THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. JD Coffey will sign next week and enroll in January
Safety JD Coffey added his name to the Texas commitment list nearly five months ago. Ever since giving the Longhorns a pledge, the usually talkative Coffey has been pretty quiet. Some of that has been him staying focused on his senior season, some of it was that there just wasn’t a ton to say from a recruiting perspective.
With the early signing period set to arrive in a little more than one week, we were able to catch up with the Kennedale standout, and he said his focus right now is simply on putting pen to paper next Wednesday and signing with Texas before enrolling at UT in January.
“I’m ready. It’s a bittersweet moment, but I’m ready,” Coffey said. “It’s a great feeling. I’ve been committed for a while now. Ever since I committed, I’ve been looking forward to this. It’s a great feeling to be signing and closing everything up.”
A Rivals250 member, Coffey said a handful of schools do check in with him from time to time. He’s appreciative of their interest, but said he remains focused on signing with Texas.
“It’s a couple schools hitting me up, but I’m not too worried about those,” Coffey said.
The 6-1, 180-pound Coffey stays in close contact with Chris Ash and Tom Herman and said the same reasons that led him to commit to Texas back in June still having him feeling good about his decision to be a Longhorn.
“I can go on and on, but really the main things, it’s close to home, I love the coaches, the city of Austin is amazing,” Coffey said. “I feel like I can go in and shake things up. I just feel like it was the best thing for me.”
Recently, Coffey put the finishing touches on a stellar high school campaign that saw him finish with 313 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 19 interceptions, 25 passes broken up and 10 touchdowns. He’ll report to Austin in mid-January, and said the realization of how close that date is has started to sink in.
“It’s hitting me. It’s hitting me every single day. I’m just trying to get ready for it,” Coffey said. “I’m more excited than nervous. It’s a whole new environment, news coaches, but everything is good.”
Coffey and Kennedale turned in an impressive undefeated 2020 season before getting knocked off in the second round of the playoffs. Not the ending Coffey was hoping for, but he said he’s grateful that he even got to play his senior season when COVID had cast so much doubt back in the summer. He feels he made individual improvements that will carry over with him when he gets to Texas.
“I think what changed a lot from this year to other years is my speed,” Coffey said. “I really worked on that this summer, so it helped. I worked with coach Flight (Christian White) and with our track coach on it.”
2. There are ways for Texas’ recruiting to get a shot in the arm, but it won’t be easy
Texas is a little more than one week away from signing most (maybe even all?) of its 19 commitments in the 2021 class. There’s still work to be done to fill out this group and while it’s not going to be a class that lives up to the standards you’d expect at a program like Texas, it is a group that has some talent, with a guy like Ja’Tavion Sanders leading the way.
If we’re trying to project one year ahead, for the class of 2022, it’s hard to say with much certainty that the Longhorns will suddenly be able to muster an abundance of recruiting momentum. Texas isn’t off to the best of starts with more decommitments in that class (2) than current commitments (1), but I’m going to put on my optimistic hat and try to come up with ways where Texas could bounce back to land a top class in 2022 if the current coaching staff is brought back.
--- Find more out-of-state talent: We’ve seen before, as recently as 2019, that Texas under Tom Herman can go out of state to secure talent. In that class, a staggering 14 of the Longhorns’ 26 commitments came from out of state. The problem … those out-of-staters haven’t exactly panned out. Juwan Mitchell, Jake Smith and Chris Adimora are really the only consistent performers from that group of 14 players, with others struggling to crack the line-up, giving up football due to medical issues, transferring or opting out. Not exactly a great hit rate, but at least Texas can recruit nationally if it needs to.
--- Catch lightning in a bottle with the young talent on the roster: If we’re being honest, the best way for Texas to secure a top class in 2022 is for the Longhorns to turn things around on the field next year and win over recruits with a championship-caliber product on the field. The problem there is that you’re counting on sudden momentum in October, November and December, and by that point many of the top prospects in the 2022 class will already be off the board.
--- Sell things like facilities and even early playing time: A program is much better off selling championships (see Alabama and Clemson’s recruiting efforts), but Texas doesn’t have that luxury right now so the coaching staff is going to have to find other elements to entice prospects to come to Texas. They can showcase their shiny new toys in the way of facilities, sell recruits on the opportunity to compete for early playing time on a young roster and basically build their own legacy by helping take Texas back to the top.
--- Vote of confidence for Tom Herman: We’re not talking about a contract extension or anything like that, but from a purely recruiting perspective, it would probably help UT’s status with recruits (both in the 2021 and 2022 classes) if Chris Del Conte would come out and show some public support for Herman. If Del Conte knows Herman is coming back (or as soon as he knows it), some sort of public statement should be made.
--- Start playing by SEC rules: Hey, you really want to recruit well, find a way to even the playing field a bit. That won't happen because it's not the Texas way, but it's worth noting that this UT staff is sometimes playing against a stacked deck for top national targets.
--- Land a couple foundational pieces early: Easier said than done, but if the staff can find a way to land a few guys like one of the quarterback offers and Jaydon Blue, that could help entice other players to want to follow them.
3. Charles Wright is ready to sign with Texas next week
I’m not sure there’s much reason to worry about many of the Longhorns’ current commitments (more on that below), but if there’s one guy you definitely do not have to lose sleep over, it’s quarterback Charles Wright.
The Austin High product will lead his team into a playoff battle on Friday before signing his letter of intent next week. For Wright and his teammates, the regular-season success has been a result of a lot of hard work.
“It’s an amazing, amazing feeling,” Wright said of making the playoffs. “We've worked extremely hard, especially during this COVID year. All these guys sacrifice a bunch, and just to be in this situation, in this position to make a mark in the Austin High history books, it's a really cool feeling and we're just excited to go out there on Friday and put on our best ball.
“Our senior class is phenomenal. They've dedicated themselves all throughout the summer. When the heat of COVID was going on we were trying to find safe ways to meet and get the work in. I think it's just going to the extra step with these guys. The past couple years, it was a little difficult to get the whole team together and get them all on the same page. I really think the senior class has changed the culture a little bit in the right way, just put themselves out there, being vulnerable and, we've done a really good job this season and we're going to keep fighting.”
Individually, Wright has put together an extremely productive senior season. In eight games, Wright has thrown for 2,548 yards (65% completion percentage) and 33 touchdown passes. He’s added nearly 400 yards on the ground and 5 rushing TDs.
“I think it’s the work I put in in the offseason. Not only that, but just a bunch of people doubting me. It’s pretty much as simple as that. Not many people thought that I could come out this year and do a little bit better than I have been, so I really use that as motivation and I was just extremely excited for this opportunity to play football during this year,” Wright said. “That was enough for me to really hone in my skills. And I think my running game has really had a big impact, not only on my team but my personal performances. So just that, film production, going over our offense, the coaches giving me the opportunity to check the plays and audible whenever I need to. It's been a great, great honor for them to give me that opportunity and we've made some plays with that.”
Wright has terrific physical skills, but he also prides himself on having a good grasp of the mental aspects of the game. He had just finished studying film of his upcoming opponent when we talked on Sunday night, and said his preparation this year has helped with his success.
“I love to watch film. It's really helpful,” Wright said. “Obviously, if you don't watch that much film it's not going to translate onto the field, so you’ve got to know not only what your offense is doing and what you're capable of doing, but you have to know the other team’s strengths and weaknesses and go from there. So it's been really helpful.”
With early signing period right around the corner and enrollment at Texas a little more than a month away, Wright said it’s starting to sink in that the next phase of his life will be here in a blink of an eye.
“I’m blessed to be in this position, but I think once I sign that piece of paper, it'll really hit me,” Wright said. “I’m extremely excited. It's been a dream come true for me and I've worked extremely hard to get to this point, and it's just the beginning so I'm excited for it.”
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TWO QUESTIONS
1. What’s the latest with tight end Gunnar Helm?
How’s this for a winning résumé?
Texas tight end commitment Gunnar Helm has never lost a varsity game as a starter. Last week, Helm and his Greenwood Village (CO) Cherry Creek teammates put the finishing touches on their second straight undefeated state championship.
Helm’s still riding high from his team’s accomplishment, but said he’s not going to waste much time before getting back to work in preparation for life as a Longhorn.
“It's awesome. We talked about it for a while last night, just how it's time for the next chapter and getting myself as ready as I can before I go down to Austin, but to celebrate this for a couple more days at least,” Helm said. “I’ve got to get back into the lab, as they say, get back into the gym and start lifting again. I’ve got to get myself in the best physical shape I can get into before I down there.”
Helm will sign with Texas next week and well then move down to Austin on January 15.
“I've been kind of focused on our season and winning a state championship, but I lay awake at night thinking about how I’m moving away in about a month. I’m excited to start the next chapter,” Helm said. “I don't plan on losing anytime soon so I hope I can bring winning to Texas as much as I can. I'm anxious, I'm nervous a little bit. It’s a different type of football, a different type of speed, but it goes back to the fact that I'm trying to get myself ready.”
Looking back at his decision to commit to Texas in July, Helm said he considered a few other suitors but once he made his way to Austin for a visit with his family, he knew he wanted to be a Longhorn.
“I kind of always pictured myself in the south. I was leaning a lot towards the SEC and Wisconsin. It's kind of crazy to think about Wisconsin being up so high on my list because I wanted to be in the south, but I felt a lot of the home presence in Wisconsin. And then as soon as I got to Austin, it kind of clicked for me and I was kind of like, ‘This is where I want to be,’” Helm said. “It's a great opportunity to come in and play early. There are only four tight ends on the roster and they’ve got big plans for the tight ends in upcoming years. I've seen a lot of 12 (personnel) so it's really got me excited.”
The 6-6, 235-pound Helm stays in touch with some of the other Texas commits, including running back Johnathon Brooks and quarterback Charles Wright. He hasn’t met them in person yet but said he’s looking forward to changing that soon. As for what he thinks he can bring to the Texas offense, the four-star tight end feels he can help in both the run game and pass game.
“I feel like I'm pretty versatile. This this season I've kind of tried to up my game a little bit more and just getting off the ball and feeling more comfortable in line on the line of scrimmage,” Helm said. “I really feel like I made some big strides in my blocking game and my route running as a tight end. I feel I'm versatile.”
2. How does the Big 12 stack up after last week’s action?
1. Oklahoma (Last week: 1) – The Sooners were a bit sluggish last week against Baylor but still look like the cream of the crop.
2. Iowa State (Last week: 2) – The Cyclones seem to be hitting their stride. The Big 12 Championship Game might actually be exciting in a couple weeks.
3. Texas (Last week: 3) – Texas played arguably its best game of the season last week.
4. Oklahoma State (Last week: 4) – OSU’s season has been about as disappointing as Texas’s.
5. TCU (Last week: 6) – Nice win by Gary Patterson’s group to knock off Oklahoma State last wek.
6. West Virginia (Last week: 5) – The bottom half of this conference is pretty bad.
7. Texas Tech (Last week: 7) – How did Tech nearly lose at home to Kansas?
8. Kansas State (Last week: 8) – That team Texas played last week had completely mailed it in on defense.
9. Baylor (Last week: 9) – Better last week, but still terrible.
10. Kansas (Last week: 10) – Looks like a winless season for the Jayhawks.
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ONE PREDICTION – All of the Longhorns’ 19 current commitments sign with Texas
I feel like I’m sticking my neck out a bit on this one because with so much uncertainty surrounding the coaching staff, the odds would probably say at least one of the Horns’ current pledges will wind up peeling off. That being said, the guys I’ve talked to recently all seem very solid, and they’ve said the other guys in the class have all indicated they plan on signing with Texas as well. There are a couple that I’m watching more closely than others (mostly because they’ve gone pretty quiet), and things could always take a dramatic swing in a matter of minutes, but for the most part everybody seems pretty well locked in.
