THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Getting the offensive line recruits on campus was a great move by the UT staff
When I first heard that Texas was planning to bring in its offensive line commitments for their official visits in May, it struck me as an interesting change of pace from the norm, and a move that could pay big dividends if things went well. After talking to the players who were on campus last weekend, or those close to them, I get the sense that bringing those guys in early was a smart move that could greatly impact UT’s chances with uncommitted lineman Chad Lindberg.
Normally, Texas brings in its committed players for official visits in December or even January, giving the committed players a chance to spend a weekend together and really bond before signing their letters of intent. Makes sense and it always works well, but a break from the norm was a smart move with this o-line group for a few reasons.
First, the group of linemen Texas is recruiting kind of runs in its own little clique, so getting the majority of the top targets in town on a weekend together made a lot of sense. That’s not to say the o-linemen aren’t friends with a lot of other prospects – guys like Vernon Broughton, Hudson Card and even Zach Evans have all connected with some of the linemen – but Texas is selling the linemen on the idea of playing together and that group being a bit of a foundation piece for this class.
Lindberg, one of UT’s top overall targets in the class, is already friendly with guys like Logan Parr and Jake Majors, so getting them together over the weekend almost certainly made the visit more enjoyable for Lindberg. Both Parr and Majors told me they didn’t try to give Lindberg a hard sell, but that group – along with fellow commitment Jaylen Garth – strengthened their friendships, which will help Texas in the long run when it’s time for Lindberg to make a final decision.
The only potential negative in bringing the committed guys in early is that you’ve used up their official visit, so they won’t be able to “formally” be a part of the big visit weekend in December. Honestly though, that’s a non-factor to me. All three of the committed guys have visited Texas several times on unofficial visits and they’ll all certainly be back several more times over the next seven months. If I had to guess, I’d fully expect most (maybe all) of them to return on their own dime when Texas does have its big recruiting weekend in December.
Lastly, getting Lindberg’s mother around the other o-line moms continues to work in UT’s behalf. Mrs. Lindberg has struck up a good friendship with the mothers of Parr, Majors, Card and Garth, and getting that group together during Lindberg’s official visit is not something that should be overlooked. Lindberg will make his own decision, but having mom (and dad) in his ear about the positives of playing at Texas is going to make the Longhorns very tough to beat in this one.
2. Jaylen Garth continues to recover from a knee injury he suffered in the fall
It hasn’t been talked about much, but in my conversation with offensive line commitment Jaylen Garth on Sunday we got to talking about the status of his knee injury. A bit of background, and an update …
Last year, in week 6, Texas A&M signee R.J. Orebo made a play on Roschon Johnson and in the process, accidentally fell into Garth. Garth had to be helped off the field but thought at the time he’d be able to return quickly. It turns out, it was a significant injury and Garth wound up missing the last seven games of the season and actually had his meniscus removed.
In talking to Garth this week, he said he’s back to doing normal activities and he won’t be taking any other measures to repair the knee (possible meniscus replacement) until he gets into the UT program. He said things are still a bit tender since it’s basically bone on bone right now, but he is able to take part in PNG’s off-season workouts and he expects to be at full strength for the 2019 season.
“I’m working on that. My lower body max (lifts) went down, so I’m working to get that back up right now,” Garth said.
3. Texas made a strong impression on Vernon Broughton and his family during his official visit
Defensive lineman Vernon Broughton is one of the Longhorns’ top overall targets in the 2020 class, and last weekend the Cy Ridge standout was in Austin for his first official visit of the recruiting cycle. I was able to catch up with Broughton’s mother, Yolanda Wells-Broughton, to get some feedback on the visit and it sounds like things went very well.
“It was a first class visit. I felt like they laid out the burnt orange carpet and exceeded our expectations,” Wells-Broughton said. “We had a really amazing visit.”
Wells-Broughton, a former basketball coach at TCU, LSU and Texas Southern, is no stranger to college recruiting. As such, she’s not going to be blown away with some of the usual flashy things that parents/recruits notice on official visits. Instead, it’s more about relationships, what’s best for her son in terms of his football career and what school will set her son up for the future beyond football. Texas did a great job in all areas, making a strong impression on Wells-Broughton and the rest of the family, including her mother, who accompanied them on the visit.
“I say this often on Twitter, but I think mom and grandma are hooked. To me it’s bigger than football. It’s just the impact that Texas makes,” Wells-Broughton said. “The thing that really impressed me the most is life beyond football, the opportunities that are available for him to take advantage of that’s not in that dollar sign. It’s a $300,000, $400,000 education. Then the impact he can have at an early start, if he wants to start a business plan, laying his blue print, those opportunities are available. The thing that impressed us is life after football … that’s the bigger picture to me.”
Broughton will take an official visit to Ohio State the weekend of June 14. He’s planning to hit Alabama the following week and LSU is scheduled for June 7. Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Arkansas are under consideration for his fifth and final official visit. Broughton is strongly considering the Sooners and Aggies, so those could be two schools to watch closely as the process wears on. A Rivals100 member, Broughton plans to make a commitment sometime over the summer.
Broughton has always been pretty open that Texas is high on his list, and coming out of his official visit, the Longhorns remain strong contenders for his eventual commitment. Wells-Broughton said the family will let Vernon make his own choice, but having a program like Texas a few hours from home is a very attractive option.
“I tell people this all the time, it’s going to be Vernon’s decision, but mom has to approve it,” Wells-Broughton said. “I’ve been at that level, coached at that level, stepped down from that level. At the end of the day, it’s going to be a family-encouraged decision. That (proximity) does help. We are accustomed to taking Fatheads to games, things like that. I know what he’s kind of looking at, but at the same time, he needs that support in us being able to be mobile in us getting to him, encourage him when it gets tough because it will get tough.”
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TWO QUESTIONS
1. What kind of impression did the official visit make on Chad Lindberg and his family?
If Broughton is one of the Longhorns’ top overall targets on the defensive side of the ball, the same can certainly be said for Chad Lindberg on the offensive side. The Clear Creek standout has been a regular visitor to the Forty Acres and was back last weekend for his official visit.
Lindberg’s mother, Emily Lindberg, said there was a lot to like from the visit, including the fact she they got to spend time with her other son who is a freshman at Texas.
“I think what stood out the most is that everything was really directed towards Chad and very personalized - from where we sat at every meal to who we hung out with and talked with,” Mrs. Lindberg said. “Texas always does a great job with logistics, too. The rain really could have messed us up, but everything went off without a hitch. Oh, and we got to do the whole visit with my other son so that was really fun. He got out of dorm life/food for a weekend.”
Lindberg and his mother have been on numerous football visits to the Forty Acres. What made this trip different (other than it being an official visit) was that Lindberg’s father was able to attend. Texas made a strong impression there as well.
“He loved it. I think if he had his way, he would just have Chad commit and be done with the whole process,” Mrs. Lindberg said. “He got along great with all of the coaches and he really liked coach (Herb) Hand.”
Texas fans were hoping that Lindberg might fall in love and make a quick decision, but the Rivasl100 member is sticking to his plan to take other visits before deciding. If Texas can land Lindberg, it would help with their recruiting efforts with other prospects around the state since Lindberg is well-liked and respected by his peers. That point was made during last weekend’s visit, but Lindberg still has visits scheduled for Georgia and LSU. He’s also hoping to save one visit for Stanford, and could take a fifth visit as well.
The Longhorns are clearly in a solid position with this one – they were before last weekend’s official visit and that trip probably only solidified UT’s chances – but with Lindberg wanting to see other campuses, Texas will have to sweat this one out a bit as he works his way through the process.
2. Where does Texas stand with Chris Thompson Jr. after last weekend’s official visit?
Add Chris Thompson Jr. to the list of uncommitted Rivals100 members who were in Austin last weekend for an official visit, and add Thompson to the list of guys who came away impressed. According to his father, the visit went extremely well and Thompson really clicked with the UT staff.
“We were very impressed on our official with UT. We feel comfortable with coach (Tom) Herman and coach (Craig) Naivar,” Mr. Thompson said. “Also, we had an opportunity to spend more time with coach (Todd) Orlando and others on the staff and also touch on some specific academic questions we had.”
This was Thompson’s first official visit. He’s slated to hit Notre Dame in June, while Auburn, LSU, Georgia and Florida were listed as possibilities for his remaining three trips.
In recent weeks, there have been rumors floating that Thompson may have been silently committed to Texas. His father said those have come out of nowhere and there is zero truth to those claims.
“I’m not sure where the silent commitment came from but it is false,” Mr. Thompson said.
The 6-2, 180-pound Thompson has yet to release a formal list of favorites and while his father didn’t tip their hand this week, the Longhorns are believed to be in a favorable position with this one. Texas has continued to make Thompson a recruiting priority for well over a year, Naivar and the rest of the staff have done a good job here (assistant receivers coach Ra’Shaad Samples), and the staff has stressed to Thompson that he could be a key part in helping get back to championship form.
“The biggest message was Chris is a priority for UT and has been since he was first offered. They have been steadfast in their interest and his commitment to UT can continue their success in building a national champion,” Mr. Thompson said.
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ONE PREDICTION – Texas wins out for Vernon Broughton in the end
I’ve had my Rivals FutureCast in for Broughton to Texas for a while, so this one isn’t exactly a huge surprise, but I feel better about UT’s chances coming out of his official visit.
Broughton will take other visits so there may be some nervous moments, but I just don’t see him going far from home to a place like Ohio State, and in my conversations this week, the UT visit really hit home in some key areas that I don’t think other programs will be able to match. Broughton’s family was blown away and if their opinion carries any weight (it should), this one looks good for Texas.
