With the Brockermeyer brothers coming off the board late last week, offensive lineman Savion Byrd becomes an even bigger priority for many of the schools recruiting him, none more so than the Texas Longhorns. Byrd, a standout offensive tackle out of Duncanville, has been high on UT’s list for more than a year. Now, he becomes a near must-get for Texas as the Longhorns look to fill out their 2021 offensive line class.
Byrd has been in steady contact with several schools, including Texas, LSU, Oklahoma and SMU. He’s done zoom meetings with the offensive line schools of each school and head coaches have been in touch as well. The Texas coaches were in contact as recently as Sunday.
“I talk to (offensive line) coach (Herb) Hand today, a couple hours ago,” Byrd said on Sunday evening. “I’m expecting a call from coach (Tom) Herman later today.”
Along with getting to know the coaches better, Byrd said he’s had calls where coaches have given him pointers on how he can stay in shape and keep his game sharp during the ongoing pandemic. The 6-7, 315-pound Byrd said he’s put some of those tips into action, starting with a weight set he has in his garage.
On the recruiting front, Byrd says he has yet to formalize a list of favorites. He’s keeping an open mind among his 20-plus offers, but schools like SMU, Texas, Oklahoma and LSU seem to draw the most buzz. Byrd says he’s in no hurry to make a decision.
“I’m not making a decision anytime soon. Honestly, I’m just taking it one step at a time,” he said. “I’m just taking it slowly. I haven’t even thought about my official list or anything.”
Byrd has been high on Texas’ radar for more than a year and the Longhorns have always been a team he has mentioned as one in which he has a strong interest. He has a good relationship with Herb Hand and said those two continue to hit it off as they get to know each other better.
“Honestly, Texas has been with me from the jump,” Byrd said. “I’ve always talked to coach Hand. It’s just more of the relationship that I’ve had with them (that has Texas high on his list).”
Of the schools he’s legitimately considering, Byrd said there’s really not one school that sits above any others. That being said, he has been to SMU and Texas for multiple visits over the course of his recruitment, so that could help those programs in the long run.
“They’re all pretty equal, honestly. I’ve never been to Oklahoma or LSU, so if I had to commit right now I wouldn’t commit to them. But hopefully they’ll let us take visits at some point,” Byrd said.
He’s unsure which schools will get official visits, but Byrd said Texas will “definitely” get one of his five trips. As for his family and whether they have a preference, Byrd said it’s kind of a mixed bag of opinions.
“My stepdad is from Dallas, so he likes SMU, TCU, Texas. My mom, she wants me to go places like LSU, Oklahoma, Georgia, Auburn, places like that,” Byrd said. “She wants me to get away, feels it’s best to be on my own a little.”
A four-star prospect, Byrd is a Rivals100 member and the nation’s No. 14-ranked offensive tackle prospect. He plans on waiting to see if he can take his official visits before making any sort of commitment. SMU currently holds 63% of the Rivals FutureCast picks from publishers, with five votes. Texas, Oklahoma and LSU have one vote apiece.
