Per 247-
The Texas Longhorns are dealing with attrition. It’s been expected that there would be a few players who dropped off the roster, but a couple of the names on their way out of the program might have come as a surprise to a portion of the burnt orange faithful. To recap, here’s what I’ve gathered over the last week or so on why Marcel Southall, Jordan Elliott and Erick Fowler (reportedly) will all be playing football elsewhere in 2017:
-- Southall’s departure was all about academics. Multiple sources have confirmed to Horns247 that once Southall was forced to sit out for most of the spring to take care of his grades the clock was ticking on his time in the program.
-- There’s been a couple of differing opinions on why Elliott decided to transfer to Missouri. The common theme and something that was reiterated by a source with knowledge of the situation is that Elliott just wasn’t on the same page with Tom Herman. While some members of the coaching staff were said to be looking for ways to prevent Elliott from transferring and hoping he’d stick it out, the source said Elliott’s departure boiled down to the former U.S. Army All-American Bowl being unable to fall in line when it came to how Herman chose to motivate him. The staff knows Elliott is an extremely talented player, the source told me, but it became apparent over time that it would be best for both parties to go their separate ways and for Elliott to get a fresh start somewhere else.
-- The situation with Fowler is interesting only because the school still hasn’t said anything official regarding his exit. A source close to Fowler told me that they didn’t feel the issues the former U.S. Army All-American was facing were related to academics. The only thing the source told me beyond that is they were, “hoping they could work things out.” Everything behind the scenes has pointed to it being a matter of when not if Fowler’s exit becomes official. Without going too deep into specifics, Fowler spent a good portion of spring practice in the doghouse due to, as one team source put, being unable to routinely do things asked of him. It should be noted that Fowler and Southall were two players seen wearing crimson t-shirts with “LOAF MACHINE” written across the front during winter workouts. From that standpoint, it hasn’t been a secret that both players have had their issues behind the scenes.
So what else can be expected in terms of attrition? Horns247 has learned that two players, one on offense and one on defense, have been mentioned by name as guys who could be gone by the time the Longhorns get to fall camp. It should be noted that the name of the defensive player has come up more often as someone who might not be long for the program.
As of right now, if Jamari Chisholm, Reese Leitao, and Kendall Moore eventually make it to campus the Longhorns will be at 82 scholarships for the 2017 season. Moore would be among the 12 seniors departing, which along with the three vacant scholarships means the Longhorns can sign a class of 15 in 2018. Obviously, Herman’s first full cycle class is going to be bigger. I know it sounds like a broken record, but when it comes to attrition one should expect the roster, particularly a current junior class that stands at 26 members (including Chisholm), to look a lot different by the time the 2018 signees arrive next summer. (Howe)
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I spoke with a Texas high school head coach who worked the Texas minicamp on Sunday to get his insights into the way the staff ran their first camp. This coach started off talking about how storms in Austin diverted the plans, but the whole staff adjusted well. “The toughest thing was for the coaches and the players and the parents to all cram into the bubble,” the coach said. “But the staff adjusted on the fly and kept things moving.”
The coach spoke about the efficiency of the Texas support staff and said the magic word that’s been so often associated with Tom Herman since he arrived in Austin. “I know people laugh if you guys overuse the word alignment, but you can really see it at work with this staff,” the coach said. “We were told beforehand what the objectives of the day were, and everyone from the coaches to the girls handing out water had a clear understanding of how to accomplish those things.”
This coach said Herman placed a high importance on reps. He would commonly get on to coaches if their stations were slowing down and players were forced to stand around. “(Herman) made it clear that you don’t get an offer by performing at camp,” the coach said. “He told everyone you get an offer by what you do on Friday night, but you come to camp in order to compete and improve yourself.” This coach is a veteran of the summer camp circuit, and he raved about his experience with Texas. He told me that he plans to work as many Texas camps as possible in the future. (Roach)
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It’s not hard to see why Caden Sterns is one of the nation’s top safeties. The Texas commit is a long, rangy safety with great versatility and potential. But one trait really separates him from the rest. “His instincts,” said Cibolo Steele head coach David Saenz said. “Just the angles he takes and the instincts he has aren’t really coachable. He plays safety for us and can play a little bit of cornerback. He just has great natural instincts.”
Sterns flipped his commitment from LSU to Texas earlier this month. The move came as a surprise to many, but Saenz believes Sterns made the right call for himself. “Coach (Craig) Naivar and Coach (Jason) Washington recruited this area when they were at Houston, and they’ve done a really good job,” Saenz said. “Caden went up there and liked how they were going to use him in different roles, and that was a huge selling point.” Texas is recruiting Sterns as a pure defensive back that can play anywhere in the secondary, including cornerback.
Sterns will get a chance to showcase his skill set in a similar fashion during his senior year of high school. “We play Cover 2 here, so he’s always asking to get some more work at man-to-man coverage,” Saenz said. “He’s such a great technician that he wants to be great at any kind of coverage we’re in. We’ve had some pretty good ones come through like his brother andErik Huhn, who was a Texas guy, and he’s right up there.” At 6-foot-1, 192 pounds, Sterns is ranked as the No. 4 safety in the country and No. 4 overall prospect in the state, according to 247Sports Composite. (Holland)
