OB War Room:
(From Anwar)
If there is one thing Texas fans should know about coach Tom Herman, it’s that he is not a complacent when it comes to acquiring talent.
After watching Sam Ehlinger and Shane Buechele battle during spring practice, Herman did everything within his power to acquire former LSU grad transfer quarterback Brandon Harris. When Harris decided to attend North Carolina, Herman went all chips in on former Notre Dame grad transfer quarterback Malik Zaire, who eventually signed with Florida. Herman did not acquire the quarterbacks he desired, but he did not go out without a fight.
Herman had to endure an offensive line that did not live up to his expectations this season. Former Texas left tackle Connor Williams spent most of last season on the sidelines due to injury, while tackle Elijah Rodriguez did not play until the bowl game. With those players out of the lineup, Texas’ offensive line struggled in run and pass blocking last season. Herman used injuries to explain his team’s poor offensive line play to the media, but behind the scenes, he demanded more from his coaching staff. Specifically, offensive line coach Derek Warehime needed to do more, and he has a chance to add a player this weekend.
From what I was told, Texas offensive coordinator Tim Beck and Warehime will meet with Rice grad transfer left tackle Calvin Anderson on Friday. They will travel to Houston where Anderson lives in an effort to convince him to sign with Texas.
The good news, for Texas, is Anderson wants to play for the Longhorns.
I spoke to a person associated with Anderson on Thursday and was told the offensive lineman is very excited about meeting with Beck and Warehime. From what I can tell, if Friday’s meeting goes well, there is a strong possibility Anderson will join the program.
It sounds like Warehime has also been actively recruiting Stanford’s Casey Tucker and Florida’s Antonio Riles. I spoke to a source in Gainesville who told me Riles graduated in December and will not be back at Florida. The knock on Riles is he put on bad weight after sustaining a knee injury, but the guard is on Warehime’s radar.
We will keep you posted.
******
(From Suchomel)
The recruiting dead period ends on Thursday at midnight, opening the doors for coaches and prospects to once again have face-to-face contact, mostly beginning with official visits this weekend.
A handful of prospects, both committed and uncommitted, have confirmed to OB that they’ll be in Austin this weekend. Let’s take a look …
B.J. Foster – S – Angelton - The UT signee will take his official visit this weekend since he wasn’t able to in December. Foster will begin classes at Texas on Tuesday, so it’ll be a quick turnaround for him. Foster is fresh off an extremely impressive performance at the Under Armour All-American Game. He’s the type of player, along with some of the early enrollees like Caden Sterns, Anthony Cook and Casey Thompson, who are very personable and I’d expect Foster will help UT’s efforts on the uncommitted players who will be in town.
Vernon Jackson – DE – Boling – Jackson remains committed to Alabama, but has been in close contact with Texas over the last couple months and the Longhorns are squarely in the mix on this one. Jackson has told us that Texas is looking at him as a DE (probably more of a combo DE/LB), while Alabama likes him at LB. Obviously, big selling points for Texas would be staying closer to home, and the opportunity to play early. Jackson is scheduled to visit Alabama next weekend and he could very well sort through his options all the way until National Signing Day. He’s been committed to Bama for so long that it’s hard to call Texas a favorite, but the Longhorns are very much within striking distance.
Joshua Moore – WR – Yoakum – The one-time wide receiver commitment is squarely back on UT’s radar and the Longhorns will host him on a key official visit this weekend. After decommitting from Nebraska, a lot of people assumed Moore would wind up at A&M with his brother, especially once Jimbo Fisher was hired, but this one feels wide open from what I’ve gathered. I expect Texas to make a strong move this weekend with a good official visit. The challenge would then be to hold off schools like Florida State (visit next weekend) and the Aggies.
******
A source told OB on Tuesday that Stanford graduate transfer offensive lineman Casey Tucker was expected to visit Texas this weekend if things went according to plan. Unfortunately, things have gone quiet since then, so we’ll put Tucker in the “maybe” category for this weekend. Regardless, we do expect him to visit Texas at some point. Visits to TCU and Colorado are also in the works.
******
The biggest remaining recruiting need for Texas is in the defensive front seven, where the Longhorns continue to look for talent at defensive end, possibly at d-tackle and at B-backer. There are quite a few targets on the radar, including a few who have scheduled official visits, and it’ll be interesting to see how Texas handles its defensive line/linebacker recruiting over the next month. Does it wind up being first come, first served? Or does the staff hold out for some of the top targets on the board, even if others are prepared to commit before players like Joseph Ossai and Vernon Jackson are ready?
Let’s take a look at where things currently stand …
Vernon Jackson – As mentioned above, Jackson will visit Texas this weekend. He was an Alabama lean before committing to the Crimson Tide in September, but has always had one eye on Texas and his interest in the Longhorns has seemed to have picked up in the last couple months. Tough one to call, and Jackson doesn’t likely make a final decision any time soon.
Joseph Ossai – This has been one of the more interesting recruitments to follow for a long while. He was believed to be a strong A&M lean early in the process, but could never get over the hump to pull the trigger on an Aggie commitment. Texas has hung around and basically made this a dead heat of a two-team race. It looked in December like things might tip A&M’s way, but Ossai has remained patient as the Aggies changed up their staff. There’s been some thought that A&M keeping assistant Terry Price would lock Ossai up for the Aggies, but I’m not buying that. If Price was a tipping point, he likely would have committed to A&M long ago. Look for Ossai to take his decision all the way until signing day.
Caleb Okechukwu – A new name on the Texas radar, Oscar Giles started talking to the Washington D.C. St. John's College High product after the Under Armour All-American game, and Okechukwu is now planning to take a UT visit in January. Can Texas make a sudden move to the top of his list? We’ll see, and it could very well depend on how the staff feels about other players on the board, but in talking to Okechukwu’s coach this week, there is a very strong interest.
Mike Williams – The Baton Rouge Dunham prospect is set to take his official visit to Texas next week. If the Longhorns offer, this one looks really good for UT. More on him in a bit.
Tyree Wilson – He’s committed to Texas A&M but is taking visits, so the door is open. Wilson will visit Arkansas this weekend and per someone I spoke with this week, he’s also expected to visit Texas and TCU. Lots of Arkansas talk right now, but let’s see what the vibe is after this weekend’s visit.
Daniel Carson - He visited Texas in September but this guy NEVER talks so it's tough to gauge what he's thinking. He'll visit Nebraska this weekend, which could be worth watching closely.
Courtre Alexander – When Texas first offered him before the Early Signing Period and Alexander took a UT official visit, it looked like he was all but in for the Longhorns. But then Arkansas offered and Alexander decided to slow things down. He’ll now visit Arkansas this weekend, which will be interesting with both him and Tyree Wilson on campus together. Could one siding with Arkansas push the other UT’s way? We’ll see.
Moro Ojomo – One of the only DTs Texas is actively recruiting (along with Keondre Coburn), I’m still expecting Ojomo to visit UT at some point but the competition is suddenly pretty stiff with the likes of A&M, Notre Dame, Tennessee and Oklahoma having recently offered. Ojomo released a top seven on Thursday that included Texas. The Longhorns have to get him on campus to have any shot, and even with that, it’ll be a tough fight to land his signature.
******
Baton Rouge Dunham defensive line/linebacker prospect Mike Williams doesn’t have a UT offer yet, but he’s hopeful that will change soon, perhaps even before he heads to Austin next weekend for his official visit. Even without the offer, the Longhorns are sitting in a good position.
Right now, Texas is at the top of my list,” Williams said. “I haven’t received an offer from them, but one of the coaches told me when my position coach comes out to visit me, they’ll offer me.
“I started talking to them maybe in December. I’ve been talking to Oscar Giles and Jason Washington. They basically told me they wanted me to play outside linebacker/end, kind of a combo position.”
Williams holds about 10 offers, including scholarships from Tennessee, Texas A&M, Arizona State, Ole Miss and LSU. He has already visited LSU and likes the in-state school, but I’m told the Tigers don’t have room for his commitment at this point. He’ll visit Tennessee this weekend, and this one looks like it could come down to the Longhorns and the Volunteers.
His thoughts on his three favorites …
“Right now they’re showing me the most love. I like their facilities, the campus, I know a couple players that go there already (Malcolm Roach). So it wouldn’t feel too much like I’m away from home.”
Tennessee – “They’re the second school showing me the most love. I say they’re second because I don’t know how I feel about going all the way to Knoxville.”
LSU – “LSU, I’ve been there a lot, I know the coaches well. I feel like we’ve built relationships. I like the campus, the improvements they’ve made, the things they have to help student athletes after football.”
Williams actually played QB most of his high school career, so he’s a bit of a project on the defensive side of the ball (he admits as much), but he is a big kid who can move so it’s easy to see why college coaches like his potential.
“I played quarterback my whole high school career. Everything on the defensive side of the ball, I’d have to improve on,” Williams said. “Coaches have said they can see my potential as a linebacker. LSU told me they see me being like Kendall Beckwith.”
******
Texas has two quarterbacks in the 2018 class who will be starting classes next week, but the staff does continue to recruit Tanner McKee. For those who are unaware, McKee will take a two-year mission trip after graduating high school so he’ll essentially be a 2020 signee.
The Corona (CA) Centennial product participated in the Army Bowl last weekend and we caught up with him to see where things stand. McKee has taken official visits to Texas, Texas A&M, Alabama and Washington. He’ll visit Stanford in January.
His thoughts on the Longhorns …
“Texas is really high, obviously. I took an official there. I think coach Herman is a great coach and I feel like he’s going to make it a great program really fast,” McKee said.
The 6-6, 220-pounder probably won’t commit until very late in the process and said he probably will not sign right away. He may sign one year into his mission trip, or he may wait until he’s ready to enroll in a college in a couple years.
Stanford gets the last visit and most people believe the Cardinal are the team to beat here.
“I just feel like their education is obviously off the charts. I think their offense will prepare you for the NFL and it’s just a great program overall,” McKee said. “Coach Shaw is a great coach.”
McKee on people picking Stanford to win out … “I’m not positive of exactly where I want to go yet. I’m just making the rounds. That’s why I’m making all these officials to see where I feel most comfortable.”
Texas remains in the mix here but with Stanford having the final official visit, this one looks like it’s trending that way. All that being said, McKee could be a player we’re covering again in a couple years if things change at the school he chooses between now and the time he starts his college career.
(From Anwar)
If there is one thing Texas fans should know about coach Tom Herman, it’s that he is not a complacent when it comes to acquiring talent.
After watching Sam Ehlinger and Shane Buechele battle during spring practice, Herman did everything within his power to acquire former LSU grad transfer quarterback Brandon Harris. When Harris decided to attend North Carolina, Herman went all chips in on former Notre Dame grad transfer quarterback Malik Zaire, who eventually signed with Florida. Herman did not acquire the quarterbacks he desired, but he did not go out without a fight.
Herman had to endure an offensive line that did not live up to his expectations this season. Former Texas left tackle Connor Williams spent most of last season on the sidelines due to injury, while tackle Elijah Rodriguez did not play until the bowl game. With those players out of the lineup, Texas’ offensive line struggled in run and pass blocking last season. Herman used injuries to explain his team’s poor offensive line play to the media, but behind the scenes, he demanded more from his coaching staff. Specifically, offensive line coach Derek Warehime needed to do more, and he has a chance to add a player this weekend.
From what I was told, Texas offensive coordinator Tim Beck and Warehime will meet with Rice grad transfer left tackle Calvin Anderson on Friday. They will travel to Houston where Anderson lives in an effort to convince him to sign with Texas.
The good news, for Texas, is Anderson wants to play for the Longhorns.
I spoke to a person associated with Anderson on Thursday and was told the offensive lineman is very excited about meeting with Beck and Warehime. From what I can tell, if Friday’s meeting goes well, there is a strong possibility Anderson will join the program.
It sounds like Warehime has also been actively recruiting Stanford’s Casey Tucker and Florida’s Antonio Riles. I spoke to a source in Gainesville who told me Riles graduated in December and will not be back at Florida. The knock on Riles is he put on bad weight after sustaining a knee injury, but the guard is on Warehime’s radar.
We will keep you posted.
******
(From Suchomel)
The recruiting dead period ends on Thursday at midnight, opening the doors for coaches and prospects to once again have face-to-face contact, mostly beginning with official visits this weekend.
A handful of prospects, both committed and uncommitted, have confirmed to OB that they’ll be in Austin this weekend. Let’s take a look …
B.J. Foster – S – Angelton - The UT signee will take his official visit this weekend since he wasn’t able to in December. Foster will begin classes at Texas on Tuesday, so it’ll be a quick turnaround for him. Foster is fresh off an extremely impressive performance at the Under Armour All-American Game. He’s the type of player, along with some of the early enrollees like Caden Sterns, Anthony Cook and Casey Thompson, who are very personable and I’d expect Foster will help UT’s efforts on the uncommitted players who will be in town.
Vernon Jackson – DE – Boling – Jackson remains committed to Alabama, but has been in close contact with Texas over the last couple months and the Longhorns are squarely in the mix on this one. Jackson has told us that Texas is looking at him as a DE (probably more of a combo DE/LB), while Alabama likes him at LB. Obviously, big selling points for Texas would be staying closer to home, and the opportunity to play early. Jackson is scheduled to visit Alabama next weekend and he could very well sort through his options all the way until National Signing Day. He’s been committed to Bama for so long that it’s hard to call Texas a favorite, but the Longhorns are very much within striking distance.
Joshua Moore – WR – Yoakum – The one-time wide receiver commitment is squarely back on UT’s radar and the Longhorns will host him on a key official visit this weekend. After decommitting from Nebraska, a lot of people assumed Moore would wind up at A&M with his brother, especially once Jimbo Fisher was hired, but this one feels wide open from what I’ve gathered. I expect Texas to make a strong move this weekend with a good official visit. The challenge would then be to hold off schools like Florida State (visit next weekend) and the Aggies.
******
A source told OB on Tuesday that Stanford graduate transfer offensive lineman Casey Tucker was expected to visit Texas this weekend if things went according to plan. Unfortunately, things have gone quiet since then, so we’ll put Tucker in the “maybe” category for this weekend. Regardless, we do expect him to visit Texas at some point. Visits to TCU and Colorado are also in the works.
******
The biggest remaining recruiting need for Texas is in the defensive front seven, where the Longhorns continue to look for talent at defensive end, possibly at d-tackle and at B-backer. There are quite a few targets on the radar, including a few who have scheduled official visits, and it’ll be interesting to see how Texas handles its defensive line/linebacker recruiting over the next month. Does it wind up being first come, first served? Or does the staff hold out for some of the top targets on the board, even if others are prepared to commit before players like Joseph Ossai and Vernon Jackson are ready?
Let’s take a look at where things currently stand …
Vernon Jackson – As mentioned above, Jackson will visit Texas this weekend. He was an Alabama lean before committing to the Crimson Tide in September, but has always had one eye on Texas and his interest in the Longhorns has seemed to have picked up in the last couple months. Tough one to call, and Jackson doesn’t likely make a final decision any time soon.
Joseph Ossai – This has been one of the more interesting recruitments to follow for a long while. He was believed to be a strong A&M lean early in the process, but could never get over the hump to pull the trigger on an Aggie commitment. Texas has hung around and basically made this a dead heat of a two-team race. It looked in December like things might tip A&M’s way, but Ossai has remained patient as the Aggies changed up their staff. There’s been some thought that A&M keeping assistant Terry Price would lock Ossai up for the Aggies, but I’m not buying that. If Price was a tipping point, he likely would have committed to A&M long ago. Look for Ossai to take his decision all the way until signing day.
Caleb Okechukwu – A new name on the Texas radar, Oscar Giles started talking to the Washington D.C. St. John's College High product after the Under Armour All-American game, and Okechukwu is now planning to take a UT visit in January. Can Texas make a sudden move to the top of his list? We’ll see, and it could very well depend on how the staff feels about other players on the board, but in talking to Okechukwu’s coach this week, there is a very strong interest.
Mike Williams – The Baton Rouge Dunham prospect is set to take his official visit to Texas next week. If the Longhorns offer, this one looks really good for UT. More on him in a bit.
Tyree Wilson – He’s committed to Texas A&M but is taking visits, so the door is open. Wilson will visit Arkansas this weekend and per someone I spoke with this week, he’s also expected to visit Texas and TCU. Lots of Arkansas talk right now, but let’s see what the vibe is after this weekend’s visit.
Daniel Carson - He visited Texas in September but this guy NEVER talks so it's tough to gauge what he's thinking. He'll visit Nebraska this weekend, which could be worth watching closely.
Courtre Alexander – When Texas first offered him before the Early Signing Period and Alexander took a UT official visit, it looked like he was all but in for the Longhorns. But then Arkansas offered and Alexander decided to slow things down. He’ll now visit Arkansas this weekend, which will be interesting with both him and Tyree Wilson on campus together. Could one siding with Arkansas push the other UT’s way? We’ll see.
Moro Ojomo – One of the only DTs Texas is actively recruiting (along with Keondre Coburn), I’m still expecting Ojomo to visit UT at some point but the competition is suddenly pretty stiff with the likes of A&M, Notre Dame, Tennessee and Oklahoma having recently offered. Ojomo released a top seven on Thursday that included Texas. The Longhorns have to get him on campus to have any shot, and even with that, it’ll be a tough fight to land his signature.
******
Baton Rouge Dunham defensive line/linebacker prospect Mike Williams doesn’t have a UT offer yet, but he’s hopeful that will change soon, perhaps even before he heads to Austin next weekend for his official visit. Even without the offer, the Longhorns are sitting in a good position.
Right now, Texas is at the top of my list,” Williams said. “I haven’t received an offer from them, but one of the coaches told me when my position coach comes out to visit me, they’ll offer me.
“I started talking to them maybe in December. I’ve been talking to Oscar Giles and Jason Washington. They basically told me they wanted me to play outside linebacker/end, kind of a combo position.”
Williams holds about 10 offers, including scholarships from Tennessee, Texas A&M, Arizona State, Ole Miss and LSU. He has already visited LSU and likes the in-state school, but I’m told the Tigers don’t have room for his commitment at this point. He’ll visit Tennessee this weekend, and this one looks like it could come down to the Longhorns and the Volunteers.
His thoughts on his three favorites …
“Right now they’re showing me the most love. I like their facilities, the campus, I know a couple players that go there already (Malcolm Roach). So it wouldn’t feel too much like I’m away from home.”
Tennessee – “They’re the second school showing me the most love. I say they’re second because I don’t know how I feel about going all the way to Knoxville.”
LSU – “LSU, I’ve been there a lot, I know the coaches well. I feel like we’ve built relationships. I like the campus, the improvements they’ve made, the things they have to help student athletes after football.”
Williams actually played QB most of his high school career, so he’s a bit of a project on the defensive side of the ball (he admits as much), but he is a big kid who can move so it’s easy to see why college coaches like his potential.
“I played quarterback my whole high school career. Everything on the defensive side of the ball, I’d have to improve on,” Williams said. “Coaches have said they can see my potential as a linebacker. LSU told me they see me being like Kendall Beckwith.”
******
Texas has two quarterbacks in the 2018 class who will be starting classes next week, but the staff does continue to recruit Tanner McKee. For those who are unaware, McKee will take a two-year mission trip after graduating high school so he’ll essentially be a 2020 signee.
The Corona (CA) Centennial product participated in the Army Bowl last weekend and we caught up with him to see where things stand. McKee has taken official visits to Texas, Texas A&M, Alabama and Washington. He’ll visit Stanford in January.
His thoughts on the Longhorns …
“Texas is really high, obviously. I took an official there. I think coach Herman is a great coach and I feel like he’s going to make it a great program really fast,” McKee said.
The 6-6, 220-pounder probably won’t commit until very late in the process and said he probably will not sign right away. He may sign one year into his mission trip, or he may wait until he’s ready to enroll in a college in a couple years.
Stanford gets the last visit and most people believe the Cardinal are the team to beat here.
“I just feel like their education is obviously off the charts. I think their offense will prepare you for the NFL and it’s just a great program overall,” McKee said. “Coach Shaw is a great coach.”
McKee on people picking Stanford to win out … “I’m not positive of exactly where I want to go yet. I’m just making the rounds. That’s why I’m making all these officials to see where I feel most comfortable.”
Texas remains in the mix here but with Stanford having the final official visit, this one looks like it’s trending that way. All that being said, McKee could be a player we’re covering again in a couple years if things change at the school he chooses between now and the time he starts his college career.
