at or near the top of their list and are now projected elsewhere, which are we most likely to have a chance to get back in with if we start 6-0 or 5-1?
You could pretty much pick any of them … Bryson Washington, Vernon Broughton (if you believe he’s projected elsewhere), Jase McClellan, Princely Umanmielen and Bijan Robinson could all fall into that category.
You might find me saying this a lot right now, but I just don’t know. For the past few weeks, ever since speaking to Jase McClellan after his official visit, I’ve felt the Longhorns’ chances there were much better than most realized. And I’ve been told that people inside the OU program are genuinely concerned over the possibility of losing him. If I’m having to pick one, I’d go with him over guys like Bijan Robinson and Zachary Evans.
Evans is and will continue to be a wildcard until he signs his letter of intent. Bijan Robinson appears to be trending strongly towards Ohio State with him set for an August decision. While he doesn’t strike me as the type of young man who is going to be flippant with his decision, if Texas really turns it on this fall and Ohio State struggles, he would take notice. I feel confident in that.
In 3 words, describe OB crowd?
In 3 words, why can’t we land a 5 star?
In 3 words, why can’t we land a RB?
Good one …
In 3 words, describe OB crowd? … passionate, unique, united
In 3 words, why can’t we land a 5 star? ... recent wins/losses
In 3 words, why can’t we land a RB? … championships, specific scenarios
How many more commits do we have before practice starts?
All the talk of some huge June and July appears to have been overblown. Texas did pick up two commitments this week (one from the 2021 class) but I’m not expecting a huge flood of commitments in July and August. Chris Thompson seems like a pretty safe bet. Chad Lindberg is a strong possibility and guys like Vernon Broughton are still in play. If I’m putting an over/under on 2020 commitments in July, I’d set it at 1.5.
Why is Texas struggling to successfully recruit and land that ELITE running back and defensive linemen?
There are a variety of factors that go into play here, and really, no recruit is exactly like another. By and large, a few things are hindering UT’s overall efforts.
At the running back position, Texas hasn’t exactly had a recent run of a dominant running game. Even when the Longhorns had D’Onta Foreman going for 2,028 yards in 2016, it was for a team that went 5-7. People around Austin were certainly well aware of Foreman’s efforts, but a guy like Bijan Robinson was probably barely paying attention. On top of that, other schools have pointed to Texas’ reliance on the QB run game in the past couple years, and it’s probably resonating with some backs.
If we’re talking defensive line, Texas’ scheme (which features a lot of 3-man fronts) has been used against the Longhorns this year by schools like Texas A&M, and it is having an impact. Oscar Giles has found some good talent towards later in each cycle, but the bottom line is that he has missed on some key d-line targets and he has to absorb some of the blame as well.
Do you expect any more July commitments?
Chris Thompson Jr. is a possibility but I’m not sure even he will announce in July. He could carry things over to August. Vernon Broughton is a possibility, although he doesn’t have a firm date and right now I probably wouldn’t pick Texas.
Does the Texas staff have a plan that it is confident in at running back for 2020?
Same question for DL.
I’m not sure what exactly the plan is, but if there’s one thing I can say comfortably about this staff, it’s that it always has a recruiting plan. More than any other UT staff I've covered, this group always does its homework and covers its bases.
Is Drayton on the hot seat? Seriously, who has he delivered?
I’m thinking Ingram only signed here because Texas was his dream school as a kid.
He couldn’t get a talented runner like Toneil Carter ready to play.
Switching gears: Herman make a huge mistake letting Jeff Traylor go? He’s killing it for Arky recruiting East Texas.
I don’t have the answer to what Tom Herman is thinking about his assistants, but after how glowingly he spoke of Drayton when he was first hired, my guess is that he’s not yet on the hot seat. Remember, we’re still in July of the recruiting cycle … let’s see how the rest of this year plays out. Now if Texas fails to land a premier back, and if the ground game struggles this fall, that could certainly change things.
As for Jeff Traylor, he was always a very good recruiter from the day he made the jump to the collegiate ranks, especially in East Texas. That area is a bit of a natural recruiting ground for Arkansas so it plays into Traylor’s strengths, but I can’t really think of any players from East Texas that Arkansas has stolen away from Texas.
Do we land 25+ commits in this year’s class?
I’m not expecting this class to be that large.
Is the preference to play 4-3 compared to 3-4 for guys like Leal and Broughton a reasonable take or more a recruiting tactic that we’ve failed to counter effectively?
I lean towards the latter. I can certainly see how a young player would be enamored with the idea of playing in a four-man front, especially a defensive end who falls in love with the idea of having one-on-one match-ups on the edge. But the fact is the game is changing, a lot of NFL teams favor versatile defensive linemen and playing in a system like Texas’ where a lineman can showcase his ability in both 3-man and 4-man fronts could help a player’s NFL stock. Texas has to combat that and has done a good job doing just that, per guys like Princely Umanmielen and Vernon Broughton.
Do you agree with the lack of Texas buzz at recent Rivals camp? Is it as “shocking” to you as the other analysts were quoted as saying so?
***Warning*** Skip this answer if you’re a glass-half-empty type
I have to admit, while in Atlanta for the 5-Star Challenge, I was surprised by the number of players who were mentioning schools like Oklahoma, Texas A&M and LSU – three of UT’s biggest regional recruiting rivals. You expect to hear schools like Georgia and Alabama mentioned often, but quite a few players were wearing gear representing schools like A&M (and equally surprising, a TON of Florida State gear), while there wasn’t much Texas representation to be found. Some of that was obviously due to UT not having a commitment at the event, but I’d be lying if I said there was a ton of Texas chatter. Remember, most of the guys there (like Mookie Cooper, Bryson Washington) are likely not going to wind up at Texas so it was a bit of a result of which players were in attendance as much as anything else.
Which two recruits on offense and defense that are committed elsewhere will UT continue to push hard for until NSD?
If Texas misses on Lathan Ransom and Bijan Robinson, they’d be on the list. But if we’re talking about players who are currently committed, give me Jase McClellan and Dominic Richardson on offense. It gets a little tougher on defense, but I’ll go with LB Josh White and then I’ll throw in Ryan Watts, although I honestly don’t think anything will happen with UT and Watts.
Has the Herman staff made deep enough connections throughout the state that high school coaches contact them about their top players early in the recruiting process (freshman and sophomore years)? Usually the young studs become the blue chips ...
I can’t say if high school coaches are actively reaching out to promote their younger players (I’m sure it happens quite a bit), but yes, this staff has done a good job of establishing connections and earning the respect of high school coaches in the state. That’s not an issue.
Now that Ransom is Columbus bound, Texas should get on Jerrin Thompson. Actually, it’s a tad puzzling why the staff wasn’t on him earlier. Thoughts?
What’s the path for flipping Jase McClellan?
What is Chad Lindberg waiting on? He has to know we need all the juice we can get esp. with Vernon nearing a decision.
Achane, Jordan, Cooper and Dixon... all candidates for H-WR. I have Achane to aggy. Cooper and Dixon have committed. Jordan could go SoCal. I’m under the belief Texas could flip Dixon and/or Jordan in the fall. But, this LV Bunkley-Shelton kid looks like an excellent prospect. Thoughts?
Hullaby is going to start at LB’er. The Whitehead kid killed it at the Opening, but we all know he’s a Georgia offer away. What are you hearing on Josh White? Any hope? I would think step one is getting him in on an OV for LSU followed by step 2... beating the Tigers.
Johnston... please tell me Texas is recruiting the hell out of him. This kid is the perfect Z-WR. Wilson being the perfect X-WR.
What’s the latest on Jahari Rogers?
Thompson pulls the trigger before August. He knows we need some momentum.
Whew, lots to digest. Here we go ...
Now that Ransom is Columbus bound, Texas should get on Jerrin Thompson. Actually, it’s a tad puzzling why the staff wasn’t on him earlier. Thoughts? - Thompson’s a tough one to figure out. He had talked about committing on July 6 but that obviously didn’t happen. Early on, there was some thought that LSU might land him but he never visited. Texas hasn’t been in the picture, which I can only assume is due to the staff’s early confidence in guys like Chris Thompson and (at the time) Lathan Ransom and Bryson Washington. With Thompson still on the market, it might be worth Texas gauging his interest. I’ve reached out to him to see if there’s been any contact but haven’t heard back.
What’s the path for flipping Jase McClellan? – Win a bunch of games in the fall.That was pretty much what McClellan told me when I spoke with him recently.
What is Chad Lindberg waiting on? He has to know we need all the juice we can get esp. with Vernon nearing a decision. – Lindberg has ALWAYS said he may wait until late in the summer or beyond and he wasn’t going to force his decision. All this talk about him committing to UT super early was way overblown by others, IMO. And he’s not near the slam dunk to Texas everyone thinks he is.
Achane, Jordan, Cooper and Dixon... all candidates for H-WR. I have Achane to aggy. Cooper and Dixon have committed. Jordan could go SoCal. I’m under the belief Texas could flip Dixon and/or Jordan in the fall. But, this LV Bunkley-Shelton kid looks like an excellent prospect. Thoughts? – Achane is a tough one to figure because he really hasn’t even invested himself into the recruiting process yet. I honestly don’t have a good feel for what he’s thinking. I do think Texas could flip Kelvontay Dixon and possibly Ty Jordan (if Jordan commits to USC). Bunkely-Shelton is a bit different than most of those guys in that he’s more of a true slot receiver (who can also play outside), but I’m sold after seeing him at the Five-Star Challenge. He does have some academic work to do though.
Hullaby is going to start at LB’er. The Whitehead kid killed it at the Opening, but we all know he’s a Georgia offer away. What are you hearing on Josh White? Any hope? I would think step one is getting him in on an OV for LSU followed by step 2... beating the Tigers. – Hullaby has been told he’ll start out on offense, but that’s probably yet to be decided. On Josh White, I’ve never been given the impression that he’s a likely flip. Beating LSU would help, but everything I’ve heard is that he’s pretty solid with his decision.
Johnston... please tell me Texas is recruiting the hell out of him. This kid is the perfect Z-WR. Wilson being the perfect X-WR. – Texas is definitely making Quentin Johnston a priority. He’s visited a couple times already and will likely be back a couple more, including an official.
What’s the latest on Jahari Rogers? - Not much new to report there. In my recent talks with him, I still favor UT’s position over Florida.
Thompson pulls the trigger before August. He knows we need some momentum. – Not sure if it will be before August, but I do like where Texas stands there.
How many beers in are you and how much was the bonus @Ketchum paid you to start this thread?
No beers yet, but with the negative tone of these questions, I may have to start drinking soon.
B/S: Stan Drayton is legitimately on the hot seat if he misses out on Robinson, Evans and McClellan?
Not sure, honestly. If Keaontay Ingram and Jordan Whittington go out this year and tear it up, that’ll alleviate a lot of concerns. As would a commitment from Camar Wheaton, who is as good as any of those backs you mentioned.
If Texas strikes out with Bijan Robinson, Zachary Evans, and Jase McClellan are there any under the radar 2020 targets Texas is looking at?
I’m sure the staff has a number of other backs on its board, but those names really have not yet surfaced yet and there’s been no real movement that I’m aware of with “under the radar” backs. Those guys could pop up in the fall. Ty Jordan and Dominic Richardson are still in the mix, but those guys aren’t really every-down backs like the ones you mentioned.
Does Herman just not push for early commits and let the process play out or is UT really struggling this year like most OB posters think? Reason for asking is the early momentum seemed to be big for UT with a number of kids but very few commits. If memory serves me right Herman closed with a fury right before signing dates.
This staff generally does a good job with both early recruiting and in closing, so I wouldn’t panic just yet. But if I’m being honest, it’s not that Texas isn’t necessarily pushing for early commitments, it’s just that the staff has missed on a few guys like Bryson Washington, Troy Omeire, Mookie Cooper, etc. Regardless, this will still be a very good class when the dust settles.
Simple question: what is the elephant in the room in regards to recruiting? I respect that you can’t be too detailed but can you give insight?
It’s really not anything too sexy, in my opinion. You have to remember, this Texas program has been mediocre or worse for most of these recruits’ lives, and since the years when most of these players were in middle school, Texas has really been a non-factor in the conference scene, much less the national scene. Tom Herman and his staff have UT heading in the right direction and a 10-win season last year definitely helped, but there are a lot of bad memories that need to be done from the previous regime in these recruits’ most formative years. The Longhorns SHOULD be a national power, but Texas doesn’t quite carry that weight just yet. Another step forward in the way of a Big 12 title and being in consideration for the CFP would probably change that and you’d see the Longhorns dominating recruiting year in and year out. It also doesn’t help when OU has been so successful with a young coach and a potent offense, and A&M bringing in a coach who is known to be a terrific recruiter and has a national championship under his belt (plus has the advantage of being able to sell playing in the SEC).
Basically, winning trumps everything. Texas under Herman is making progress after the program was put in a hole, but there’s still some work to be done.
B/S: Other programs pay (or have 3rd parties who pay) for the best recruits, but TX doesn’t play that game, which is part of the reason why we see so many confusing late stage shifts from strong leader to bridesmaid in the recruitments of high 4*s and 5*s?
Mostly buy. I can’t speak to what other programs specifically do, but you’re correct that Texas absolutely does not play that game. And there are instances, in my opinion, when it’s absolutely not a level playing field, although it’s not nearly as often as fans like to think.
Are Lindberg and Thompson the next two to commit this month???
If I’m guessing on the next two commitments, those would be the two I’d pick (I’d feel more strongly about Thompson than Lindberg), but there’s a very real chance that both could take it beyond this month. As of this week, Lindberg doesn’t have any sort of timetable and Thompson has only said he’d like to have a decision sometime this summer.
Obviously it’s way too early but what is the percent chance the Horns land both Brockermeyer AND Savion Byrd?
That might as well say “both Brockermeyers AND Savion Byrd” since if you get one Brockermeyer, you’re almost certainly getting the other. Right now, I’d put it at greater than 50 percent since I have Texas as the leader for all three, but I have never felt the Brockermeyers were the stone-cold locks others have indicated. Do I think Texas leads? Absolutely. But the family is also doing its homework on several schools.
@Suchomel -Of the recruits who once had us at or near the top of their list and are now projected elsewhere, which are we most likely to have a chance to get back in with if we start 6-0 or 5-1?
You could pretty much pick any of them … Bryson Washington, Vernon Broughton (if you believe he’s projected elsewhere), Jase McClellan, Princely Umanmielen and Bijan Robinson could all fall into that category.
