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(From Anwar)
Texas football fans will be happy to hear another positive report stemming from the current summer conditioning program under strength and conditioning coach Yancy McKnight.
I previously caught up with Texas football coach Tom Herman on June 2 at a satellite camp held on SMU’s campus, and he told me, “They had a scheduled workout on Saturday, and Yancy McKnight said Tuesday and Thursday, the guys got after it, so they combined Friday to give them Saturday and Sunday off. The fact that in week one they’re already attacking it enough to earn a day off says something about the leadership on the team.”
It was a great report for Longhorn fans to hear inweek one, especially after a very productive spring by Herman’s team.
Well, offseason workouts are still trending in the right direction.
I checked in with my sources this week and learned the team continues to excel during summer workouts. They were hesitant to name individual standouts at this moment because the focus has been on improving as a team, but the good news for Longhorn fans is this group of players continues to meet the expectations of the Texas staff.
“Collectively, it’s been really good,” once source told me.
One aspect of this offseason that stood out to a source has been the noticeable progress.
I was told every time there has been a break, the players return looking better than when they left. From the end of last season until spring football, a small break until summer workouts, and the expected progress between now and training camp, it is obvious Longhorn players are working hard to improve.
“Just to see different guys improving their strength, speed and stamina,” I was told. “The bodies continue to look different.”
The workouts have gone so well, another source told me, “It’s all systems go at this point.”
I have a few more nuggets to pass along.
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One thing I wanted to find out this week was the format of summer conditioning. It is like saying you are working out to get in shape, but without providing the details. My goal was to get a better understanding of what goes to pass that information to you.
Basically, there are a lot of on-the-field exercises that occur during McKnight’s summer conditioning program.
--- I learned one day the team will participate in heavy conditioning exercises, run half gassers (touch the line and come back), and pull sleds with weights on them.
--- Another day the team will focus on change of direction techniques, quickness, cone drills. During the change of direction day, the coaches emphasize chin angles, ankles work, stride length, plus fine tune the running form. One source told me, “It’s important to feel the right muscles pulling in the right direction.”
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Of course, that led me down the rabbit hole, and I had to ask about 7-on-7 workouts.
From the time I arrived in Austin, I heard the stories about previous Longhorn quarterbacks and players who were judged by their 7-on-7 performance. It was viewed as another part of the evaluation process, and a way for players to impress their coaches. Former players were seemingly able to climb the depth chart through their summer performance.
I wanted to know if Texas junior quarterback Sam Ehlinger would be judged on his willingness to knock on doors and get players to participate in 7-on-7 workouts.
Once again, it just is not as big as it may have been in the past.
“Anwar, first of all, there is no door knocking because 7-on-7 begins right after the team finishes running at the end of practice,” one person told me.
I learned that 7-on-7 takes place once a week during the summer. It occurs after Tuesday’s conditioning work is concluded. Once the coaches leave, that is when 7-on-7 begins.
Gone are the days of players getting keys to Texas’ soccer fields to conduct 7-on-7 practice.
In fact, there are the extracurricular summer activities:
Tuesday – 7-on-7 after practice
Thursday – One-on-one after practice
Saturday – Sam Ehlinger gets guys together for routes on air
“It’s about repetitiveness, certainly,” I was told, “In order to get goodat a skill, you have to do it over and over.But there is quite a bit of coaching going on within the team drills, too.”
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It is still a little early to discuss leaders, but there are a few guys who have stepped up during the summer.
Longhorn quarterback Sam Ehlinger, center Zach Shackelford, safety Brandon Jones, defensive end Malcolm Roach, plus receivers Devin Duvernay and Collin Johnson have been identified as team leaders, according to my sources. Those players are a part of Herman’s leadership council.
The leadership council is a group of players Herman leans on to exchange ideas, listen to concerns, and make sure the team is unified. It regularly meets with Herman to discuss things going on with the team and can bring back thoughts and ideas from the team as a whole. The goal is to have a much closer and more cohesive team.
However, I heard a few new names when I asked about leaders this week.
I was told Texas defensive lineman Ta’Quon Graham, tight end Cade Brewer, left tackle Sam Cosmi and offensive lineman Derek Kerstetter are slowly emerging into team leaders this summer. The news should be encouraging to Longhorn fans since each player is being asked step in for veterans this year. They are doing enough to show they are ready to step up this season, and the right people have noticed.
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There are two more summer conditioning notes worth passing on:
--- The freshmen players who recently hit campus arrived in great shape. In fact, I learned they looked better than some in the building expected. More importantly, the big guys were in great shape. It does not mean they jump ahead of anybody on the depth chart, but nobody is having to play catch-up right now.
--- Senior receiver John Burt is working out with the team since track season is over. He is expected to be in the rotation this year and is getting back into football shape right now.
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(From Suchomel)
The Longhorns will host four official visitors this weekend, with a nice mixture of in-state and out-of-state prospects expected to be on campus, as well as a nice blend of committed players (both to UT and elsewhere) and uncommitted players. Let’s take a look …
QB Hudson Card – Lake Travis (Texas commitment) – Card has been a pretty active recruiter for Texas of late, including spending time with safety Lathan Ransom on Ransom’s unofficial visit a couple weeks ago. Those two will have a chance to bond some more this weekend, and having Card around a guy like RB Jase McClellan can only be a good thing for Texas. Some fans immediately wondered if Card would have any questions about his commitment after Texas landed a pledge from Ja’Quinden Jackson, but Card swiftly shut down that speculation on Twitter by welcoming Jackson to the program.
RB Jase McClellan – Aledo (OU commitment) – The Rivals100 back has been committed to Oklahoma for nearly two years, but he’s always been open in stating that he’d take official visits. And he’s also been open about his interest in Texas, including a couple unofficial visits to UT since his pledge to OU. From what I’ve heard in recent weeks, McClellan is in no way a back-up plan for Texas behind guys like Bijan Robinson and Zach Evans. The UT staff is very high on him and I’ve heard he’s valued every bit as much as other backs on UT’s list. The timing of McClellan’s visit is interesting considering (a) he’s already taken his official visit to OU and (b) Bijan Robinson will take his UT official visit next weekend. McClellan doesn’t speak a ton, but I’ve heard through the grapevine that OU is legitimately concerned and it’s pretty clear his interest in Texas is strong. My gut tells me this will definitely be a situation worth monitoring closely moving forward.
LB Prince Dorbah – Highland Park (uncommitted) – Dorbah has been a regular visitor on the 40 Acres but this visit feels like it could be the one that really tips things in UT’s favor. They seem to be leaning that direction already, but this one could really move the needle if things go as well as I’m expecting. Dorbah’s entire family (parents, brother) will accompany him on the visit and from what I’m hearing, if Texas can win over his parents (especially mom) it’ll go a long way towards the Longhorns’ chances of locking this one down. A summer commitment seems likely and the Longhorns feel like the clear team to beat.
S Lathan Ransom – Tucson (AZ) Salpointe (uncommitted) – I feel like I’ve reported on Ransom quite a bit the past couple months, but it’s hard not to pay close attention to his recruitment of late with the Longhorns making his top five, and with Texas getting two visits in the span of a few weeks. This will be Ransom’s fourth official visit after having taken trips to OU, LSU and Notre Dame. He’ll finish off his official visits with a trip to Ohio State next week. After his unofficial visit, Ransom’s father had incredibly positive things to say about their experience in Austin and he was anxious to get back for an official. It’ll be Ransom’s mother’s first time visiting UT and from what I’ve been told, winning her over will be a huge factor in Ransom’s summer decision. LSU and Notre Dame look to be UT’s biggest competition coming into this weekend.
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There’s been a lot of discussion about defensive lineman Vernon Broughton all spring and summer because of his ability and the fact that Texas has been at or near the top of Broughton’s list for the majority of his recruitment.
Broughton took his UT official visit back in early May and at that time, all signs pointed to the Longhorns being the team to beat. After recent visits to Arkansas and LSU, the buzz began to shift (mostly regarding Arkansas)
I caught up with Broughton this week to check in. I asked him about the online chatter that Texas had maybe fallen back to the pack or even behind any other schools, and he said several times that the Longhorns are still very much in the picture.
“They’re still up there. They’re most definitely up there,” Broughton said.
The Rivals100 member out of Cy Ridge will visit Ohio State this weekend and A&M next weekend.
“I’m still looking at those five (that he has visited or will visit). I don’t have a list really. But those five, the ones I’ve already taken, those are pretty much the ones I’m messing with,” Broughton said.
The 6-6, 285-pound Broughton said he still plans to make a decision towards the end of summer. Texas continues to talk to him pretty much every single day (Oscar Giles, Tom Herman, Todd Orlando) and the staff has used a well-rounded recruiting pitch stressing how he’ll be developed on and off the field.
“Their message to me is they need me. If I work hard enough, they want to see me as a starter. They want to see me develop as a person and a man too,” Broughton said.
I asked Broughton if any of his three official visits was more enjoyable or more impactful than the others. While he said the Texas visit was extremely impressive to him and his family, he said they’ve all been pretty even.
“That’s hard to say. They spoil you so much,” Broughton said.
Before we hung up, I was summarizing our conversation with Broughton, basically saying he’s still open among all five, he’ll decide later in the summer and Texas is still in the mix.
“Oh yeah. I still have love for Texas. A lot of love,” he said.
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The good news for Texas as it relates to Princely Umanmielen is that he hung out at a UT camp on Sunday and spent time with the Texas staff during/after the camp. He’ll also be in town next weekend (June 22) for an unofficial visit. The not-so-good news is that the Longhorns still have a bit of ground to make up on Texas A&M.
More on that in a bit, but first a couple comments on his camp visit and the message from the UT staff.
“I was planning on taking my brother three. He wasn’t available so I went by myself, talked to coach Giles before the camp. I watched Alfred (Collins) and Tajh Brooks. After the camp, I had a conversation with coach Herman, coach Orlando, coach Giles,” Umanmielen said. “It was me, Alfred and those three coaches. They were talking about how we’d fit in their defensive scheme.”
And how would Umanmielen fit in?
“Anybody who gains 30 or 40 pounds is going to play inside at my size. As long as I’m not over like 275, I’ll be an edge rusher,” Umanmielen said. “But they also said they’re always moving around the line, attacking from different angles.
“The also told me in the spring game, hey did more 4 down than 3 men down. They’re not like an LSU or Bama 3 man. When they do a 3 man, they don’t just stand there, they blitz and stunt and things.”
Umanmielen did say Texas has done a good job of alleviating any concerns he had about how defensive linemen can be effective in UT’s scheme (a seed planted by other schools like A&M), but he said A&M still has a slight lead.
“A&M would probably be about a 94,” Umanmielen said when asked to rank the Aggies on a 1-100 scale. “Texas a 91. OU and LSU would be right there too, but probably a little bit lower.”
Umanmielen plans to make a commitment in October, which will give him a chance to watch the schools on his radar play a few games.
“I wanted to watch some games play out. A&M-Alabama, Texas-LSU. A&M-Clemson, things like that.”
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{From McComas)
A couple small hoops recruiting notes to pass along:
--- Duncanville head coach David Peavy, also the father of 2020 prospect Micah Peavy, said they’re in the process of planning visits to Texas Tech and Texas. Since Texas offered Peavy, it has used a full-court press to establish itself as one of the main teams in the recruitment, and also the school Peavy hears from the most. While Luke Yaklich was at Michigan, he was recruiting Peavy to Michigan.
Obviously, if Texas gets Peavy on campus soon, it would be a positive sign.
--- Whitney Young (Chicago) 2020 combo guard DJ Steward was on campus last weekend for a visit, and it sounds like Texas strengthened its position as a major factor in the recruitment. The Longhorns should be in a strong position throughout the recruitment with a real opportunity to land him.
If you missed our update story from earlier this week, click HERE.
--- Former five-star prospect and Kansas guard Quentin Grimes recently visited Houston and Texas A&M. From what I’ve heard, Texas would be a bigger factor if not for the Big 12’s rules and the uncertainty of whether Kansas would approve a waiver for him to transfer to Texas. Basically, it’s still a situation worth following, but Texas A&M and Houston are clearly the two main teams currently.
