THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Texas made another strong impression on top DB Kenyatta Watson
Loganville (GA) Grayson cornerback Kenyatta Watson was one of two prospects in Austin for official visits last weekend (teammate Owen Pappoe was the other) and the Longhorns once again did a great job with Watson and his family.
A Rivals250 member (Watson is actually just outside of the Rivals100 at 112), it was Watson’s second time on campus this spring. The first one put Texas in a great spot – good enough that the Longhorns are in his final two with Notre Dame – and this last visit helped the Longhorns’ chances even more. In order to win out in recruiting, you usually have to convince not only the prospect, but also those close to him. Texas did just that, as Watson was accompanied by his parents on the trip.
“The weekend went really well. I came in with a lot of questions, from a dad standpoint, based on the timing of where we are with the decision,” said Watson’s father, Kenyatta senior. “I feel like I got all my questions answered.
“We got to spend a lot of personal time with coach (Tom) Herman, just sitting down and talking about life, philosophies, expectations. I thought it went really well. I’m probably the exception to the rule when it comes to recruiting from a parent standpoint because I’ve been doing it for so long (Watson Sr. is a former Division I football player and has coached several recruits at Grayson). I’ve had an opportunity to learn the ropes. It was very personable, very genuine, I felt. As a dad, I felt very comfortable. If that’s what he decides he wants to do, I’ll have no problem with that.”
Watson will announce his decision on live television on Tuesday evening. Should Texas win out, it will land one of the nation’s top defensive back prospects – Watson’s a 6-2 corner with great length and skills – and the Longhorns will add yet another piece to a defensive backfield that loaded up on talent in the 2018 class. In Watson, Texas would be bringing in an elite prospect who isn’t afraid of competition and working for his spot.
LSU, Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State began to pick up their interest in Watson of late, but he’s stuck to his guns and will choose from a final two-team grouping of Texas and Notre Dame. We’ll have our answer on Tuesday night, but this weekend’s visit seems to have the Longhorns in a good position.
2. De’Gabriel Floyd could go down as one of the Longhorns’ most important recruits in the 2019 class
Following De'Gabriel Floyd’s recruitment has been a pretty interesting journey. A Rivals100 linebacker, Texas extended an offer to the Westlake Village (CA) product and one-time USC commitment in late January. A couple weeks later, Floyd spent several days in Austin during the weekend of UT’s junior days, and was officially blown away. Floyd was back in the Capital City for a week during his spring break in late March, and it was during that visit when he announced his commitment to Texas.
Since that time, Floyd has returned to Austin two more times (on consecutive weekends), once for the weekend of the Orange-White game and once again last weekend. The guy has to be setting some sort of record for putting in the miles to get back and forth to campus as much as possible, and Floyd is about as locked in as a verbal pledge can be. His situation - having an out-of-state prospect fall so deeply in love with a program so quickly - is really a rarity.
The wheels were actually set in motion for last weekend’s trip quite a while ago. Five-star athlete Bru McCoy, the nation’s No. 8-ranked player overall, knew he wanted to visit Texas at some point. When Floyd committed back in March, McCoy asked Floyd if he would come with him when McCoy made his way to Austin. Once McCoy locked in his plans to visit UT last weekend, Floyd secured his plane ticket as well.
Two weeks ago, after the Spring Game visit, Floyd said he feels better about his commitment with every trip to Austin. He echoed those sentiments this week.
“Every time I go back, it’s a better feeling, a better situation,” Floyd said. “I gained knowledge. There’s no downfall of taking a trip here. Ever.”
Floyd is obviously a terrific talent on his own, but with him being so solid with his commitment, he’s suddenly turning into a terrific ambassador for Texas on the West Coast. Him accompanying McCoy on his visit over the weekend can only help UT’s chances there, and Floyd also has strong connections to other top talents in the state of California, including top 2020 quarterback Bryce Young, who just happens to be taking his second trip to Austin this weekend.
Texas did a great job of cherry-picking Cameron Rising in the 2018 class and already has Floyd locked in for the 2019 group. The UT staff continues to target a number of California prospects in both the 2019 and 2020 classes, and having a commitment from a guy like Floyd could pay dividends in the long run.
In case you’re wondering, Floyd feels like Texas put itself in a very good position with McCoy after last weekend’s visit.
“I feel we made a great impression, to be honest. They did exactly what they did when I came,” Floyd said. “He got comfortable, they interacted with his family, made us all feel welcome. They just broke everything down. For the most part it was just the vibe, the continuous amount of comfort (that stood out).
3. Texas seems to have a solid hold on the top spot for Branson Bragg
Texas has always been in a good position with top offensive lineman Branson Bragg, but there was a time earlier this year when other schools were trying to make a strong move with the center from Crandall. A&M got Bragg on campus for a couple visits and made its case, and Stanford has quietly hung around as a real threat, particularly after Bragg took a weekend visit to Palo Alto earlier this spring.
In late March, Bragg made a quick visit over to the Texas football offices while in town for the Texas Relays. Afterword, he said it was a good visit, but it was a bit rushed due to his schedule and due to the Longhorn football team having a scrimmage, so he didn’t get the time he wanted to really sit down and have detailed conversations with the Texas football staff, including offensive line coach Herb Hand.
A couple weekends ago, prior to the Orange-White game, Bragg was back in Austin and back on campus. He had more time on this trip, got his chance to meet with Hand, and things couldn’t have gone much better for the Rivals250 member.
“I got all the time I could have wanted. We were in his office for a long time talking, just everything question I could have thought of going up to campus, I got all the info I needed,” Bragg said. “We were just talking football, talking academics, talking to coach Hand and his family. His wife and daughter came and sat with us at the spring game and just talked about how they plan to be there for a while. They wouldn’t have left Auburn for nothing. Getting to spend time around the people some more is what really stuck out to me.”
Texas has always been at or near the top of Bragg’s list. Bragg’s not listing any formal leader, but in talking to him at Sunday’s The Opening Dallas event, it sounds like the spring game visit may have moved the Longhorns into sole position of the top spot.
“I’ll say Texas made a jump, a pretty significant jump,” Bragg said. “They were already pretty high. I’m not going to name a leader, but they made a jump.”
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TWO QUESTIONS
1. What are the odds with this weekend’s visitors?
This will be a big visit weekend for the Longhorns, with a number of top prospects set to make their way to Austin for official (and unofficial) visits.
Let’s take a look …
Makiya Tongue – Don’t sleep on this one. Tongue has told Rivals.com that Texas is the team standing out the most. He’s backed off that statement a bit in recent weeks as he’s taken other visits, but the Longhorns could really solidify their standing as a (the?) top option this weekend.
Jared Wiley – He’s been on campus a bunch and will be back this weekend. His plan is to wait before making a decision, but all signs point to Texas on this one.
Stacey Wilkins – Getting him on campus is huge because Texas seemed to have lost some of the momentum it had built after Wilkins’ junior day visit in February. Oklahoma and others are still heavily involved, but Texas should cement its place among his favorites with a good weekend visit.
Jaden Davis – The Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas product has already taken a couple visits (OU, Penn State) and the Longhorns face some stiff competition, including from programs in Davis’ home state.
Brayden Liebrock – Interesting visit here. Liebrock has visited Texas once already for a spring practice. The fact that he’s coming back so soon for an official visit is a pretty good indicator of his interest level. He’s another guy with a lot of top options, but Texas is clearly receiving strong consideration.
Chester Kimbrough – Kimbrough doesn’t say a ton so it’s hard to get a great read on what he’s thinking, but most feel he’ll likely stay in the SEC (Michigan is also mentioned). Texas does recruit Louisiana well thanks in large part to Jason Washington, so we’ll see if the Longhorns can be serious contenders after this weekend.
Tyler Johnson – Another guy who has been on campus multiple times, including for the Orange-White game a couple weekends ago. This will be Johnson’s second official visit (OU was the other) and the Longhorns are still believed to be the team to beat.
Marcus Banks – Banks has become one of the state’s most sought-after prospects and Texas faces some tough competition, but I still think this one comes down to either Texas, Texas A&M or LSU. He and his mother are blown away every time they visit, and I expect more of the same this weekend. If Banks doesn’t get hung up on the DB recruiting numbers, I like UT’s chances here.
NaNa Osafo-Mensah – He’s down to Texas and Notre Dame and will announce his decision later this month. Osafo-Mensah told us on Sunday he’s truly torn between the two, but I like UT’s chances, especially after getting the last visit.
Derek Stingley Jr – He’s the nation’s top corner prospect and he’s backed that up every time I’ve seen him. Stingley told me this week he’s excited to get back to Austin and get a more detailed look at the program. LSU will be tough to beat but Stingley swears to me he’s open to leaving the state.
Bryce Young – This will be an unofficial visit, but the standout 2020 quarterback will be back on campus for the second time in about a month. He’ll also visit OU this weekend so I need to find out the exact dates he’ll be in Austin, but this one is shaping up nicely for UT early.
2. What can Texas do to mitigate the loss of Garrett Wilson?
Seeing Garrett Wilson, the standout receiver from Lake Travis, commit to Ohio State on Sunday night was a bitter pill to swallow for Texas. It’s a big loss, and to try to spin it otherwise would not be genuine. Wilson is one of the top prospects to come out of Central Texas in the last decade and he’s a guy who could have given Texas some much-needed recruiting momentum.
With Wilson now off the board (although he did tell OB he wouldn’t completely close down communication with Texas or other schools), Texas will have to focus its wide receiver attentions elsewhere for the 2019 class. The good news … if there’s a position on offense at which the Longhorns can absorb a loss to a key player, wide receiver would probably be at the top of the list.
Texas has one commitment in the bag from Jordan Whittington, who could wind up on defense but hopes to play receiver. Texas is in good shape with a couple other elite prospects – guys like Dylan Wright and Jake Smith. The Longhorns continue to work on Elijah Higgins, although losing Wilson may impact UT’s chances there. Demariyon Houston has already visited Texas once and should be back for an official visit. And, it’s a deep year in state, so the staff is continuing to evaluate other intriguing prospects like Jaylen Ellis, Langston Anderson and Ainias Smith, among others.
Losing Wilson stings because he is potentially a game-changing talent and he’s in UT’s backyard, but Texas can still land a top recruiting class if it can close the deal on some of the top prospects on the board.
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ONE PREDICTION – Kenyatta Watson picks Texas on Tuesday night
We’ll have our final answer on DB Kenyatta Watson’s decision when he announces on an Atlanta-based television station tonight, but all signs point to it being a good night for the Longhorns. Notre Dame always does a good job and you have to take the Irish seriously, but I’m expecting Texas to add a key piece to its 2019 recruiting class later this evening.
