It was an active recruiting weekend with the Longhorns hosting 19 official visitors and one key unofficial visitor.
My brain is fried and I'm ready to throw my computer out the window after a frustrating Steelers loss, but let's take a quick look at what we've heard about the guys who were on campus.
Zach Shackelford - As expected, he flipped from K-State and committed to Texas today. Big-time pick up and he's a kid I feel is way undervalued.
Consider this text I got from a defensive coach whose team played Shackelford ...
"Great get with Shack. The best offensive lineman I have scouted and planned for in a long time. Previewed he and Delance. Both are good but Shack is far ahead right now IMO. Very physical and relentless blocker."
Eric Cuffee - Came in for an unofficial visit. Will visit Arkansas next week and A&M July 29. I still love where Texas sits in this one.
I talked with Cuffee tonight and he said this visit was more for his parents than for him.
"It was really for my parents to get back up there. They didn't come on my official visit," Cuffee said. "It was about getting them back up there, letting them see how it is.
"I think (Charlie Strong and Texas) made a good impression."
Cuffee said he plans to announce his decision sometimes towards the end of the this month.
Mark Jackson - Coming into the weekend, I thought the Longhorns had a bunch of ground to make up on both A&M and Oklahoma. I spoke with Jackson's father tonight and it's safe to say Texas has closed the gap.
"It was top notch. It's UT. It lived up to the expectations, to the known history of the university," Mr. Jackson said. "It didn't let us down, I can tell you that."
Jackson will visit A&M next weekend and OU on July 29. This one is still wide open, but Texas put itself squarely in the mix. Also, Jean Delance told me he thinks Texas will get the Cibolo Steele product.
A couple more comments from Mr. Jackson ...
"Coach Strong, I think me and him are kind of cut from same cloth as disciplinarians, holding kids to a standard and allowing them the opportunity to grow, but setting a standard and holding their feet to the fire. The message he carries is easy for me to see. I'm carrying the same thing as retired military. It's family, caring for one another, that's kind of what I felt that UT was trying to share with everyone there.
"What really stuck out, he opened up his home. That was huge for him to do that. It really shows a sense of family, because these are kids who will be released into his care. For him to open up his home, that speaks volumes. Yes he has a nice home, but it's not just about materialistic things, it's about the kid being entrusted in his care. He's not so high up on a pedestal. That's what stood out to me."
Deontay Anderson - Similar to Mark Jackson, I thought Texas had a bunch of ground to make up if the Longhorns had any shot at this one. And like Jackson, I think Texas did exactly that with Anderson.
I spoke with Deontay's dad tonight and it sounds like the entire family really enjoyed the visit.
"Charlie Strong, he's outstanding. He's very straight up. So is his staff," Mr. Anderson said.
"He brought in 19, 20 recruits. If he can land those guys, it's going to be some kind of turn around at UT. He brought in some strong athletes."
Anderson will visit LSU next weekend and Ole Miss on January 29. Texas' message to Anderson was that the coaches don't want him to leave the state, and they showed him in pretty clear terms that he could come in and be an impact player in year one.
One more comment ...
"Coach Strong has a nice home, a beautiful home. The recruits, the team was there. He has an open-door policy, he's just like that. His office at the school is open door. He just wants the players to know, the ones who are committed and the ones trying to commit, 'Hey, this is how I am. I'm not too good to not have my doors open to my players, my recruits, coaches.'
"It was a good weekend. Texas did a great job."
I still think Ole Miss is the team to beat since they're getting the last visit, but Texas put itself on even footing with Ole Miss and LSU heading into those final visits.
Jeffrey McCulloch - Lots of talk that Texas put itself in a good position with McCulloch. More accurately, a great position. Per several sources, McCulloch loved the visit and the Longhorns are the clear leader here.
Brandon Jones - Haven't connected with Jones, but from everything I've heard from multiple people, Texas did a heck of a job this weekend and the Longhorns are the team to beat.
Texas is in good shape, but this one could come down to the in-home visits over the next few weeks. UT and A&M will battle to the end, but I like Texas' chances right now.
Stephon Taylor - First interview of the day. He is still considering five schools (UT, LSU, South Carolina, Florida State, Oklahoma). He'll visit FSU next week and South Carolina on January 29.
Hard to predict which way this one will fall, but I like Texas' chances as well as any school left on his list.
Marcel Southall - Dude doesn't say much, but Anwar was able to get him on the phone. Sounds like Texas made a very strong impression. OU has been believed to be the leader and my gut still thinks it'll go that way, but Texas is very much in the mix.
Lil'Jordan Humphrey - Haven't connected with Humphrey, but his situation is a lot like McCulloch. Multiple people have indicated to me that Texas looks very, very good in this one. He'll still take his Cal visit but I wouldn't lose any sleep over that one.
Erick Fowler - If this one was 50/50 coming into the weekend, I'm not sure the Longhorns don't have the edge right now. Per multiple people, Fowler's visit went very well and a number of committed guys were really working on him to come to Texas. A couple people I talked to think UT wins out.
Here's the deal though ... he'll visit LSU and I fully expect the pendulum to swing back the other direction to some degree. I'm just not sure how much. Too close to call.
Chris Daniels - Sticking with my gut instinct that Texas flips him. I haven't talked to Daniels directly, but I've talked to enough people about the weekend to know that he and his family really enjoyed the trip.
He'll visit Tennessee next weekend and then Ohio State, but this one probably comes down to OU (his current commitment) and Texas. It may not be decided for a while, but Texas put itself within striking distance for sure.
Isaiah Chambers - Not much chatter on Chambers. And this is a young man who denied he was coming, then denied he was in Austin, despite numerous confirmations that he was on the visit.
Texas wasn't much of a factor when he committed to TCU so I'm not sure the Longhorns can flip him at this point. We'll continue to monitor this one but it feels like more of a longshot than the other guys who were brought in.
Gerald Wilbon - Not much to say here. He's solid. Great visit.
Malcolm Roach - Great visit, solid to Texas.
Denzel Okafor - Haven't talked to Okafor yet, but nothing to worry about here.
Tope Imade - Told me he feels he made the right decision to come to Texas. Great visit overall.
Reggie Hemphill-Mapps - UT's most active recruiter, along with Delance. He's locked in, and if you believe what Reggie puts on Twitter, he helped secure four "commits" this weekend.
Davion Curtis - Enjoyed his visit and liked what he heard about UT's offense moving forward. He's locked in.
Andrew Fitzgerald - Haven't talked to Fitzgerald, who doesn't do many interviews, but nothing to worry about here.
Jean Delance - Delance was very active in working the uncommitted guys. He said he recruited the following guys the hardest: Zach Shackelford, Erick Fowler, Mark Jackson and Brandon Jones. Shackeflord has already committed and Delance feels Texas has a great shot of landing the other three as well.
My brain is fried and I'm ready to throw my computer out the window after a frustrating Steelers loss, but let's take a quick look at what we've heard about the guys who were on campus.
Zach Shackelford - As expected, he flipped from K-State and committed to Texas today. Big-time pick up and he's a kid I feel is way undervalued.
Consider this text I got from a defensive coach whose team played Shackelford ...
"Great get with Shack. The best offensive lineman I have scouted and planned for in a long time. Previewed he and Delance. Both are good but Shack is far ahead right now IMO. Very physical and relentless blocker."
Eric Cuffee - Came in for an unofficial visit. Will visit Arkansas next week and A&M July 29. I still love where Texas sits in this one.
I talked with Cuffee tonight and he said this visit was more for his parents than for him.
"It was really for my parents to get back up there. They didn't come on my official visit," Cuffee said. "It was about getting them back up there, letting them see how it is.
"I think (Charlie Strong and Texas) made a good impression."
Cuffee said he plans to announce his decision sometimes towards the end of the this month.
Mark Jackson - Coming into the weekend, I thought the Longhorns had a bunch of ground to make up on both A&M and Oklahoma. I spoke with Jackson's father tonight and it's safe to say Texas has closed the gap.
"It was top notch. It's UT. It lived up to the expectations, to the known history of the university," Mr. Jackson said. "It didn't let us down, I can tell you that."
Jackson will visit A&M next weekend and OU on July 29. This one is still wide open, but Texas put itself squarely in the mix. Also, Jean Delance told me he thinks Texas will get the Cibolo Steele product.
A couple more comments from Mr. Jackson ...
"Coach Strong, I think me and him are kind of cut from same cloth as disciplinarians, holding kids to a standard and allowing them the opportunity to grow, but setting a standard and holding their feet to the fire. The message he carries is easy for me to see. I'm carrying the same thing as retired military. It's family, caring for one another, that's kind of what I felt that UT was trying to share with everyone there.
"What really stuck out, he opened up his home. That was huge for him to do that. It really shows a sense of family, because these are kids who will be released into his care. For him to open up his home, that speaks volumes. Yes he has a nice home, but it's not just about materialistic things, it's about the kid being entrusted in his care. He's not so high up on a pedestal. That's what stood out to me."
Deontay Anderson - Similar to Mark Jackson, I thought Texas had a bunch of ground to make up if the Longhorns had any shot at this one. And like Jackson, I think Texas did exactly that with Anderson.
I spoke with Deontay's dad tonight and it sounds like the entire family really enjoyed the visit.
"Charlie Strong, he's outstanding. He's very straight up. So is his staff," Mr. Anderson said.
"He brought in 19, 20 recruits. If he can land those guys, it's going to be some kind of turn around at UT. He brought in some strong athletes."
Anderson will visit LSU next weekend and Ole Miss on January 29. Texas' message to Anderson was that the coaches don't want him to leave the state, and they showed him in pretty clear terms that he could come in and be an impact player in year one.
One more comment ...
"Coach Strong has a nice home, a beautiful home. The recruits, the team was there. He has an open-door policy, he's just like that. His office at the school is open door. He just wants the players to know, the ones who are committed and the ones trying to commit, 'Hey, this is how I am. I'm not too good to not have my doors open to my players, my recruits, coaches.'
"It was a good weekend. Texas did a great job."
I still think Ole Miss is the team to beat since they're getting the last visit, but Texas put itself on even footing with Ole Miss and LSU heading into those final visits.
Jeffrey McCulloch - Lots of talk that Texas put itself in a good position with McCulloch. More accurately, a great position. Per several sources, McCulloch loved the visit and the Longhorns are the clear leader here.
Brandon Jones - Haven't connected with Jones, but from everything I've heard from multiple people, Texas did a heck of a job this weekend and the Longhorns are the team to beat.
Texas is in good shape, but this one could come down to the in-home visits over the next few weeks. UT and A&M will battle to the end, but I like Texas' chances right now.
Stephon Taylor - First interview of the day. He is still considering five schools (UT, LSU, South Carolina, Florida State, Oklahoma). He'll visit FSU next week and South Carolina on January 29.
Hard to predict which way this one will fall, but I like Texas' chances as well as any school left on his list.
Marcel Southall - Dude doesn't say much, but Anwar was able to get him on the phone. Sounds like Texas made a very strong impression. OU has been believed to be the leader and my gut still thinks it'll go that way, but Texas is very much in the mix.
Lil'Jordan Humphrey - Haven't connected with Humphrey, but his situation is a lot like McCulloch. Multiple people have indicated to me that Texas looks very, very good in this one. He'll still take his Cal visit but I wouldn't lose any sleep over that one.
Erick Fowler - If this one was 50/50 coming into the weekend, I'm not sure the Longhorns don't have the edge right now. Per multiple people, Fowler's visit went very well and a number of committed guys were really working on him to come to Texas. A couple people I talked to think UT wins out.
Here's the deal though ... he'll visit LSU and I fully expect the pendulum to swing back the other direction to some degree. I'm just not sure how much. Too close to call.
Chris Daniels - Sticking with my gut instinct that Texas flips him. I haven't talked to Daniels directly, but I've talked to enough people about the weekend to know that he and his family really enjoyed the trip.
He'll visit Tennessee next weekend and then Ohio State, but this one probably comes down to OU (his current commitment) and Texas. It may not be decided for a while, but Texas put itself within striking distance for sure.
Isaiah Chambers - Not much chatter on Chambers. And this is a young man who denied he was coming, then denied he was in Austin, despite numerous confirmations that he was on the visit.
Texas wasn't much of a factor when he committed to TCU so I'm not sure the Longhorns can flip him at this point. We'll continue to monitor this one but it feels like more of a longshot than the other guys who were brought in.
Gerald Wilbon - Not much to say here. He's solid. Great visit.
Malcolm Roach - Great visit, solid to Texas.
Denzel Okafor - Haven't talked to Okafor yet, but nothing to worry about here.
Tope Imade - Told me he feels he made the right decision to come to Texas. Great visit overall.
Reggie Hemphill-Mapps - UT's most active recruiter, along with Delance. He's locked in, and if you believe what Reggie puts on Twitter, he helped secure four "commits" this weekend.
Davion Curtis - Enjoyed his visit and liked what he heard about UT's offense moving forward. He's locked in.
Andrew Fitzgerald - Haven't talked to Fitzgerald, who doesn't do many interviews, but nothing to worry about here.
Jean Delance - Delance was very active in working the uncommitted guys. He said he recruited the following guys the hardest: Zach Shackelford, Erick Fowler, Mark Jackson and Brandon Jones. Shackeflord has already committed and Delance feels Texas has a great shot of landing the other three as well.
