Is Texas losing ground with Shemar Turner?
Do you agree that one TE ( Davis) is enough in this class and we need to allocate that scholly to off or Def line?
I don’t think so with Shemar Turner. There’s been some Alabama buzz of late but I think most of that is conjecture and maybe due in part to Texas not having a lot of splashy momentum right now. When I spoke to Turner earlier this month, he was still very high on Texas and hadn’t even trimmed his list. He still hasn’t, but that should happen soon and I’d be shocked if the Longhorns didn’t make the cut. Remember, Turner visited Texas twice this spring before the pandemic hit, and he told me a few weeks ago that staying close to home was something he’ll strongly consider. The competition for Turner was always going to be tough with some big-time national programs in the race, but Texas is still in a decent spot from what I know.
Good question on the tight end. Texas did take two very good ones two years ago in Jared Wiley and Brayden Liebrock (who redshirted last year), so there is young talent on the roster. But I do think taking two in this class would be ideal, especially if one was more of a receiver that could flex out and do some things in the passing game. When Davis committed, I was told he was more of a “jumbo athlete” than a true tight end so adding a more traditional tight end would still be a good move.
Do we HAVE to go 5-0 to generate more recruiting momentum? I think a close loss to one of LSU/OU still looks good for us.
I agree with you. Obviously, 5-0 would be ideal for Texas but I think 4-1 with a competitive non-conference loss to LSU would still be enough to generate momentum. A loss to Oklahoma may be a bit tougher to overcome since it’s later in the season and it could put Texas in a hole in the race for the conference championship.
Does anyone standout as a particularly good interview in this class?
Jalen Milroe is always a fantastic interview and very personable, but he’s kind of backed off on doing as many updates. Hayden Conner is really good, Jordon Thomas was great when I finally tracked him down after he committed. A guy who rarely talks but is actually very good is Savion Byrd.
Bijan, Wheaton, Johnson. In order of who you would recruit.
I’d start with Bijan because I love his versatility and he’s such a high-character guy. To be clear, I’m not saying there are any character issues with Camar Wheaton or LJ Johnson at all, it’s just that Bijan is just such an impressive young man. Wheaton would be just a hair behind Bijan for me because I love his explosiveness, then Johnson. But if you’re a college coach at any program, you’re thrilled to get any one of those three.
What recruit wanted the most money?
Not touching that one, but it'll surprise nobody that he's playing in the SEC.
Does signing Lakeview Centennial DT Ikechukwu Iwunnah really matter in the recruitment, and potential signing of Camar Wheaton, would that help Texas sign Wheaton?
Which younger RB would you like to see Texas sign more, El Campo RB Rueben Owens or El Paso Burges RB Tavorus Jones?
Knowing what I know about Wheaton though, he strikes me as a kid who is going to do what’s in his best interest and not get wrapped up in any talks of being a package deal. Landing Ikechukwu Iwunnah certainly wouldn’t hurt UT’s chances with Wheaton, but I’d be surprised if it moved the needle much. I’m actually slated to talk to Iwunnah on Tuesday afternoon, so I’ll have a better feel for your first question after that.
Tavorus Jones just put out his 2019 season highlight video a couple days ago so I’m guessing you’ll start seeing his offer list blow up (Alabama did just offer). They’re very similar players in my estimation and their track numbers are nearly identical, so I guess I’d slightly favor Rueben Owens since he’s a year younger and has one more year to develop. You can’t go wrong with either though.
What is the realistic ceiling and floor for this recruiting class? If the wheels come off and the season goes sideways, how much harm will that do for the 2022 class?
This can still certainly be a top-five recruiting class, but that would mean some of the key pieces like the Brockermeyer brothers and someone like Camar Wheaton (among others) would wind up in the class. As far as the floor, it’s hard to see a scenario where Texas wouldn’t finish in the top 20, but I guess that’s possible if a number of the current three-star offers were to commit to UT and didn’t get rankings bumps over the course of the next six months.
And yes, if the season goes sideways, it would certainly be harmful for the 2022 class. Needless to say, this is a huge year for Tom Herman and his staff.
Did you ever think recruiting would be in the tank like this after the fire start to this class last summer?
Saying recruiting is “in the tank” is a bit harsh. Texas doesn’t have a ton of recent momentum, but people sometimes forget about guys like Ja’Tavion Sanders, Billy Bowman, Hayden Conner and Jalen Milroe because they committed so early. But to answer the question, I did not see Texas losing so much momentum after the way things started. Not being able to host recruits on campus to get to know the new coaches and see the new schemes has been a bigger hurdle than I expected.
Jason, have you seen anything so far that leads you to believe that fewer recruits will sign in December this year and more will sign in February 2021?
I haven’t heard any recruit specifically mention waiting until February to sign because of the pandemic, but I am fully expecting that. It makes a lot of sense for guys who are going to have a hard time getting all their visits in before the December signing period.
When you talk to undecideds or commits elsewhere, how many are saying they are open to commit here if we do well on the field? I mean how big of a difference does a B12 champ and playoff berth mean to them?
I’ve had a few guys mention that they’re taking a bit of a wait and see approach with Texas, but not a ton. The obvious ones are the Brockermeyer brothers … James and I talked last week about their interest in seeing how Texas does in the fall.
How is Texas doing with Ketron Jackson?
I need to check in with Jackson, but there’s confidence from people inside the program in their standing with the Rivals250 receiver. The staff, including Tom Herman, has been in close contact with him and I believe did a virtual meeting with him last week. I do think this is one where the current dead period has hurt Texas though. Jackson has been unable to visit since UT offered, whereas he was able to go to places like Arkansas, Texas A&M and Baylor earlier in the spring. Remember, Jackson told me when Texas first offered that Texas was the school he’d been a fan of since he was about three years old.
Is the current class underrated due to corona related complications? If this was a normal year with camps etc then some of our 3 stars would be 4 stars? Since everything is so different for players, coaching staffs, recruiting evaluators then there is a high probability that star rankings will be significantly less accurate than normal.
Good question. There certainly haven’t been any opportunities to evaluate players at camps or spring ball (other than the Rivals Houston camp), so the rankings this year aren’t as “thorough” as they’ve been in previous years. I’m sure there will be necessary adjustments on guys in the fall and while I think some guys could get rankings bumps, I’m not sure I’d say the class is underrated overall.
As you get a feel for the character, temperament, and personality, walk us through the questions or rubric you use to figure out who they are. Building upon that, what are the main categories of recruits and how does the recruitment of each type generally play out?
There’s really no cookie cutter formula I use in interviewing guys. It’s really just based on feel and their personalities. Some guys, like a Ja’Quinden Jackson, are straight down to business when we talk so it’s just a back and forth Q&A. Others, like a Jalen Milroe, there’s more back and forth talk about things other than recruiting and/or football. As far as categories, there aren’t too many … the personable kids, the kids who just want to get to the meat and potatoes of the interview, the kids who never talk, and the kids who will only do text or DM interviews. You just have to figure out what works with each type and sometimes find sources other than the recruit himself.
Texas Goes 4-1 and loses to LSU or OU in a close game to start the year. How many of the state’s top 20 players do they land? Who is the other RB this year for Texas and what OL do they land?
If I’m going off Ketch’s LSR list, and we’re assuming Texas is 4-1 with only a close loss to LSU on the ledger, give me the following out of the top 20: Tommy Brockermeyer, Ja’Tavion Sanders, Billy Bowman, Jalen Milroe, Savion Byrd (wildcard pick), Shemar Turner, JD Coffey, James Brockermeyer, JoJo Earle (wildcard pick) and Hayden Conner. Camar Wheaton and Bryce Foster would be in the discussion as well.
Right now, it’s either Camar Wheaton or LJ Johnson for the second running back spot. Other targets could emerge, but those are the main ones on the board right now. As for which offensive linemen Texas lands, that question comes up a lot and it’s a really tough one to answer right now. Texas is certainly within striking distance on a lot of guys like Tommy and James Brockermeyer, Savion Byrd and Bryce Foster, but I’m not sure I’d call the Longhorns the outright leader for any of those guys. Missing out on the two Arizona linemen who committed to Oregon is a bit of a hit.
Should Texas have hired more assistant coaches that were recruiters or did they hire the right guys that can develop?
These guys all know how to recruit, it’s just that their hands are currently tied. If the coaches can develop talent and ultimately win on the field, recruiting will be just fine.
Who is the first commit of the 22 class?
You have to figure it’ll probably be someone from the state of Texas. I can’t think of any guys who have told me they plan on committing very early, especially with nobody allowed to take visits, so it’s tough to call. I mentioned recently that Landon Hullaby would make sense since his brother is an incoming freshman, so I’ll stick with that pick.
Can you explain how schools make so many offers but keep kids from accepting them? Please provide as much detail as possible. I’ve seen other explanations that don’t answer this question. They just use vague phrases like “slow play” or “non-commitable offers” without explaining what that means or how this works. Thanks
Alabama is the king of extending “non-committable” offers, so let’s use them as an example (although they’re not too far ahead of Texas with 188 offers out compared to 144 for UT).
When they offer a kid, it’s basically an offer to come to their campus for a visit, or to attend a camp. Unless it’s a true blue-chip, they’re not going to take a commitment from a prospect without doing an in-person evaluation. But by offering early, they’ve at least put their name into the mix and increased the likelihood that the player will at some point get to campus for a visit.
Tom Herman has said in the past that if Texas offers, it is a committable offer. I think he’s starting to lighten his stance on that a bit with the new assistants. Basically, by “slow-playing” a kid, you’re not recruiting him as aggressively as you are the kids you want to take commitments from. Say, for example, Texas has two safeties on its board that it feels really good about. The staff may have offered five other guys, but they’re not recruiting them as “aggressively” and not pushing those other players to commit. They may touch base with them from time to time with a quick text message just to keep things warm, but they’re probably not doing zoom meetings with those “second tier” guys where several coaches are in attendance, they’re not pushing them to attend games in the fall, they’re not setting up official visits, etc.
Where it becomes tricky is if one of those players decides – usually without even having visited – he wants to give a commitment. At that point you can either take his verbal commitment or tell him maybe it’s better to wait until you all get a chance to sit down in person and get a better feel for one another. Fortunately, most kids can kind of get a feel for if the coaches that are recruiting them will accept their commitment so it’s not a problem too often.
