Saturday night's Longhorns Under the Lights camp will host a large number of talented prospects. Though he hasn't even started his junior year of high school, a pretty easy argument could be made that the most talented player on the field will be Angleton's B.J. Foster.
A member of the 2018 recruiting class, Foster tops the 2018 Lone Star Recruiting Top 100 list. He has offers from top programs all over the country and he more than held his own this summer at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge and The Opening, two top national recruiting events where he faced off with some of the nation's top prospects.
Foster is a man of few words when he does interviews, but he's been pretty open that the Longhorns are a school that is high on his list. He maintained that stance this week as he prepares for Saturday's UT camp visit, his first visit to the Forty Acres.
Key quote: "I'm liking Texas pretty good. Quandre Diggs talks really highly about them," Foster said. "They're definitely up there."
Busy summer: Foster was one of a small number of underclassmen to participate in the Five-Star Challenge and The Opening earlier this summer. He performed well at both events and said he feels like he came away a better player after the experiences.
"It was cool to be out there with a lot of top recruits, some committed, get to play against each other," Foster said. "it's pretty good getting out there, doing things like that. I got a lot of experience, had lots of fun. It taught me a lot of things, how to do things the right way."
Goals for Saturday: Foster already has a Texas offer. Truthfully, he doesn't have much to prove at the Under the Lights camp and it's a bit of a surprise that he's actually going to work out. Most players of his stature show up to these on-campus camps, but spend their time mingling with coaches and watching from the sidelines. Foster said he's looking forward to actually getting on the field and getting some work in, in front of the watchful eyes of the Texas coaches.
"I just want to show my skills, get out there and cover some guys," Foster said matter-of-factly.
UTL invitation: When I talked to Foster earlier this summer, his direct contact with the Texas staff has been minimal. In fact, he told me most of his conversations about the Longhorns had taken place with former UT DB Quandre Diggs. That apparently has changed to some degree, with Vance Bedford reaching out directly to invite Foster to Saturday's camp.
"They DM'd me and invited me," Foster said.
I would expect that Foster will receive a lot of personalized attention this weekend, and the contact should only increase from here.
Bringing a teammate: Foster said he'll be coming to Austin with teammate Quincy Addison, who is committed to Texas Tech.
Not in a big rush: Foster already holds about 20 scholarship offers. He said he taking things slowly and evaluating all options and likely won't trim his list until sometime next summer.
"I'm still pretty open right now," Foster said.
My thoughts: It's tough to pin down where Foster might be leaning at this very early stage of the recruiting process, but I'll be surprised if the Longhorns aren't major players in this one things progress.
When I spoke to Foster in Atlanta for the Five-Star Challenge, he told me Texas was the only visit he was planning on taking. That in itself is a good sign. He doesn't have a list but has been pretty open about his strong feelings towards the Longhorns, and having a player like Quandre Diggs in UT's corner can only help.
Long way to go in this one, but Saturday could be a huge first step for Texas.
