(Ketchum)
* Some of this Portal info at the top will feel a little redundant, but for the sake of updating everyone on the players that matter right now ... here we go. Let's start with former Clemson safety Andrew Mukuba, who will arrive on the 40 Acres on Friday for his official visit. In communicating with multiple sources with knowledge of his recruitment, the expectation is that Mukuba will end up a Longhorns very soon. In fact, there's a sense from a few people that Mukuba is already getting his ducks in a row for his post-commitment plans once he arrives in Austin in January. You can chalk this one up as one that's going to get done.
* It feels like everyone and their momma is entering a futurecast/crystal ball for former Houston wide receiver Matthew Golden to end up at Texas. The feeling is that Golden will visit Texas in the next few days, but the exact timing of the visit is still unconfirmed. I've not heard anyone suggest that Golden is going to end up anywhere other than Texas at this point. From the moment he entered the Portal, there's been a strong sense that his player profile fits exactly what Steve Sarkisian is looking for at the receiver position through the Portal.
* Former South Carolina wide receiver Juice Wells continues to be a player who is under consideration for another wide receiver slot, but there's uncertainty about where he fits into the Texas Portal plans. There is still a very strong sense that there are potential wide receiver candidates that simply haven't entered the Portal and I get the sense that Texas is willing to be patient, especially if everything goes well with Golden this weekend.
* I've been told that the program is looking under every stone and viewing every piece of film available on prospects in the Portal in a way that is more intensive than anything previously done since the Portal era began. Although obvious targets haven't emerged at several key positions, you can sleep well tonight that tight ends, defensive tackles and linebackers continue to be scouted in very serious fashion.
* As I reported earlier on Thursday, the Longhorns folks I communicated with in the last 48 hours still feel very optimistic about landing UTSA edge transfer Trey Moore, but there does seem to be a sense that anything could happen with Alabama once he steps on campus. One thing to know about the Alabama visit is that he'll be joined by former A&M players LT Overton and Fadil Diggs. One Alabama insider indicated that the Tide probably wants to come away with one, might potentially take two if two want to come and might use the first 24 hours of their visits to get a sense of who they need to press the most for a commitment.
* Another edge player to keep an eye on is former Tennessee starter Tyler Baron. The 6-5, 260-pound Baron recorded a career-high 5 sacks for the Vols this season and still has a single season of eligibility. Baron is currently visiting Ole Miss and there's suspicion that he might commit to the Rebels in the next 24-48 hours. If that doesn't happen, he could take a visit to Texas (as early as this weekend), but a source I spoke with on Thursday night indicated that the visit to Texas isn't set in stone. Could a full-court press on Baron depend on what happens with Moore's visit to Alabama? Possibly. It sounds like there are several factors that could impact how Texas approaches Baron. Stay tuned. We'll follow up on this on Friday.
* I asked a source about the pending linebacker hire that Steve Sarkisian will be looking to make in light of Jeff Choate taking the Nevada head coaching gig and the word I got was that Sarkisian has been juggling a million things this week and will almost certainly wait until after the playoffs before making this a primary focus. I've heard he's got a short list of candidates that he feels good about, but we shouldn't expect any movement until the season concludes.
* Things are looking good for Xavier Worthy, who is coming off of a high ankle sprain in the Big 12 Championship game. "He's very determined to play," one source said.
* With 18 days to go until the Washington game, there's buzz from the Huskies program about a secret weapon available to them on the defensive side of the ball. Zach Durfee is a 6-5, 255-pound edge player who produced 11 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss at the University of Sioux Falls in 2022, but was forced to sit out this season because he spent a semester at North Dakota State, although he wasn't on the football team. He's been with the Huskies since the spring and there's a sense that he's one of the best talents in the program, although most have never heard of him. "Yeah, he’s a super exciting player," a Huskies insider told me this week. "Really impressive athlete, crazy testing numbers according to the staff, great numbers at the NAIA level and I really liked what I saw from him at open practices. He was expected to be a huge part of the pass rush rotation this year."
So, what about the game against Texas? How much might he play?
"It’s hard to say, I wouldn’t expect it to be more than 20, but I’m hoping the coaches might tell us more at media availability later this week," the insider said.
(Anwar)
* Nobody behind the scenes was caught off guard by quarterback Maalik Murphy’s decision to enter the transfer portal this week. Everyone knew it was a matter of when Murphy entered the portal after the regular season. Last week, Murphy began informing those close to the situation he intended to transfer. Once Murphy informed Texas of his decision to leave, I was told Longhorn football coach Steve Sarkisian invited Murphy to stay throughout the playoffs and leave once the season concluded. Many people believed Murphy would accept Sarkisian’s offer and remain a Longhorn throughout the playoff run. However, Murphy eventually declined the offer because he was eager to find a new home sooner than later.
* That brings us to Longhorn freshman quarterback Arch Manning. He moved into the No. 2 role and will back up Quinn Ewers throughout the playoffs. From what I was told, Manning has constantly improved in practice this season. Manning’s biggest adjustments have been adjusting to the speed of college football and reading defenses under pressure. That adjustment is typical for every freshman quarterback, including Manning. However, I was told Manning can currently run the entire offseason and has the mobility to add another weapon to his arsenal. The staff has a lot of confidence in Manning’s ability to play at a high level if necessary.
* Speaking of Manning, check out how hard the freshman has worked this year. When Manning arrived on campus, he weighed 210 pounds. And now? Manning weighs 225 pounds. Yes, that is all muscle.
* The deadline for underclassmen to apply for the NFL Draft is on January 15th. There is seemingly no sense of urgency as relates to Ewers announcing if he will enter the NFL Draft or remain at Texas. Nevertheless, one source told me Murphy entered the transfer portal because he expects Ewers to return for the 2024 season.
******
(Suchomel)
Let’s take one last look, position by position, before NSD1 next week …
Quarterback
Needs – 1
Commitments – 1
Trey Owens has been committed since his birthday in January and he’s never once looked around. With Maalik Murphy set to leave the program via the transfer portal, getting Owens locked in early suddenly looks like a brilliant move by the Texas staff. He’ll enroll in January so he’ll be available for spring ball, and he’ll be on campus this weekend with most of the other commitments for one last quick visit before signing next week.
Running back
Needs 2
Commitments – 2
In Tashard Choice I trust. The recruiting maestro secured two huge early commitments from Christian Clark and Jerrick Gibson just days from one another, and he’s been able to hold off other schools that have tried to make a run, mainly Florida for Gibson. The Texas running back room in recent years has been as talented as any in the country, and that trend should continue with Clark and Gibson. The plan is for Gibson to arrive this weekend and go through bowl practices with the team.
Wide receiver
Needs – 3 or 4
Commitments – 3
I would have liked to have seen Texas add one more receiver to this class, but it looks like three will be the number and the staff will look to the portal to add some talent and experience. Freddie Dubose Jr and Smithson Valley are competing for a state championship this weekend. Parker Livingstone is fully recovered from the foot injury that cost him most of his senior year, and he’ll officially move to Austin this weekend to join the team for December practices. The same with Ryan Wingo, who will head down this weekend and then settle in to go through bowl workouts.
Tight end
Needs – 1 or 2
Commitments – 1
Athletic pass-catcher Jordan Washington is locked in and he’s another that’ll be in town this weekend. Texas flirted with others at the position, including a late run at Hunter Andrews, but Andrews told OB on Wednesday that a UT official visit this week was unlikely to happen and he was probably going to stick with Utah. We’ll check on that one again on Friday for a final update. There was some recent chatter around Elija Lofton possibly wavering on his Miami commitment and a source at his school said last week that it wasn’t a lock that Lofton would sign with the ‘Canes, but we haven’t been able to get much more traction on that story. There’s probably not much to see there, but worth filing away just in case.
Offensive line
Needs - 3 or 4
Commitments – 3
Texas landed two early pledges from Nate Kibble and Daniel Cruz and then was able to add a 5-star piece to the puzzle in September in Brandon Baker. Texas tried to add another piece to the puzzle with a number of other offers/visits but none of them ever materialized. A three-man class is fine after taking large numbers in the last two classes, but I’d look for Kyle Flood to try to load up in 2024.
Defensive tackle
Needs – 3
Commitments – 2
Alex January committed on July 1 and has been locked in ever since. He and Duncanville play for a state championship this weekend. D'antre Robinson would commit later that same month and while there were a couple of nervous moments when he visited Florida, Robinson shut that talk down pretty quickly and has been solid for a while. Texas continues to look for one more interior defensive lineman and has flirted with Mississippi State commitment Terrance Hibbler and Baylor commitment Alex Foster. Hibbler seems likely to stick with Mississippi State, but Foster told OB on Thursday night that he might go ahead and take a Texas OV this weekend.
Things could get really interesting in January and February with Texas making a run at a couple of A&M commitments. Schools like Texas, OU and LSU are still after Dominick McKinley and he’s keeping the lines of communication open, including an in-home visit with UT that’s scheduled for tomorrow. Dealyn Evans confirmed with OB on Wednesday that he too won’t be signing until February, and Texas is a school that he’ll take a visit to in January.
Defensive end
Needs – 3 or 4
Commitments – 3
One of the more interesting stories of this cycle has been Colin Simmons and the LACK of wackiness with the 5-star defender. When Simmons committed to Texas in August, everyone assumed the Longhorns would have to fight like hell to hang onto his pledge. Instead, the dude has been about as solid as any guy on the commitment list and he’s never shown one ounce of being interested in looking around. Melvin Hills and Zina Umeozulu are both locked in as well, and they’ll both be in Austin on Saturday. Umeozulu is an early enrollee, Hills will move to Austin in June.
Solomon Williams continues to be an enigma. He told us last week that Texas was going in-home on Monday, Saban on Tuesday. He tweeted a pic of him and Saban, but has made no mention of Sark stopping by. When I asked him this week if the UT visit happened, he’s gone silent. Oregon and A&M are supposed to go in this week as well, but with Williams it’s hard to say what might happen. As things stand right now, that one just doesn’t feel like it’ll fall UT’s way.
Linebacker
Needs – 0 or 1
Commitments – 0
It’s looking like Texas will go without a linebacker in this class, but we’re not shutting the door completely on Tyanthony Smith. The A&M commitment was flirting with a UT visit this weekend but told OB on Wednesday that he would not be taking that trip. That could still change again or he could try to sneak in under the radar, so we’ll keep an ear to the ground. Even if he doesn’t make it in, there’s still some thought that Smith could sign with Texas without taking an OV in order to lessen some of the pressure. It doesn’t happen often, but if he wants to move in silence, that would be one way to do it. From what we were told, he was telling some people as recently as last week that he was planning to flip to Texas. Will it still happen? Seems less likely without an OV but again, this will be one we’ll be watching until his LOI is sent in.
Defensive back
Needs – 5
Commitments – 5
The Longhorns have five commitments - Santana Wilson, Jordon Johnson-Rubell, Wardell Mack, Kobe Black and Aeryn Hampton – and we’re expecting that number to grow to six with an eventual commitment from Xavier Filsaime, assuming Filsaime makes it to Austin for his OV this weekend. Florida did an in-home earlier this week trying to get him to shut things down and stick with his Gators pledge, but we’re still expecting Filsaime to be in Austin as of Thursday afternoon.
The Longhorns have had to work to fend off Alabama with Hampton, including an October visit for a Bama home game and a late push by Nick Saban and WR coach Holmon Wiggins, but the expectation as of Thursday is that Hampton will sign with Texas. We’re trying to confirm if Hampton will be in Austin this weekend with the other commitments. Again, things still look good for Texas right now, but Hampton is a guy who is always a possibility for some late theatrics.
Specialist
Needs – 1
Commitments – 1
Texas went out and secured a commitment from punter Michael Kern back in early May. Kern is a guy that could very well compete for playing time as a true freshman.
Last edited by a moderator:
