Lots of recruiting notes from top Texas targets at last weekend's RCS Dallas Event, so let's jump right in ...
Five-star DT Marvin Wilson was everything you'd expect, looking very good in drills and dominating just about every one of his one-on-one reps.
Wilson told me his plans for spring trips are somewhat up in the air, but a stop in Austin is possible.
"I’m going to try to (visit UT) but most likely I’m not going to be hitting any spring games this year. I’m just kind of chilling out," Wilson said. "I may go to a couple spring practices but that’s about it.
"I’m looking probably at like a Texas (visit), Texas A&M, Baylor, Ohio State, Bama … all my contenders. But nothing is set up yet."
Wilson is currently at 27 scholarship offers but he said he's really only considering about 18 of those offers. He's working towards cutting his list and plans to release a top-10 at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge in June. During his senior season or immediately after, he'll cut it down to five.
What are the chances Texas makes the top 10?
“It’s a really big chance they’ll make it,” Wilson said.
Charlie Strong is very much involved in the recruitment of the nation's No. 1-ranked prospect and Houston Episcopal prospect. In fact, Wilson said he calls coach Strong directly a couple times per week.
“My relationship with coach Strong is really good. He’s a guy you can call any time," Wilson said. "He doesn’t want to be my coach, he wants to be my father figure.
“What I like with Texas, I’m a Texas guy. Everybody grows up watching Texas. Colt McCoy, Vince Young, everybody grows up watching Texas. So it’s just the background.”
There's a long way to go with this one, but Texas is in the fight and that's all you can really hope for at this point. (Suchomel)
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If Marvin Wilson wasn't the most impressive prospect at the RCS Dallas event, it was his teammate, offensive tackle Walker Little.
Little earned offensive line MVP in a crowded field and dominated every single rep he took in one-on-ones.
Texas was Little's very first offer and there was a time early on when the Longhorns were looking pretty good. But things seemed to cool off late in the fall and Texas slipped down Little's grouping of favorites. The Longhorns are climbing their way back up the list.
"I’ve been trying to build a relationship with the new offensive coordinator and O-line coach, especially coach (Matt) Mattox. We’ve been talking a lot," Little said. "I’ll be making a visit out there in a couple weeks for the spring game. I definitely want to get a feel for the program they’re running there and where I’d fit in.
"He recruited me when he was at Tulsa. So I got to meet him pretty early on but I don’t have much of a relationship with him yet. He’s definitely a lot more laid back than coach Wickline was. I like him, I like his style of play that he teaches. I think we’d be a good fit together."
Little measured in at 6-7 and 305 pounds at RCS Dallas and said Texas is still very much under consideration.
"They’re pretty high on my list. Throughout the fall, they kind of went off because we just didn’t communicate much," Little said. "They were trying to figure out their new offensive line coach and stuff but they’re definitely right back up there."
Along with the UT spring game visit, Little has visits to Ole Miss and Stanford scheduled for this spring. He may make other trips but they have yet to be scheduled.
Who is genuinely under consideration?
“A lot of the SEC schools and Big 12 schools are up there, just because they’re close to home and I’m comfortable with them. But I don’t really have a list yet to put out there,” Little said.
The Rivals100 OL said he'll put out a formal list this summer of 5-10 favorites. Right now, he's watching about 15 schools. Expect Texas, Ole Miss and Stanford to all make the cut.
Of note, Little's brother and sister currently attend Ole Miss, so the Rebels have an ace up their sleeve, but Little says that factor is being overblown.
“I’m pretty comfortable there but they’re just the same as all the other schools,” Little said. (Suchomel)
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Things can change in a hurry in recruiting and that's certainly been the case with wide receiver Tyrell Shavers. The Lewisville product checked in at 6-6 at a recent The Opening regional camp and clocked a 4.38 to go with his impressive size.
In the days following his performance at that camp, Shavers picked up offers from Texas A&M, Georgia, Miami and Alabama. This week, after the Texas coaches got a chance to meet with each other to discuss him, the Longhorns extended a scholarship offer as well.
"I like it a lot. It’s a little overwhelming but I’m enjoying it," Shavers said of the attention.
The 200-pound Shavers said "everyone is even" on his current list. He'll visit Texas A&M on April 9 for the Aggies' spring game, and as of this week, that's the only visit on his schedule.
Shavers' thoughts on Texas ...
“I like Texas. I actually have a teammate at Lewisville who is going there - Denzel Okafor," Shavers said. "Sometimes he talks to me about Texas, but I’m pretty open.” (Suchomel)
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I was able to catch up with Baron Browning briefly in between reps at the RCS Dallas camp ...
Unfortunately, there's not a ton to report with Browning, the Rivals100 LB out of Kennedale. Browning took a recent visit to TCU and took in UT's Junior Day in late February.
"I’d say coach Strong and the academic advisors," Browning said when asked what stood out about the UT visit. "I just like the type of person coach Strong is, basically his overview of the program and how coaches are around the players."
The 6-4, 230-pound Browning, who took home LB MVP honors at the camp, said he doesn't have any visit plans in the works to get back down to Austin. Not at the moment anyway.
Browning, a one-time Baylor commit, maintained throughout the day at RCS Dallas that he does not have any schools standing out.
"I’m still open. I really don’t have any leaders or anything like that," Browning said. (Suchomel)
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Offensive lineman Tyrese Robinson is a bit of an enigma.
Robinson is committed to Oklahoma and if you pay any attention to his Twitter feed at all, you'd think he is rock-solid with his pledge. Yet, when I check in with Robinson, he continues to tell me he plans to take some other visits (he was originally planning on attending Texas' Junior Day but that trip fell through).
In talking to Robinson last weekend, the Rivals100 member again said he'll take some trips, and UT is expected to get a visit.
"Right now it’s very solid. Right now I’m committed, but I’m still looking to take visits and check out some campuses," Robinson said.
Among the schools he wants to visit are Texas, Baylor, Georgia and Texas A&M. He said the Texas visit will probably happen sometime this summer.
“It’s the coaching staff," Robinson said of his interest in the Longhorns. "I really like Charlie Strong and have respect for him. And they recruit hard so I’m still going to check them out.”
Robinson checked in at 6-4 and 310 pounds at the camp and said he talks to most of the UT coaches, including OL coach Matt Mattox.
His thoughts on his commitment to OU: "Coach Bedenbaugh, he still wants me to take my visit but he knows I’m solid with OU. With OU, it’s the coaching staff, the new facilities and the academic support, and coach Bedenbaugh does a great job of putting linemen in the NFL."
From the sound of things, this one won't be finalized for a while. Oklahoma is obviously leading the pack, and I'd guess by a substantial margin, but the fact that he still plans to take visits gives schools like Texas a fighting chance. (Suchomel)
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Lancaster wide receiver Omar Manning holds a Texas offer. The Rivals250 member was close to naming a top 10 last week but said he decided to hold off for a bit. That announcement could literally come at any day.
I asked Manning if there were any schools he knew would be in his top 10 and he said TCU, Alabama, OU, Texas A&M and Oregon would definitely make the cut. As for the rest?
“It’s really the same things I’m looking for in those other schools. I have to fit the system, I have to have a relationship with the coaches, make sure everything is right for me,” Manning said.
I then asked Manning for his thoughts on Texas and he said the Longhorns would also be in his top 10. So the good news is that UT will make the cut. The bad news, if we're reading between the lines, is that Texas wasn't one of the schools that was on the tip of his tongue when rattling off likely finalists.
“They’re going to be in my top 10, too. I have a lot of interest in them," Manning said. "They came on later but as soon as the new staff got there, they were right on me. There’s been a lot of love from them.”
Manning has taken a visit to TCU this spring and will be at Texas A&M on April 1. The 6-3, 200-pounder did call UT wide receivers coach Charlie Williams on Sunday night and told us this week that he and Williams had a very good visit. They talked about how Manning would fit in the UT system and coach Williams has told Manning previously that he really likes his game and how he works.
“Right off the bat, tradition. There’s a lot of tradition," Manning said when asked what stands out about Texas. "It’s a great program. I love what they’re doing out there turning it around.” (Suchomel)
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La Grange RB J.K. Dobbins has committed to Ohio State, but this one certainly has the feel that the door is not slammed shut just yet.
Dobbins, a Rivals100 member, said it feels good to be committed, but he admitted that a lot of other schools are still pushing hard. Among the schools still recruiting him are Oklahoma, TCU and Texas.
Dobbins said the decision to commit to the Buckeyes and the timing of his announcement were just something he felt in his heart. He hadn't planned on making the decision, but was comfortable with Ohio State and simply felt it was the right time to make a commitment.
Dobbins will visit Ohio State in a couple weeks. That's the only one on his schedule, but he didn't rule out the possibility of other visits.
Could a Texas visit be in the works?
"I'm not sure yet. I have to look into it," Dobbins said.
Dobbins has been in contact with new UT running backs coach Anthony Johnson.
"He's just telling me he needs me, and he would love to have me," Dobbins said. "I like him."
I did mention to Dobbins that on our TicketCity OB podcast that I I predict he'll be at Texas for a visit or two. He just kind of smiled and said he didn't know, but he sure didn't shoot my forecast down.
I expect Dobbins will love what he sees during his Ohio State visit, but this one is a long way from over and the vibe I'm getting is that Texas still has a legitimate shot. (Suchomel)
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Maybe I'm misreading things, but I just didn't feel the love for Texas from safety Grant Delpit.
The Houston Lamar product, who holds a UT offer, said he'll probably make his way up to Austin for a spring practice, but he doesn't have a date in mind yet. On the flipside, he does have three unofficial visits set up ... he'll be at LSU April 2 for practice, Florida April 8 and Southern Cal April 16
Thoughts on Texas ...
"Texas would probably be in my top schools, but I don’t know much about Texas. I have to visit Texas and see what’s up," Delpit said.
As for favorites?
“You know, I like LSU. I just got Florida. I like USC too. I like OU,” Delpit said.
The 6-1, 180-pounder said he has no timetable for a commitment and very well could make a decision at any point. A bit of a guess on my part, but I won't be surprised to see this one go down this spring and it sounds like the Longhorns could be on the outside looking in.
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Cedar Hill wide receiver Camron Buckley said his UT junior day visit was "amazing" and he really likes what he knows of the new Texas offense and wide receivers coach Charlie Williams.
“He’s very intelligent on the game. He knows a lot and can teach a receiver a lot about the game," Buckley said. "He’s very experienced and just a good man.”
"(Williams' experience) carries a lot of weight. What receiver doesn’t want to be coached by someone who has been at that level, coached at that level? Someone who can tell you what you need to do if that’s where you’re trying to get to."
Buckley recently visited SMU. That trip, along with the UT junior day, are the only ones on his schedule, but he does want to take some more trips later in the spring if possible.
“I’m open to all schools who want to offer me. But the ones who have offered me now, I’m showing respect to," Buckley said. "I’m enjoying the process and the schools that are interested in me. I’m just thankful for it.”
And where does Texas fit in?
"Texas fits big because they were one of the earliest schools to offer me," Buckley said. "And it’s Texas, the tradition, it’s just fun to be around. Also it’s close to home so it’s easy to get to. They’re 2 /12 hours, 3 hours max. It’s just a blessing." (Suchomel)
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Plano East RB Eno Benjamin has a top 10 that does not include Texas. He has four schools standing out– Iowa, Michigan, Baylor and Oklahoma State.
Bottom line ... if Texas offers, the Longhorns shoot up his list.
“Texas is a working relationship. I feel like if they were to offer, they’d be in my top 10. I’m working on that," Benjamin said. "It’s new coaches so it’s new relationships. We’ll see how it goes.” (Suchomel)
