6 notes to get things started...
* i continue to hear good things about Dakorien Moore, but I wouldn't describe him as a stone cold lock to Texas. There are members of the Texas commitment class that believe that the Longhorns are in a good position, but they have admitted that they don't know with certainty that he'll be a Longhorn and these are commitments that communicate with Moore.
* Texas is still viewed as the heavy leader for Sachse wide receiver Kaliq Lockett. I haven't had anyone suggest otherwise, but there's a sense that Alabama is a team to keep an eye on if anyone is going to make a late surge with him. Duncanville quarterback Keelon Russell has been in his ear whispering sweet Tide thoughts into his ear.
* We're officially in the crazy season with regards to scuttlebutt related to Jacksonville wide receiver Jaimie French. There were people in Jacksonville this week that believed he will choose Texas. Others thought he would ultimately choose the school that offers the most NIL money. I have ever had one person who spent time with him this week suggest that he might end up at Miami when the dust settles. Prepare yourself for a possible roller coaster of discussion for the next two months.
* Coming out of his Oregon visit last weekend, the feeling is that the Longhorns have a slight lead for Alamo Heights athlete Michael Terry, but the Ducks have certainly made this very close. A source old me on Thursday that Nebraska is a distant third. A decision date is expected before the end of the summer.
* This is a random follow-up, but I had a source with knowledge of new OU defensive tackle Damonic Williams' recruitment tell me that the final NIL number ended up being $650K, despite the strong desire to hit the 7-figure mark.
* The buzz in Jacksonville this week is that Mesquite Horn offensive tackle Lamont Rogers is likely to end up at Oklahoma, which would leave A&M shut out of the top three offensive line prospects in the state.
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(Suchomel)
*. One of the more interesting notes to come out of the Rivals Five-Star in Jacksonville was the revelation that Texas is back in the race for Jahkeem Stewart after things had kind of cooled off a bit earlier in the spring. Stewart will be in Austin in late July for an unofficial visit.
How strong of a contender is Texas?
Very, per a source. Stewart, who will also visit Miami in late July, is strongly considering schools like Texas, LSU, USC and Ohio State, per people close to him. He’ll literally have his pick of any school he wants as the No. 1-ranked player in the 2026 class, but the word this week is that Texas is legitimately in the race.
* A note worth filing away … the nation’s top prospect, QB Ju Ju Lewis, remains committed to USC but he continues to look at other schools, including June official visits to Georgia, Auburn and Colorado (he was wearing CU gear at the Rivals Five-Star). If Lewis peels off of his USC commitment … still a big if … there’s some chatter that USC might try to make a run at Texas commitment KJ Lacey.
* Lacey has solidified his standing with Texas in recent months and UT is the only visit he’s taken of late, but when we asked him recently if he had completely shut things down with other schools, his response was that he’s “getting there.” No need to panic in this one at all, just passing along a note in case certain dominoes begin to fall.
* Some of you had asked for some clarity on why Texas and Jordon Davison went their separate ways back in the spring. Remember, we reported that our sources told us it was Texas that backed away from the five-star running back. Davison checked in at the Rivals Five-Star at a very “compact” 240 pounds on his 5-11 frame. He still moved pretty well for that size but clearly needs to cut a good 20 pounds. Word going around is that Ohio State also took itself out of the race due to Davison’s size. Lots of Oregon buzz in this one now.
*. Looking for a potential wildcard DB for Texas in the 2025 class? How about Zelus Hicks? Hicks is a 2026 recruit right now but there’s some chatter that he may consider reclassifying to 2025. That would make sense considering Hicks told Orangebloods on Tuesday that he’s going to commit sometime in July.
Texas, Auburn and Ohio State are all schools that are strong contenders in this one. The Carrollton (GA) product who ranks No. 12 on the 2026 Rivals100 is scheduled to take a return trip to Texas the last weekend of July. Auburn is the team generating the most buzz right now but Hicks REALLY likes Texas so this is a situation we’ll be watching closely over the next month.
* One of the surprises from the Rivals Five-Star this week was the word that leaked out that it might actually be Ohio State and USC leading the charge for Riley Pettijohn, as the potential 5-star LB nears a decision in early July. Most people, including yours truly, have had Texas as the leader for the longest time, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.
* One train of thought is that Pettijohn could just be trying to throw people off and set up for a surprise since seemingly everyone has been predicting Texas. Even if the talk of OSU/USC leading is true, I can confidently say it’s a VERY close race between those two and Texas after talking to Pettijohn off the record at the camp. Right now I’d slightly favor Ohio State in this one, but it does feel like there’s room for some late movement.
* Last, but not least, 2025 defensive tackle Josiah Sharma is scheduled to announce his commitment on Friday afternoon (2 p.m. CST). Texas, Alabama, Washington and Oregon. Sharma isn’t one who really tips his hand at all so this one’s tough to read but there’s some thought that it’ll likely come down to Texas or Alabama.
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(Anwar)
* Texas backup quarterback Arch Manning has been turning heads during summer workouts. Multiple people told me that Manning has been incredibly accurate on every throw, whether he's asked to make short or deep throws.
One person told me, “Arch has been spinning it every day in practice.”
Another person said, “Seems darn good to me.”
* Here is where it gets very interesting – and fun for Longhorn fans. Before I had a chance to ask a question, I was told Manning has a strong connection with former Oregon State receiver Silas Bolden. It appears Bolden has emerged as Manning’s favorite target during summer workouts.
This reaffirms what Alex Dunlap reported earlier this month when he wrote, “Oregon State transfer WR Silas Bolden is seriously turning heads. Judging from this conversation, he's made a really big first impression after coming on board as a summer enrollee. I asked if it's his speed that is exciting and the person said that yes, he is extremely fast but also just really good. 'He's cold. I mean cold,' is what I was told. This person said the DBs are all talking about how he's a problem to deal with and very shifty. I mentioned that it is a really crowded WR room that Bolden is entering at Texas (with guys like Johntay Cook, Ryan Wingo, Matthew Golden, Deandre Moore, and Isaiah Bond all vying for starter's snaps) and I was told, 'Trust me, he's going to play ... a lot.' and 'Sark has some good problems in that room.' Obviously, it's still so early, but we'll continue to listen for any other news on this. Let's just say that the guy is off to a really, really hot start.”
* For clarity, I was told Bolden plays with the first and second-team offense. The Longhorns are constantly mixing and matching lineups, which means Manning works with the first team, too. Again, we will continue to monitor Bolden’s progress. So far, Bolden has been impressive.
* Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers looked good during practice, too. One person said, “Quinn is definitely dialed in right now.”
* This nugget came out of nowhere. I was told freshman offensive lineman Nate Kibble has looked good during summer workouts. For the record, Kibble is not a family member who I felt the need to inquire about. I was told Kibble is strong and fast, and the staff is diligently working to teach him the playbook. They believe Kibble has a bright future. Texas is stacked at the offensive line position. Just save it as a mental note, even if it may not be relevant until next season.
* The players will wrap up summer workouts on Wednesday and have the rest of that week off. They will resume workouts the following week.
* Six other players stood out during summer workouts this week:
RB Jaydon Blue – The staff loves his speed.
WR Ryan Wingo – Once again, he was compared to Julio Jones. He’s another burner.
Edge Trey Moore – The staff loves this veteran’s work ethic.
LT Trevor Goosby – His length and athleticism have everyone inside the building believing he will eventually fill the shoes of Kelvin Banks. One person praised his positive attitude and said that is why the staff keeps asking him to host elite recruits.
RT Cam Williams – They love his body transformation from 369 pounds last year to 345 this week. I was told he may shed more pounds before the regular season begins.
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(Zach)
* It is hard to remember this much excitement around Texas Baseball since the 2021 run to the College World Series. No one should underestimate the shot in the arm that the hire of Jim Schlossnagle and staff provides the program. Recruiting, Donations, and Energy are way up and the Horns will look to ride that wave.
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* In talking to a number of folks in and around the program, there is a real level of excitement for what the future holds and what the new staff can achieve
The new staff has wasted no time in hitting the ground to assess the roster and determine the needs going into Fall 2024
* So far, there are six kids that I know are targets of the staff and of the six, all but one are pitchers
* One of the biggest challenges will also be convincing the outstanding Sophomore duo of Jared Thomas and Jalin Flores to return for another season. While nothing is decided yet, sources have said that there is a feeling of positivity in that regard
* The Horns did lose one of the 2024 signees, Ryan Schwartz, a catcher from North Carolina
Looking ahead to the future, the new staff also immediately flipped a 2025 kid in NC RHP Sam Cozart
* So far, only one Longhorn has entered the transfer portal (Sam Ardoin). That will almost surely change, but the next dates to watch are July 2nd portal entry deadline and then after that, all attention turns to the July MLB Draft in Arlington
