Texas Recruiting Notes 2023: Strippers, Monkeys, and 5-Stars

[Coelenterate Fuccboi 13091]

13 hours ago, UDontKnow said:

I donated 10% for your mom's tithes.

My eyes are currently dilated from an eye appointment. I thought this said titties at first glance.

[satyanash 14480]

 

[SydneyCarton 48070]

3 hours ago, Coelenterate Fuccboi said:

My eyes are currently dilated from an eye appointment. I thought this said titties at first glance.

I mean, that is basically exactly what he said. 

[El Compadre 766]

1 hour ago, satyanash said:

 

[Fudbelty 2788]

My eyes are currently dilated from an eye appointment. I thought this said titties at first glance.

Potato potato

[Coelenterate Fuccboi 13091]

2 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

I mean, that is basically exactly what he said. 

I mean, at first I couldn’t tell the difference, so I got two laughs out of it.

[Teryor 4456]

5 hours ago, satyanash said:

 

I appreciate that he's making it out like 10k words is some gargantuan accomplishment. That's a normal book chapter length. 

[Acropora 856]

18 minutes ago, Teryor said:

I appreciate that he's making it out like 10k words is some gargantuan accomplishment. That's a normal book chapter length. 

10K words is a tweet from ian boyd.  I bet Roach's behind the scenes account will be 25% recruiting, 25% worship of texas high school coaches and 50% discussion of the where to get the best chicken fried steak....aka a normal page on surly.

[RGBIII 22839]

29 minutes ago, Teryor said:

I appreciate that he's making it out like 10k words is some gargantuan accomplishment. That's a normal book chapter length. 

But have you ever tried to type while eating chicken wings?

[Handcruser 2805]

10K words is a tweet from ian boyd.  I bet Roach's behind the scenes account will be 25% recruiting, 25% worship of texas high school coaches and 50% discussion of the where to get the best chicken fried steak....aka a normal page on surly.

Full disclosure - I’d read the part about chicken fried steak.

And if you’re not going to plowmans kitchen in Taylor for chicken fried steak you’re doing it wrong.

[Teryor 4456]

Roach BTS part 1 (gotta double up your clicks)

Spoiler

The 2023 cycle was another successful one for Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns.

On the heels of signing a Top 5 class in his first year on the job, Sarkisian came back strong again and signed a Top 3 class with some of the top talent in the nation. The group was highlighted by winning over a highly-publicized recruitment for Arch Manning.

Each year at Horns247, we pull back the curtain on several recruitments giving out the information we can’t give during the course of the recruiting cycle. Where did the Texas staff push the right buttons and where did they have their miscues?

In this year’s edition of Behind The Scenes, Horns247’s all-access look into the 2023 class, we discuss how the Longhorns landed some of the top prospects in the country and how they missed out on others.

— The only thing shocking about the Arch Manning recruitment was how straightforward it was for being arguably the most publicized recruitment of all time. When Steve Sarkisian was hired at Texas, the Longhorns became an instant contender for Manning. Even with that buzz, I still had a hard time believing Texas could win that race given the state of the program. Even though I started to hear more encouraging things during the spring of 2021 and decided to make a trip to New Orleans to be the first reporter in the Texas market to speak with Manning in person. Because of the way the family handled the recruitment, I planned the trip meticulously and kept it quiet from everyone except for my boss who had to approve the trip. I showed up in New Orleans at Isidore Newman, and as luck would have it, Manning was held out of practice that day with a minor injury. Even though I didn’t get to see him throw, I was able to speak with Manning for a while following practice. In a very candid conversation with him and his coaches, I got the feeling that Texas was not only a legitimate contender but a leader in the group for him. From the very beginning it was a tight group of Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Clemson. Clemson fell back after his trip that summer and Texas kept surging. Manning was growing close with several Texas leans including Johntay Cook, and he was already laying some groundwork for when he would eventually commit.

(Photo: Twitter: @TexasFootball)
 

After his summer visit to Austin, Manning returned during the season to see Texas against Oklahoma State. In a big game environment, the Longhorns lost after giving up a lead in the 4th quarter. Recruits left Austin pretty disappointed that day, but I spoke to several sources who said Manning wasn’t bothered by it and seemed undeterred. Aside from Steve Sarkisian and AJ Milwee, who played a major role in the recruitment, Austin was just the type of place Manning felt at home. It felt like the Longhorns had the edge going into the spring of 2022 and another trip to New Orleans only reinforced those feelings. After a spring visit to Texas, it sounded like Georgia and Texas were at the top with pivotal official visits upcoming. Throughout the spring and summer, just about every source we had both inside the program and out were confident Manning would be a Longhorn. After visiting in the summer, we knew Texas was close to securing him, but there was some talk he could take his recruitment into the fall. Shortly after his visit, we got the word he would be announcing for Texas with about ten minutes notice while on the road to College Station for the State 7v7 tournament. After Manning committed, we would hear rumors here and there that he might be considering trips to Georgia and could even plot a late flip. After talking to those close to him at Newman, I determined that the rumors were just that. Manning and his family constructed his recruitment in a way that limited any circus aspect and handled it in an incredibly professional way. They controlled media access to in-person only, but that resulted in Manning never really being burnt out by interviews. Every time we talked to him in person, he was open and honest because he didn’t feel he had to constantly play the game. The prevailing theme around Manning was that despite being a member of his family, he was just a regular kid. I can confirm in the five interactions I had with him during that recruitment, he never played into the famous family aspect and came off as down-to-earth. Recruitments like his can often be exciting because everyone tunes in when you have an update, but they can often be a hassle as well. The way his entire camp handled themselves was a masterclass in how to conduct a high-level recruitment.

— Rueben Owens was originally a big piece of the puzzle for Texas. Owens was the top back in the state, and he was also growing close with Manning and intent on playing with him at the next level. Owens originally committed to Texas in the spring of 2021. The commitment came as a bit of a surprise as word got to us one evening that he would pull the trigger. We were also told the decision came as a surprise to his friends and family. Owens made the call but decommitted during the summer. Depending on who you asked, the decision to decommit came down to a few different factors. The official line we heard was that Owens simply wanted to test the waters of his recruitment and chalked it up to committing too early. We did hear that Owens wasn’t thrilled with the attention showered on Manning at the Texas Elite Camp prior to their junior seasons, but I’ve never confirmed that with anyone.

(Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

Regardless, Texas still held a top spot in the recruitment and it seemed like a foregone conclusion they would get Owens back. A huge factor originally was Tashard Choice who had a relationship with Owens going back to Georgia Tech. As we went through the spring of 2022, Texas started to pick up the pace with Cedric Baxter. After we visited El Campo, Owens told us the contact wasn’t as strong with Choice and a source in Austin confirmed that Texas saw Baxter higher on the board and felt they were in a position to win him over. The Longhorns eventually did that, but they continued to pursue Owens. After he committed to Louisville, both sides went their separate ways. There was a point during the season when Owens was contemplating a visit to Austin for the TCU game, and the Longhorns felt they could make a push. This was right in the middle of Florida State making a big push on Baxter, so there was some tightrope walking. The visit never materialized and Owens eventually decommitted and picked Texas A&M. It will be fascinating to watch how two of the top backs in the 2023 class develop down the line at rival schools.

— Texas landed Tre Wisner in a bit of a surprise during the spring game. That commitment also threw a bit of a wrench into the recruitment of Owens, but Texas liked the versatility of Wisner. Come to find out, Wisner really clicked with Choice and Johntay Cook was already recruiting him to Texas despite being uncommitted at the time. After Wisner committed, he talked frequently of taking other visits and how his recruitment wouldn’t be over until signing day. Despite that, there were really no shaky moments with Wisner.

— From the moment Tashard Choice arrived in Austin his motto seemed to be “Baxter or bust.” Once the staff got Baxter on campus during the spring, it seemed to be all downhill from there. While Florida, Florida State, Miami and Texas A&M all appeared as opposition at one point or another, Texas found an edge early and held it through his decision date in the summer. After Baxter’s mid-June official visit, he gave a silent commitment to the staff and started working on others. Florida State made it the most interesting down the stretch getting close to flipping him on one occasion, but Texas was ultimately able to hold them off. Tashard Choice’s relationship with Baxter was a big factor, but we made calls to sources several times in the last two weeks of the season when rumors revved up behind the scenes that Baxter could be making a move. In the end, there was never much panic on the Texas side as they seemed to have a pretty good read on where things were and Baxter was honest with them the entire time.

Johntay Cook (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— Johntay Cook’s recruitment went pretty much according to plan from the beginning. There wasn’t a moment that Texas wasn’t the leader behind the scenes though Cook wanted to do just about everything he could to throw people off. There were several times during the early part of his recruitment that Cook told me Texas had the lead and it was big. In fact, a source near him told me last February that it was Texas’ recruitment to lose. After visiting Texas A&M for Junior Day last year, I went and saw Cook at his school. He told me then that Texas still had the lead but he knew that everyone thought that and he wanted to have some intrigue in his decision. In reality, Cook was already recruiting others to Texas by this point. While on an official visit during the summer to another school, Cook called me and started the process of getting everything together for his commitment by asking me to do a voiceover for his commitment video. Though he liked to play the social media games at times, Cook was locked in and solid through everything.

— The Jalen Hale recruitment was one to remember. Hale would run hot and cold on Texas throughout the entire process, but he started to grow red hot when Texas was stacking commitments and momentum throughout the summer. Leading up to his commitment, everything pointed to Texas. Two days before he made his announcement, Hale called Texas and told them he was coming according to multiple sources I spoke with. I began making plans to go to Longview for his announcement, but things started to change the night before his commitment. I asked a source near Hale what was going on and he said that Alabama made a big push and several people near Hale were backing the Crimson Tide. It was a surprise that Texas was in it in the first place considering some pretty solid intel that those closest to Hale wanted him at Alabama. On the morning of the announcement, a source near Hale told me I’d be better off not making the trip and I got the message loud and clear. Texas seemed to have a good pitch, but they couldn’t overcome the development and winning pedigree of Alabama.

Jaquaize Pettaway
(Photo: Brian Perroni, 247Sports)
 

— Coming out of a spring visit to Langham Creek, I thought that Texas was in the lead for Jaquaize Pettaway. When Hudson and I saw him at his school, Pettaway spoke so glowingly about Brennan Marion and the bond the two of them had that it was tough to ignore. Oklahoma was always in the picture though and Pettaway had a fascination with the Sooners. Coming off of his Oklahoma official visit, the buzz was moving to the Sooners, but we knew Texas would make a big push when they hosted him. Midway through the visit I checked in with sources to see how everything was going. There was a lot of buzz that weekend with Arch Manning taking his official along with a big group of others. When I asked about Pettaway, I was told that he wasn’t having as good of a time as everyone else and the feeling was that he just didn’t vibe with Austin and the size of the Texas campus. Pettaway of course went on to pick Oklahoma and I talked to him after he signed at the Under Armour All-American Game. Pettaway said that the size of the Texas campus wasn’t something he was into and he liked how close everything felt in Norman. He also said that contact with Brennan Marion seemed to drop off after the visit and he felt like he was being “ghosted” by Texas. Regardless of that, I think he would have picked Oklahoma regardless.

— The ballad of Deandre Moore Jr. ended up working out in favor of Texas. I first met Moore in 2021 following his sophomore season. It was then that he made a visit to Texas and Maalik Murphy talked often about a relationship between the two of them. In fact, Moore was supposed to come to Austin with Murphy on an unofficial visit, but he committed to Oklahoma just before that visit was set to take place. When Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma, Moore decommitted and he and I reconnected. Moore told me at that time that he was interested in Texas and wanted to get back to Austin for a visit. After tripping to Austin in the spring, Texas began to surge ahead along with Louisville. When I saw Moore during the spring at a 7v7 tournament, he told me that the NIL pitch at Louisville was pretty serious and his friend and teammate Pierce Clarkson was committed there. Still, the Texas staff felt they had the edge but Moore pulled off a surprise commitment to the Cardinals. Texas remained in contact throughout the year and they were able to get Moore in on an official visit. Despite him being sick through the trip, the feeling was that Texas had done enough to flip him. When Scott Satterfield left Louisville, it provided the catalyst for Moore to really make a move. Louisville made it hard on Texas coming after Moore hard under the new staff and keeping a big NIL offer in place. About three weeks before his Signing Day announcement, Moore went quiet on just about everyone and stopped responding to anything. Still, everyone in Austin was confident they would end up as the pick. Moore threw a curveball on Signing Day when he failed to show up to his scheduled announcement. From what I understand, Moore was going back and forth with Louisville and Texas and at one point was planning to sign with the Cardinals. This went against all the plans as Moore’s nameplate at the Bosco signing day ceremony even had a Longhorn logo on it. I spoke to a source that night who was confident they were able to nail it down and Moore ended up signing the next day.

(Photo: Texas Football)
 

— I’m not sure I would have bet money on Texas landing Ryan Niblett at this time last year, but it all worked out. Once Brennan Marion arrived, he went to work on the speedy Houston prospect who didn’t include Texas in his list of top schools when he cut it last year. Marion was able to get Niblett in on an unofficial visit in the spring and things seemed to change overnight. When we saw Niblett during our spring visits, Texas seemed to be surging and the relationship with Marion along with the opportunity to play in Steve Sarkisian’s offense was a big reason why. Niblett returned for the spring game and made his decision to commit shortly after the scrimmage ended. Everything was secure until December when Niblett suddenly popped up at Houston for an official visit. We heard from a source that a flip could be imminent and Niblett certainly gave several folks at Houston the impression that he would make the move. The Texas staff was able to get on the phone with him following the visit and then conducted an in-home trip that locked everything down. Niblett said he had the opportunity to play with several friends going to Houston and a source told me the Cougars got in his head by telling him he might have a hard road to playing time in Austin. Texas was able to move fast and keep the dynamic speed threat on board.

— Austin produced two receivers rated as four-star prospects this season and both ended up at Notre Dame. Braylon James tested off the charts, but the Texas staff never seemed enamored with him. Andre Coleman and Brennan Marion both evaluated him and simply had others higher on the board. Jaden Greathouse was a different story altogether. While Coleman didn’t like him, there was some early interest from the staff. In fact, a source at Texas told me they loved his skill set so much they’d get him to campus and figure it out. Something changed in the late spring after Texas saw Greathouse at a workout. Though he was incredibly productive during his high school career, he never checked the boxes when it came to speed or other athletic traits. The staff seemed to have one foot in and one foot out on Greathouse whenever I’d check in with sources. Notre Dame just made Greathouse a much bigger priority and won him and his family over. The question with Greathouse has always been about marrying his athletic traits and ceiling with his tremendous production. It will be fascinating to see how both Greathouse and James develop down the line.

Jonah Wilson (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
 

— From the time Brennan Marion arrived in Austin, he was all in on Jonah Wilson. After seeing the Dekaney wide receiver play basketball, Texas offered him, pursued him like he was a major priority and won him over in the summer. Everything seemed to be going well and Wilson paid off the staff’s trust by having a big a senior year showing rapid development. Wilson ended up decommitting just before kickoff of the West Virginia game and reportedly didn’t tell the staff. They found out on twitter just like everyone else. Armani Winfield did the same thing last year and a source told me that the way it was handled wasn’t received well. There were some people in Wilson’s camp pushing him toward Houston and the Cougars have done a good job recruiting that area of the state. I was told that Wilson called the staff back shortly after to see if he could get back into the class, but the staff was moving on at that point.

— There was a time when Kyle Parker was a priority for the Texas staff. Brennan Marion had offered Parker while at Pittsburgh and offered him at Texas soon after arriving in Austin. Texas ran out in front of the recruitment, but there came a time when they pushed for a commitment and Parker wasn’t ready to give it. The Longhorns moved on from that point and Parker committed to LSU. While Marion liked Parker, I was told the rest of the staff wanted more size at the position. Regardless of what was reported down the stretch, Texas never really pushed for him again.

— During the middle of the fall, the name Ja’Kobi Lane seemed to pick up a ton of buzz all of a sudden from multiple sources in Austin. The staff utilized the bye week to go out to Arizona and see him in person and invite him to campus for a visit. Lane was set to come in the same week as Deandre Moore, and sources we spoke with were actually more confident about landing Lane than Moore. Following his visit, all signs seemed positive and those we talked to in Austin felt it was only a matter of time before Texas could complete the flip. I was told by several sources that Lane was scheduled to come back on an unofficial visit the week before Signing Day in December, but that trip suddenly was canceled and I was told that Lane was no longer a take at the moment. I never quite determined what caused both sides to move on, but as suddenly as he arrived, Lane seemed to disappear from the board.

(Photo: Blair Angulo, 247Sports)
 

— The tight end position didn’t have much heat. Texas identified Spencer Shannon early on and once they offered, they were in the driver’s seat. Will Randle seemed attached to Arch Manning and a foregone conclusion. Duce Robinson was a bit of a different story. Robinson had family in the Dallas area and used to live there before moving to Arizona. Texas actually hosted Robinson as a sophomore and I remember seeing him on campus and not knowing who he was but being in awe of the frame. Robinson remained the top tight end on the board throughout and the Longhorns were able to gain some traction once they landed Manning. There was a pretty big push and at one point, sources in Phoenix thought Texas would take it home. As of this writing, Georgia still seems like the favorite, but Robinson decided to hold off from signing. He told ESPN that he still doesn’t have a clear idea of where he wants to go and would like to find clarity. There are a lot of factors at play with his MLB future factoring in as well. The book is not closed on this yet and more time means more opportunity for every school involved.

— There were no real fireworks with the majority offensive line group. Kyle Flood pretty much targeted them from the beginning, recruited them hard and landed them all in the span of a few days in the summer. None of them ever seemed to waver once they were on board and they all created a strong bond with each other and the families involved. Payton Kirkland was the lone exception. I woke up one morning to a call from our production crew as they were prepping for Kirkland’s live announcement telling me that he was going to announce for Texas. I checked around and that news was surprising to just about everyone. It seemed that I got the tip just before Kirkland told the staff. That’s not surprising, but hte fact that Kirkland had never visited Texas and wasn’t really on the radar leading up to the announcement. I was able to get in contact with Kirkland and confirm it and he asked that we keep it quiet and not Crystal Ball anything. Shortly after, reports started to get out that Texas would be the pick but Kirkland vigorously denied it on social media. Even though a flood of Crystal Balls came in, we decided to respect the wishes of the family and keep our picks off the board. It was a weird start to the recruitment, but it never was bumpy after that.

1
COMMENTS
— Outside of the targets Texas landed, there wasn’t much else to discuss. Texas felt it was in a good position with Ian Reed, but his commitment to Clemson came a bit out of nowhere. There was some early momentum for Zalance Heard, but once LSU offered it was over. Isaiah Robinson was a prospect that Tom Herman’s staff loved, but Kyle Flood never seemed to latch on. TJ Shanahan never showed much interest in Texas. There was a time during the summer of momentum where he initiated contact with the Texas staff and indicated he might be open to committing, but he no-showed the visit. By that point, there were questions of if he would have been a take as the Longhorns had a full group already. Harris Sewell never showed much interest either and let Texas know that pretty early before eventually picking Clemson.

 

[tokamak 6395]

Honestly there's not a ton of new/surprising info in there for anyone that's followed the whole cycle. Probably the most interesting thing to me was that Johntay Cook was Texas all the way behind the scenes, despite social media stuff. Sure seemed like he was leaning aggy for a minute there.

[Mr. Mojo Risin' 2205]

1 hour ago, Teryor said:

Roach BTS part 1 (gotta double up your clicks)

  Reveal hidden contents

The 2023 cycle was another successful one for Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns.

On the heels of signing a Top 5 class in his first year on the job, Sarkisian came back strong again and signed a Top 3 class with some of the top talent in the nation. The group was highlighted by winning over a highly-publicized recruitment for Arch Manning.

Each year at Horns247, we pull back the curtain on several recruitments giving out the information we can’t give during the course of the recruiting cycle. Where did the Texas staff push the right buttons and where did they have their miscues?

In this year’s edition of Behind The Scenes, Horns247’s all-access look into the 2023 class, we discuss how the Longhorns landed some of the top prospects in the country and how they missed out on others.

— The only thing shocking about the Arch Manning recruitment was how straightforward it was for being arguably the most publicized recruitment of all time. When Steve Sarkisian was hired at Texas, the Longhorns became an instant contender for Manning. Even with that buzz, I still had a hard time believing Texas could win that race given the state of the program. Even though I started to hear more encouraging things during the spring of 2021 and decided to make a trip to New Orleans to be the first reporter in the Texas market to speak with Manning in person. Because of the way the family handled the recruitment, I planned the trip meticulously and kept it quiet from everyone except for my boss who had to approve the trip. I showed up in New Orleans at Isidore Newman, and as luck would have it, Manning was held out of practice that day with a minor injury. Even though I didn’t get to see him throw, I was able to speak with Manning for a while following practice. In a very candid conversation with him and his coaches, I got the feeling that Texas was not only a legitimate contender but a leader in the group for him. From the very beginning it was a tight group of Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Clemson. Clemson fell back after his trip that summer and Texas kept surging. Manning was growing close with several Texas leans including Johntay Cook, and he was already laying some groundwork for when he would eventually commit.

(Photo: Twitter: @TexasFootball)
 

After his summer visit to Austin, Manning returned during the season to see Texas against Oklahoma State. In a big game environment, the Longhorns lost after giving up a lead in the 4th quarter. Recruits left Austin pretty disappointed that day, but I spoke to several sources who said Manning wasn’t bothered by it and seemed undeterred. Aside from Steve Sarkisian and AJ Milwee, who played a major role in the recruitment, Austin was just the type of place Manning felt at home. It felt like the Longhorns had the edge going into the spring of 2022 and another trip to New Orleans only reinforced those feelings. After a spring visit to Texas, it sounded like Georgia and Texas were at the top with pivotal official visits upcoming. Throughout the spring and summer, just about every source we had both inside the program and out were confident Manning would be a Longhorn. After visiting in the summer, we knew Texas was close to securing him, but there was some talk he could take his recruitment into the fall. Shortly after his visit, we got the word he would be announcing for Texas with about ten minutes notice while on the road to College Station for the State 7v7 tournament. After Manning committed, we would hear rumors here and there that he might be considering trips to Georgia and could even plot a late flip. After talking to those close to him at Newman, I determined that the rumors were just that. Manning and his family constructed his recruitment in a way that limited any circus aspect and handled it in an incredibly professional way. They controlled media access to in-person only, but that resulted in Manning never really being burnt out by interviews. Every time we talked to him in person, he was open and honest because he didn’t feel he had to constantly play the game. The prevailing theme around Manning was that despite being a member of his family, he was just a regular kid. I can confirm in the five interactions I had with him during that recruitment, he never played into the famous family aspect and came off as down-to-earth. Recruitments like his can often be exciting because everyone tunes in when you have an update, but they can often be a hassle as well. The way his entire camp handled themselves was a masterclass in how to conduct a high-level recruitment.

— Rueben Owens was originally a big piece of the puzzle for Texas. Owens was the top back in the state, and he was also growing close with Manning and intent on playing with him at the next level. Owens originally committed to Texas in the spring of 2021. The commitment came as a bit of a surprise as word got to us one evening that he would pull the trigger. We were also told the decision came as a surprise to his friends and family. Owens made the call but decommitted during the summer. Depending on who you asked, the decision to decommit came down to a few different factors. The official line we heard was that Owens simply wanted to test the waters of his recruitment and chalked it up to committing too early. We did hear that Owens wasn’t thrilled with the attention showered on Manning at the Texas Elite Camp prior to their junior seasons, but I’ve never confirmed that with anyone.

(Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

Regardless, Texas still held a top spot in the recruitment and it seemed like a foregone conclusion they would get Owens back. A huge factor originally was Tashard Choice who had a relationship with Owens going back to Georgia Tech. As we went through the spring of 2022, Texas started to pick up the pace with Cedric Baxter. After we visited El Campo, Owens told us the contact wasn’t as strong with Choice and a source in Austin confirmed that Texas saw Baxter higher on the board and felt they were in a position to win him over. The Longhorns eventually did that, but they continued to pursue Owens. After he committed to Louisville, both sides went their separate ways. There was a point during the season when Owens was contemplating a visit to Austin for the TCU game, and the Longhorns felt they could make a push. This was right in the middle of Florida State making a big push on Baxter, so there was some tightrope walking. The visit never materialized and Owens eventually decommitted and picked Texas A&M. It will be fascinating to watch how two of the top backs in the 2023 class develop down the line at rival schools.

— Texas landed Tre Wisner in a bit of a surprise during the spring game. That commitment also threw a bit of a wrench into the recruitment of Owens, but Texas liked the versatility of Wisner. Come to find out, Wisner really clicked with Choice and Johntay Cook was already recruiting him to Texas despite being uncommitted at the time. After Wisner committed, he talked frequently of taking other visits and how his recruitment wouldn’t be over until signing day. Despite that, there were really no shaky moments with Wisner.

— From the moment Tashard Choice arrived in Austin his motto seemed to be “Baxter or bust.” Once the staff got Baxter on campus during the spring, it seemed to be all downhill from there. While Florida, Florida State, Miami and Texas A&M all appeared as opposition at one point or another, Texas found an edge early and held it through his decision date in the summer. After Baxter’s mid-June official visit, he gave a silent commitment to the staff and started working on others. Florida State made it the most interesting down the stretch getting close to flipping him on one occasion, but Texas was ultimately able to hold them off. Tashard Choice’s relationship with Baxter was a big factor, but we made calls to sources several times in the last two weeks of the season when rumors revved up behind the scenes that Baxter could be making a move. In the end, there was never much panic on the Texas side as they seemed to have a pretty good read on where things were and Baxter was honest with them the entire time.

Johntay Cook (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— Johntay Cook’s recruitment went pretty much according to plan from the beginning. There wasn’t a moment that Texas wasn’t the leader behind the scenes though Cook wanted to do just about everything he could to throw people off. There were several times during the early part of his recruitment that Cook told me Texas had the lead and it was big. In fact, a source near him told me last February that it was Texas’ recruitment to lose. After visiting Texas A&M for Junior Day last year, I went and saw Cook at his school. He told me then that Texas still had the lead but he knew that everyone thought that and he wanted to have some intrigue in his decision. In reality, Cook was already recruiting others to Texas by this point. While on an official visit during the summer to another school, Cook called me and started the process of getting everything together for his commitment by asking me to do a voiceover for his commitment video. Though he liked to play the social media games at times, Cook was locked in and solid through everything.

— The Jalen Hale recruitment was one to remember. Hale would run hot and cold on Texas throughout the entire process, but he started to grow red hot when Texas was stacking commitments and momentum throughout the summer. Leading up to his commitment, everything pointed to Texas. Two days before he made his announcement, Hale called Texas and told them he was coming according to multiple sources I spoke with. I began making plans to go to Longview for his announcement, but things started to change the night before his commitment. I asked a source near Hale what was going on and he said that Alabama made a big push and several people near Hale were backing the Crimson Tide. It was a surprise that Texas was in it in the first place considering some pretty solid intel that those closest to Hale wanted him at Alabama. On the morning of the announcement, a source near Hale told me I’d be better off not making the trip and I got the message loud and clear. Texas seemed to have a good pitch, but they couldn’t overcome the development and winning pedigree of Alabama.

Jaquaize Pettaway
(Photo: Brian Perroni, 247Sports)
 

— Coming out of a spring visit to Langham Creek, I thought that Texas was in the lead for Jaquaize Pettaway. When Hudson and I saw him at his school, Pettaway spoke so glowingly about Brennan Marion and the bond the two of them had that it was tough to ignore. Oklahoma was always in the picture though and Pettaway had a fascination with the Sooners. Coming off of his Oklahoma official visit, the buzz was moving to the Sooners, but we knew Texas would make a big push when they hosted him. Midway through the visit I checked in with sources to see how everything was going. There was a lot of buzz that weekend with Arch Manning taking his official along with a big group of others. When I asked about Pettaway, I was told that he wasn’t having as good of a time as everyone else and the feeling was that he just didn’t vibe with Austin and the size of the Texas campus. Pettaway of course went on to pick Oklahoma and I talked to him after he signed at the Under Armour All-American Game. Pettaway said that the size of the Texas campus wasn’t something he was into and he liked how close everything felt in Norman. He also said that contact with Brennan Marion seemed to drop off after the visit and he felt like he was being “ghosted” by Texas. Regardless of that, I think he would have picked Oklahoma regardless.

— The ballad of Deandre Moore Jr. ended up working out in favor of Texas. I first met Moore in 2021 following his sophomore season. It was then that he made a visit to Texas and Maalik Murphy talked often about a relationship between the two of them. In fact, Moore was supposed to come to Austin with Murphy on an unofficial visit, but he committed to Oklahoma just before that visit was set to take place. When Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma, Moore decommitted and he and I reconnected. Moore told me at that time that he was interested in Texas and wanted to get back to Austin for a visit. After tripping to Austin in the spring, Texas began to surge ahead along with Louisville. When I saw Moore during the spring at a 7v7 tournament, he told me that the NIL pitch at Louisville was pretty serious and his friend and teammate Pierce Clarkson was committed there. Still, the Texas staff felt they had the edge but Moore pulled off a surprise commitment to the Cardinals. Texas remained in contact throughout the year and they were able to get Moore in on an official visit. Despite him being sick through the trip, the feeling was that Texas had done enough to flip him. When Scott Satterfield left Louisville, it provided the catalyst for Moore to really make a move. Louisville made it hard on Texas coming after Moore hard under the new staff and keeping a big NIL offer in place. About three weeks before his Signing Day announcement, Moore went quiet on just about everyone and stopped responding to anything. Still, everyone in Austin was confident they would end up as the pick. Moore threw a curveball on Signing Day when he failed to show up to his scheduled announcement. From what I understand, Moore was going back and forth with Louisville and Texas and at one point was planning to sign with the Cardinals. This went against all the plans as Moore’s nameplate at the Bosco signing day ceremony even had a Longhorn logo on it. I spoke to a source that night who was confident they were able to nail it down and Moore ended up signing the next day.

(Photo: Texas Football)
 

— I’m not sure I would have bet money on Texas landing Ryan Niblett at this time last year, but it all worked out. Once Brennan Marion arrived, he went to work on the speedy Houston prospect who didn’t include Texas in his list of top schools when he cut it last year. Marion was able to get Niblett in on an unofficial visit in the spring and things seemed to change overnight. When we saw Niblett during our spring visits, Texas seemed to be surging and the relationship with Marion along with the opportunity to play in Steve Sarkisian’s offense was a big reason why. Niblett returned for the spring game and made his decision to commit shortly after the scrimmage ended. Everything was secure until December when Niblett suddenly popped up at Houston for an official visit. We heard from a source that a flip could be imminent and Niblett certainly gave several folks at Houston the impression that he would make the move. The Texas staff was able to get on the phone with him following the visit and then conducted an in-home trip that locked everything down. Niblett said he had the opportunity to play with several friends going to Houston and a source told me the Cougars got in his head by telling him he might have a hard road to playing time in Austin. Texas was able to move fast and keep the dynamic speed threat on board.

— Austin produced two receivers rated as four-star prospects this season and both ended up at Notre Dame. Braylon James tested off the charts, but the Texas staff never seemed enamored with him. Andre Coleman and Brennan Marion both evaluated him and simply had others higher on the board. Jaden Greathouse was a different story altogether. While Coleman didn’t like him, there was some early interest from the staff. In fact, a source at Texas told me they loved his skill set so much they’d get him to campus and figure it out. Something changed in the late spring after Texas saw Greathouse at a workout. Though he was incredibly productive during his high school career, he never checked the boxes when it came to speed or other athletic traits. The staff seemed to have one foot in and one foot out on Greathouse whenever I’d check in with sources. Notre Dame just made Greathouse a much bigger priority and won him and his family over. The question with Greathouse has always been about marrying his athletic traits and ceiling with his tremendous production. It will be fascinating to see how both Greathouse and James develop down the line.

Jonah Wilson (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
 

— From the time Brennan Marion arrived in Austin, he was all in on Jonah Wilson. After seeing the Dekaney wide receiver play basketball, Texas offered him, pursued him like he was a major priority and won him over in the summer. Everything seemed to be going well and Wilson paid off the staff’s trust by having a big a senior year showing rapid development. Wilson ended up decommitting just before kickoff of the West Virginia game and reportedly didn’t tell the staff. They found out on twitter just like everyone else. Armani Winfield did the same thing last year and a source told me that the way it was handled wasn’t received well. There were some people in Wilson’s camp pushing him toward Houston and the Cougars have done a good job recruiting that area of the state. I was told that Wilson called the staff back shortly after to see if he could get back into the class, but the staff was moving on at that point.

— There was a time when Kyle Parker was a priority for the Texas staff. Brennan Marion had offered Parker while at Pittsburgh and offered him at Texas soon after arriving in Austin. Texas ran out in front of the recruitment, but there came a time when they pushed for a commitment and Parker wasn’t ready to give it. The Longhorns moved on from that point and Parker committed to LSU. While Marion liked Parker, I was told the rest of the staff wanted more size at the position. Regardless of what was reported down the stretch, Texas never really pushed for him again.

— During the middle of the fall, the name Ja’Kobi Lane seemed to pick up a ton of buzz all of a sudden from multiple sources in Austin. The staff utilized the bye week to go out to Arizona and see him in person and invite him to campus for a visit. Lane was set to come in the same week as Deandre Moore, and sources we spoke with were actually more confident about landing Lane than Moore. Following his visit, all signs seemed positive and those we talked to in Austin felt it was only a matter of time before Texas could complete the flip. I was told by several sources that Lane was scheduled to come back on an unofficial visit the week before Signing Day in December, but that trip suddenly was canceled and I was told that Lane was no longer a take at the moment. I never quite determined what caused both sides to move on, but as suddenly as he arrived, Lane seemed to disappear from the board.

(Photo: Blair Angulo, 247Sports)
 

— The tight end position didn’t have much heat. Texas identified Spencer Shannon early on and once they offered, they were in the driver’s seat. Will Randle seemed attached to Arch Manning and a foregone conclusion. Duce Robinson was a bit of a different story. Robinson had family in the Dallas area and used to live there before moving to Arizona. Texas actually hosted Robinson as a sophomore and I remember seeing him on campus and not knowing who he was but being in awe of the frame. Robinson remained the top tight end on the board throughout and the Longhorns were able to gain some traction once they landed Manning. There was a pretty big push and at one point, sources in Phoenix thought Texas would take it home. As of this writing, Georgia still seems like the favorite, but Robinson decided to hold off from signing. He told ESPN that he still doesn’t have a clear idea of where he wants to go and would like to find clarity. There are a lot of factors at play with his MLB future factoring in as well. The book is not closed on this yet and more time means more opportunity for every school involved.

— There were no real fireworks with the majority offensive line group. Kyle Flood pretty much targeted them from the beginning, recruited them hard and landed them all in the span of a few days in the summer. None of them ever seemed to waver once they were on board and they all created a strong bond with each other and the families involved. Payton Kirkland was the lone exception. I woke up one morning to a call from our production crew as they were prepping for Kirkland’s live announcement telling me that he was going to announce for Texas. I checked around and that news was surprising to just about everyone. It seemed that I got the tip just before Kirkland told the staff. That’s not surprising, but hte fact that Kirkland had never visited Texas and wasn’t really on the radar leading up to the announcement. I was able to get in contact with Kirkland and confirm it and he asked that we keep it quiet and not Crystal Ball anything. Shortly after, reports started to get out that Texas would be the pick but Kirkland vigorously denied it on social media. Even though a flood of Crystal Balls came in, we decided to respect the wishes of the family and keep our picks off the board. It was a weird start to the recruitment, but it never was bumpy after that.

1
COMMENTS
— Outside of the targets Texas landed, there wasn’t much else to discuss. Texas felt it was in a good position with Ian Reed, but his commitment to Clemson came a bit out of nowhere. There was some early momentum for Zalance Heard, but once LSU offered it was over. Isaiah Robinson was a prospect that Tom Herman’s staff loved, but Kyle Flood never seemed to latch on. TJ Shanahan never showed much interest in Texas. There was a time during the summer of momentum where he initiated contact with the Texas staff and indicated he might be open to committing, but he no-showed the visit. By that point, there were questions of if he would have been a take as the Longhorns had a full group already. Harris Sewell never showed much interest either and let Texas know that pretty early before eventually picking Clemson.

 

[Vito Andolini 9125]

Quote

From the moment Tashard Choice arrived in Austin his motto seemed to be “Baxter or bust.” Once the staffgot Baxter on campus during the spring, it seemed to be all downhill from there. 

As someone who appreciates language and its subtleties/oddities, I do credit Roach for making me consider that something going “downhill” can actually be a good thing. I usually think of it as, “His career went downhill from there,” or “They are on a downhill trajectory.” Of course, good writing doesn’t compel the reader to waste valuable minutes typing a dumbass post on a message board. Damn, you Mike Roach! It’s now going to be an uphill battle getting my work done.

[conVINCEd 21469]

A kid from Westlake no-showed his visit?  Even if he had car trouble, he could’ve rented a scooter or something.

[Davis Lane 5581]

2 hours ago, RGBIII said:

But have you ever tried to type while eating chicken wings?

[Vertigo 20276]

9 minutes ago, Davis Lane said:

What the fuck is happening with that nipple? has he been hanging weights off of that too?

[Pato del Muerto 52488]

10 minutes ago, Vertigo said:

What the fuck is happening with that nipple? has he been hanging weights off of that too?

Gainz

[satyanash 14480]

1 hour ago, Vito Andolini said:

As someone who appreciates language and its subtleties/oddities, I do credit Roach for making me consider that something going “downhill” can actually be a good thing. I usually think of it as, “His career went downhill from there,” or “They are on a downhill trajectory.” Of course, good writing doesn’t compel the reader to waste valuable minutes typing a dumbass post on a message board. Damn, you Mike Roach! It’s now going to be an uphill battle getting my work done.

[Teryor 4456]

Roach p2

Spoiler

— I’ve said several times throughout the cycle that I never saw a recruitment turn cold like the one of David Hicks. When Hicks was a young prospect coming up, we were told by several people close to him that Texas would be tough to beat. In fact, we were told early on that it would be hard for Texas not to win outright. Add in the fact that Hicks and his family were close with Bo Davis and we thought it would be a bit of a slam dunk. Hicks made his first visit to Austin in the summer of 2021 coming out of the COVID dead period where every school was adjusting to being open again. It was the first time this Texas staff hosted players and to say there were some hiccups would be an understatement. Remember at that time, Moncrief-Neuhaus was still under construction and the staff was running their operation out of a makeshift space in the north end zone. Combine that with the rush of hosting a bunch of kids at once and it didn’t seem like it was a good recipe. From there, things never seemed to get better. While Texas fell in his eyes, Texas A&M and Oklahoma rose. Texas tried to turn the tide, but they never could. It also didn’t help that Texas had a poor year on the field in 2022. By then, they were well behind in the race and unlikely to catch up. I spoke with Hicks after the season who told me he just never really clicked with Steve Sarkisian. Hicks didn’t go into detail about why, but he did mention the two had a disagreement at one point in time.

— The recruitment of Markis Deal was odd from the beginning. It goes back to when Deal was first offered and visited Austin for the elite camp. This was back in 2021 when visits first opened and we’ve detailed in the past that several kids didn’t feel like a priority due to the sheer number of prospects on campus. Texas actually cicrcled back with Deal and got into the game with a renewed push. Bo Davis seemed all in on Deal though many felt his best upside was on the offensive side of the ball. Though Davis indicated to Deal he was a priority, the feedback I heard from different sources on him was always mixed. In the end, I do feel Texas made a credible push for Deal and there was a point where they seemed to be sitting at the top of the group for him. TCU just did a better job with the recruitment front to back.

Sydir Mitchell (Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— Four-star defensive lineman Hunter Osborne was probably always destined to end up at Alabama, but Texas would have been more dangerous had they offered sooner. The staff was incredibly familiar with Osborne considering he played alongside Justice Finkley at Hewitt-Trussville, but for whatever reason, they seemed hesitant to pull the trigger on an offer. Once they did, the Longhorns ended up in his top group and he came to Austin on a visit. They did a good job on the trip and I was told that Osborne’s family was sold on Texas thanks to a big assist from the Finkley family. While Osborne loved the visit, it was never enough to overcome the head start others had in the visit. Once Alabama made it clear that Osborne was a priority and pushed for him, it was over.

— I didn’t quite buy into Sydir Mitchell being a real possibility for Texas until it was clear how real they were. It just didn’t seem to fit and Mitchell was considering A&M and Georgia. After his trip to Austin the noise became too much to ignore. Bo Davis really did a bang up job connecting with Mitchell and showing him the vision for his future in Austin. I was also told that the attention Mitchell got from guys like Arch Manning and Johntay Cook really helped to solidify things. Georgia and Texas A&M both made pushes throughout the fall, but getting Mitchell back to campus in December locked it up for Texas.

— Johnny Bowens and Ashton Porter were two in-state guys the staff never seemed all in on. Bowens committed to Texas A&M so early and never really showed Texas a lot of love. When his commitment opened again, Texas never seemed to re-engage. Despite him having Texas amongst his finalists, I was told the Longhorns hadn’t communicated with him in some time leading up to that. Porter is a different story. Early on he seemed like a heavy favorite to end up in the class and was acting like a commit every time he came to campus. There was a point where the staff pushed for a decision and Porter wasn’t ready to give it. They seemed to go their separate ways after that. One thing that came up was a difference in philosophy of where they saw Porter versus where he saw himself. The Longhorns saw him as an interior defensive line prospect while Porter saw himself as an edge rusher. Terrance Green was another prospect who never seemed to lock in with Texas. From the beginning we were told that Oregon would be an attractive destination for Green and he ended up there. Avion Carter was close to committing to Texas during his junior year per some reports but I think the Longhorns moved on there after further evaluation.

— Dylan Spencer was the biggest surprise commitment of the class. He literally came out of nowhere thanks to some stealthy work from Bo Davis and all was well following his initial commitment. When we saw Spencer in the spring, he was glad to be done with the process and seemed locked into Texas. Fast forward to the fall and Spencer made a couple of under the radar visits to other schools. Houston was a program that was around him quite a bit, but there wasn’t much worry. The night of the TCU game there were some logistical issues with the visit that caused problems with a few prospects. Following the Elite Camp in 2021, the recruiting staff seemed to have the issues worked out when it came to hosting big groups, but some of those problems reared their head on one of the biggest visit weekends of the season. Following the trip, Spencer started to tell everyone he didn’t feel like a priority and was going to decommit. We reported at that point that Spencer was close to decommitting but the staff seemed to calm things down. Everything looked good until Spencer started making secret visits again. Sark never had a huge problem with guys going elsewhere as long as those plans were communicated to the staff. There did come a time where he wanted guys to be locked in and not taking trips. After Spencer went to Houston, the staff decided to separate from him. We expected him to stay home and play for the Cougs but Texas Tech did a great job recruiting him and got him to close the deal after an official visit.

Samu Taumanupepe (Photo: Brian Perroni, 247Sports)
 

— Early in the cycle, Samu Taumanupepe was a prospect Bo Davis was recruiting hard. The massive nose tackle visited campus a few times and Texas seemed to be in a good position. It seemed like they wanted to close him quickly but Taumanupepe wanted to see some other schools. When Texas gained traction with Sydir Mitchell, they moved on in that direction.

— There was a small window when it seemed like the possibility of Texas getting into the race for five-star EDGE Damon Wilson was real. Despite not visiting Texas, Wilson included the Longhorns in his Top 5 and talked up plans of visiting Austin. Everyone I spoke with acknowledged that Texas seemed real at the time but couldn’t figure out where they stood. In the end, Wilson never visited so there wasn’t much to see there.

— Tyler Legacy defensive lineman Jordan Renaud was a polarizing figure for the Texas staff. Some I talked to loved his frame and upside but they didn’t always see it on tape. The recruitment with Renaud ran hot and cold, but he told me in the spring Texas would be among his finalists if they showed him he was more of a priority. I don’t think there were enough people in Austin willing to go all in on him and they never really pushed. Even if they did, Alabama was always the favorite for him.

— Throughout the spring, it seemed like a foregone conclusion the Longhorns would land Braylan Shelby. During the fall of his junior season, Texas was the offer that Shelby wanted most. It came in January and Pete Kwiatkowski zeroed in on him. USC and Tennessee were also heavily in the mix as the Vols were one of the earliest to offer and something about Los Angeles always intrigued him. When we saw Shelby in the spring, he admitted that Texas in the lead and would be tough to overcome. USC was able to host Shelby first on an official visit and they set an incredibly high bar. Texas also did well on the official visit, but USC had overtaken them by that point. Shelby went back and forth after his visits at times zeroing in on both schools. After committing, Shelby said multiple times he’d consider taking a visit to Texas during the fall but never made it. USC’s success on the field made it easy for them to retain him resulting in one of the biggest losses for Texas on the recruiting trail.

— When Texas offered Colton Vasek in January of last year, everyone thought it was a foregone conclusion they’d land him. When we spoke to Vasek following that offer, he wasn’t as excited about Texas as we expected him to be. The offer was considered relatively late given the junior year Vasek had and the fact he played just minutes from campus. Despite that, everyone involved felt Texas would win out. Going into the spring, it was clear that Texas was behind and Colton always seemed annoyed that it took so long for Texas to engage with him.

Even after offering, it was mentioned to me that Vasek still didn’t feel Texas was pursuing him as if they really wanted him. That changed during the spring evaluation period when Pete Kwiatkowski had a sit-down conversation with Vasek talking about how they could use him and how he could be developed for the NFL.

Texas earned some points after that getting a better seat at the table, but skepticism remained. Someone close to Vasek told Horns247 that he was concerned he’d be asked to drop into coverage more and not be able to pin his ears back and rush the passer. The staff went about assuring him he was seen as a dynamic pass-rusher as they went into the summer.

From the beginning, Oklahoma seemed to be a threat because of the presence of Brent Venables. The Vasek’s had a lot of respect for the OU head coach, and we were told that had Venables still been at Clemson, he would have likely been committed there already.

Colton Vasek and Connor Robertson (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
 

Still, following his official visit to Austin, it seemed that Texas had made up a ton of ground and was running at the top of the group along with Oregon who Vasek had an infatuation. With a battle expected to take place between staying home or heading to the Pacific Northwest, Vasek took an abrupt left turn and decided to find a compromise. After Oklahoma was seemingly out of it, a late unofficial visit to Norman flipped the recruitment on its ear.

It was then we got swift word out of Norman that Vasek would make his decision and pick the Sooners. After waiting a few days, there were even some last minute second thoughts on Vasek’s end. He went ahead with the pick and seemed to be locked in for the time.

I was speaking on the phone with a source following the Alabama game when that source said casually, “By the way, Vasek was here this weekend as well.” I couldn’t believe it and went through my Rolodex connecting with multiple people. While Vasek downplayed the trip as just going with some friends, I confirmed that Vasek was not using his parents’ season tickets and was there as a guest of Texas football. From there, we started to monitor his situation more closely.

The week of the Oklahoma game, Vasek told media outlets he planned to attend the game and root against Texas for the first time. I’ve always said that the biggest breaking point in a recruitment of legacies is when they have the chance to play for the team they grew up watching, they can either take that road or the one less traveled. Sometimes, that decision isn’t as big of a factor as it is with others. I’m not sure if that was the make-or-break decision for Vasek, but it didn’t hurt that Oklahoma was embarrassed as Texas rolled to a 49-0 shutout.

On that second Saturday in October, Vasek’s social media activity drew some eyes as he was very pro-Texas in many ways. When Vasek decided to make an unofficial visit for the Iowa State game, business really picked up. We were told at the time that Arch Manning was all over Vasek as Texas commits stayed in his ear about joining them in the 2023 class. It started to feel like an inevitability at that point.

The biggest tipping point for us came during the last week of October. We were told by a source outside the program that Vasek secretly visited campus for a Texas practice one morning. When we checked around, that news was confirmed but we were asked to sit on it. Vasek has proven to be unpredictable in his recruitment and there was a concern that reporting it might ruin things. At that time, we were told that the staff felt like the deal was almost done.

The week Vasek made the move we were told that Monday he was leaning toward flipping immediately. He carried that plan out making the move to commit to Texas and told me afterward how excited he was to play former teammates like Ethan Burke and Connor Robertson. It was a good lesson in how to rebound from a shaky start and win a prospect over.

— Texas was all over Derion Gullette from the time they offered him prior to his junior year. Jeff Choate recruited him as a priority from the beginning and valued his size and versatility. The staff did a great job connecting with Gullette and his family. Despite the fact they were originally from Alabama, the preference was for him to stay close to home. Several players on the team also connected well with Gullette including Jaylan Ford who reached out to him several times during the spring when Gullette was on campus for track meets. One of the funniest stories of his recruitment was when we saw him run at Texas Relays. After competing in several events, Gullette was giving an interview to several media members in attendance. In the middle of an answer he stopped and started throwing up. We found him a trainer and got him some water as it was a brutally hot day and he was obviously feeling the heat. Gullette sat on the ground recovering and apologizing for stopping the interview. Obviously we understood and offered to talk to him later but he finished his water and then he got up and resumed the interview. One factor in the recruitment was the bond Gullette shared with S’Maje Burrell who he met on early recruiting visits. Once Burrell was in the class, Gullette was starting to get a big dose of Texas in his ear. Johntay Cook was another connection he had when the two played youth basketball together at a younger age. Ohio State was always a school of interest for him, but the feeling was they were too far away. It came down to Texas and Texas A&M, but Texas was way out in front. When I went to see Gullette the day before his announcement, he made it pretty clear it would be Texas. To our knowledge, Gullette never wavered. In fact, Texas A&M worked really hard to get a late in home visit but Gullette repeatedly shut it down. We were told the A&M staff came to Marlin to try and get in regardless, but Gullette said he was firm with his decision.

Billy Walton (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— When Billy Walton was originally offered, there was a question as to how much Texas was pushing. Thanks to Chris Gilbert, the Longhorns decided to make him a priority believing in his versatility and athleticism. They hosted Walton in the spring and came away with assurances he’d be making a commitment. The South Oak Cliff coaching staff wanted their guys to make decisions in the spring so they could go through spring ball with some clarity. When Walton left Austin, everyone expected him to be a Longhorn. Walton then went on an official visit to Oklahoma State and everything quickly flipped. The Cowboys won him over initially by pitching their history of developing players like him and the failure of Texas to develop over the last decade. Texas doubled back and worked to get Walton in on an official visit. From that point, it was all Texas. There were times during the season where I saw Walton wearing Oklahoma State gear under his uniform, but he assured me he just liked the way the shirt fit.

— Before Steve Sarkisian arrived in Austin, the Longhorns weren’t anywhere close to the top group for Anthony Hill. Tom Herman’s staff offered him later than most big programs and the dysfunction on the field didn’t help matters. Sarkisian’s staff did a good job making up ground with Hill and getting near the top, but Texas A&M had such a big lead in the recruitment. We were told that the official visit to Austin went a long way with Hill as he had a great heart-to-heart with Sark and Jeff Choate. Sources in Austin felt that they had drawn even with the Aggies and were gearing up for a big battle going into the fall. After visiting College Station, Hill decided to shut it down. It wasn’t surprising given what we knew about his love for the Aggies but the timing was surprising. A source in Austin assured me that it would likely come down to how both teams performed in the fall. As Texas A&M floundered, Texas showed improvement. The defense was better with stellar play from the linebacker position. The Texas staff never gave in on Hill and showed up to a Denton Ryan game in the middle of the year. Hill decided suddenly to decommit and immediately scheduled an unofficial visit to Texas for the TCU game. We were told by several people they expected Hill to make the move that weekend, and I think it might have happened had Texas won. Hill decided to wait it out a bit and announced he’d take it to Signing Day. In reality, he decided he wanted to make the call before then and did it on the final in-home visit with Steve Sarkisian. Hill said the only person he told prior to the visit was Chris Gilbert who did a tremendous job recruiting the family through it all.

— Tausili Akana came to campus as a sophomore and I was alerted by one of our other reporters. That reporter gave me the number for Akana’s father and I called him to see about getting an interview. At the time of the call, Akana was at TCU for a visit and staying near Fort Worth. Through talking on the phone, I found out they were staying less than ten minutes from my house. His dad invited me over to meet with them in person and I soon found myself at the house of five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola. It turns out that Akana’s parents were friends with the Raiolas as both were from Hawaii. At the time, Raiola wasn’t a known prospect though I’d seen him at a school 7v7 event and was really impressed. After spending the evening with both families, I filed Akana’s name away but thought it would be a long shot for Texas to get him. The relationship continued and Akana’s father grew close with Jake Langi who was on staff at the time. I went to Salt Lake City in the fall of 2021 to see Devin Brown play in the state finals and talked to the Akanas while I was in town. It was then I got the feeling Texas would at least get an official visit. Things stepped up a notch when Akana’s sister transferred to Austin to play on the Texas volleyball team and the Longhorns seemed to emerge during the summer as a realistic option. Akana visited in the summer and returned for an official trip during the Alabama game. The Longhorns showed him everything he wanted to see on that trip but he wanted to take all of his visits. Utah and Oklahoma seemed like the biggest competition. There was a lot of uncertainty with Akana throughout the fall, but things heated up again during the in-home visits. Several folks I spoke with struggled to get a read on Akana and one source I knew just didn’t feel he would ultimately end up at Texas. There was a point where Crystal Balls came in heavy for Oklahoma but sources near Akana and in Austin told me that the race was really just beginning. I still thought Oklahoma would be the pick until about 24 hours before his announcement. When the family got together, they decided that Austin was the place with Tausili’s sister already there and thriving. Akana’s father told me that the job Pete Kwiatkowski and Jeff Choate did was unmatched. Akana told me that at first he didn’t want to go to school with his sister but he grew more comfortable with the thought over time.

— Texas was on S’Maje Burrell early and showed him he was a priority. Burrell’s head coach at the time was previously a longtime assistant of Chris Gilbert, so the Longhorns had a great advantage in the race. Burrell decided he wanted to commit early but told the staff at the time that he planned to still take his visits and have some fun. Burrell did just that taking several official and unofficial visits but he was pretty locked in throughout the summer. Baylor made a big push down the stretch and we do think there was some uncertainty there as the Longhorns continued to add linebackers to the group. In the end, the staff was able to get through to Burrell that he was priority on an in-home visit and he ended things with no real drama. Burrell was a big driving force behind the scenes helping to recruit several guys to Austin.

(Photo: Texas Football)
 

— Liona Lefau was one of the visitors who made his way to Austin during that 2021 Elite Camp. While he was there, I was told that Lefau spent the day sizing up the competition, especially Anthony Hill. Lefau is a very confident kid and he saw Hill as an elite linebacker. From that point in time, Lefau knew he wanted to compete with guys like that seeing himself in the same light and Texas became a real possibility. No coach logged more air miles than Jeff Choate who took every opportunity to fly to Hawaii when possible. When coaches hit the road to nail things down with the senior prospects in 2022, Choate’s first trip was to Hawaii to see Lefau. Still, it felt like a big task getting a kid from Hawaii to Austin, Texas. One thing that helped was a bigger availability of direct flights from Austin to Hawaii and the fact that the staff pursued Lefau as if he were a five-star prospect. After getting him on campus in June for an official visit, Texas took the lead and Lefau was growing tired of the recruiting process. Shortly after Arch Manning committed, a source told us that Texas would land Lefau shortly after. Though Oregon and Utah were big players, Lefau wanted to challenge himself in the SEC and play with the elite. The tip helped us scoop the entire market and be all over the commitment. Hudson and I drove home from College Station after the Texas State 7v7 Tournament on the phone with Lefau getting quotes. We pulled over at a gas station to transcribe them and send them to Blair Angulo who was working with us. Even after committing, Oregon and Utah didn’t let up and there were some moments wheer it felt like he might take a look around. Texas was able to get Lefau back on campus for an unofficial visit on a an off-week when he could have visited one of the other campuses. Tennessee also came in strong backed by a huge collective. Lefau’s desire to compete with Anthony Hill was so strong that Lefau was one of the biggest voices recruiting him when he decommitted. Lefau showed up in Austin ready to work and I was told during the first week freshmen were on campus that he was rallying other guys to get to workouts. I think he’s going to be a really big addition to this roster.

— Texas was early to offer Malik Muhammad, but they fell behind quickly. A big reason for that was Muhammad’s primary recruiter was Jeff Banks. While Muhammad and Banks got along well, he wanted to get a better relationship with his future position coach. Muhammad also started to look favorably toward Texas A&M, in part because of the defensive line group they assembled in 2022. Muhammad spoke early and often about the desire to play behind an elite defensive line because of what it does for the secondary. There was a ton of buzz that Muhammad was close to committing to A&M in the spring, but he decided to stretch things out. A spring visit to Austin turned the tide for Texas. Muhammad was able to get to know the staff on a more personal level and came away with the Longhorns among the leaders for him. Texas moved into the summer with the momentum and were able to get Muhammad following an official visit and a surge of Texas momentum through the end of June. Texas A&M continued to push but it was Alabama that made the strongest case. There were some people close to Muhammad that were pushing Alabama and concerned about the defensive system at Texas. Though he talked often of making a late trip to Alabama, Muhammad never went through with it.

— Texas seemed to be in the right spot for Bravion Rogers in the spring. Coming out of Texas relays, the Longhorns were among a tight group of schools at the top for him. Oregon was mentioned as a school that could come out of nowhere, but it was Texas A&M who offered and quickly won Rogers in a matter of weeks. The recruitment was reminiscent of 2022 when Texas A&M did that often, but it would prove to be one of the last times in 2023 they weer able to do so. Rogers then decommitted, but the relationship with Texas had soured. Rogers did consider a visit to Texas for the TCU game after he recommitted to A&M but that trip never came together.

Jordan Matthews (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— The Longhorns were also early on Jayvon Thomas and hosted him several times, but A&M pulled ahead in the spring and quickly won him over. Thomas was supposed to visit Texas one last time before committing, but he decided to make the call anyway. Thomas stayed in contact with Texas while being committed but the two never came together for a trip. There was some contact late in the cycle when Thomas started taking other official visits, but they couldn’t work out a time for a trip with South Oak Cliff’s state title run.

— The recruitment of Jordan Matthews didn’t play out like anyone thought it would. Texas raced out to a heavy lead by recruiting Matthews as a priority and benefitting from LSU not recruiting him. When I went to Baton Rouge in the spring for the Lousiana state track meet, Matthews talked openly about his commitment plans and how comfortable he felt with Texas. Tennessee was always the other school in the picture, but nobody near him was taking them seriously. In fact, Matthews told me at the time that he would take all of his official visits during the summer and save one for the school he committed to in the fall. When I asked him if he scheduled one to Austin yet, he said he was saving it for the fall. As the decision drew near, nobody seemed to think it would go any other way, but the night before I got a call from a source who told me something didn’t feel right. The Matthews family told the Texas staff they were in several times before making the announcement, according to several sources I spoke with, but the original source told me it still didn’t feel right. Matthews caught a lot of people off-guard the next day when he picked Tennessee and that was that. Even though sources in Austin felt uneasy, nobody felt they had lost in the moments leading up to the announcement.

— The Longhorns flirted with Micah Bell, Tay’Shawn Wilson and Jasiah Wagoner, but none of them fit the physical profile Texas wanted in a defensive back. Rodrick Pleasant also fell into that category despite being one of the fastest players in the country.

— The Longhorns started off on the wrong foot with Peyton Bowen. Let’s go back to that oft-referenced Elite Camp in 2021. Bowen attended but he left quickly after arriving and I got the sense Texas had fallen out of contention. Through talking to several people, I was told they didn’t have the best visit experience and didn’t feel like enough of a priority. Through the next year and into the spring, any time I’d check in with Bowen he would tell me things hadn’t changed with Texas. I wrote Bowen off until the late fall. After a visit almost came together for the TCU game I connected with Bowen several times who told me that Texas was coming on strong and he was noticing what they were putting together in their class. He was working to set up a visit, but a deep playoff run took a lot of his weekends off the board. Though Bowen admitted it would be hard for Texas to overcome the long time contenders, he said he wanted to go see Austin again with an open mind. It never came together and Bowen made news on signing day for all of the wrong reasons. I talked to him after he signed because I wanted to get to the bottom of what happened at that Elite Camp visit. According to Bowen, he was told the visit was just a regular trip and he felt they sprung the camp on him without telling him. He felt he’d camped enough and earned his offers by that point. It soured him from the beginning and Texas never recovered.

Derek Williams (Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— While sources in Louisiana wouldn’t admit it, Texas was a front-runner for Derek Williams from the beginning. Everyone naturally felt he’d end up at LSU or Alabama like most Louisiana prospects, but Texas went all out to win this recruitment. During the summer, Williams came down on an unofficial visit when the Longhorns brought in a large group of prospects from his high school for a camp, and I was told then that things were moving in a very positive direction. After he committed, several schools continued to pour the pressure on. In the fall, Williams told several people he wouldn’t sign in December and would instead take his official visits in January. There were some really aggressive NIL pitches at him. Texas seemed to lock down his signature, but going into the 24 hours leading up to signing day, his camp was telling people that he wouldn’t be signing after all. The next morning, Williams was one of the first signatures to come across ending any drama before it really started. Williams said that Miami made a really strong push and almost got him to hold off of signing.

— Jamel Johnson committed early and while he talked about taking other visits, he seemed pretty firm. The evaluation process is always ongoing and Texas took Johnson before his junior year was over. Johnson’s senior year was plagued with playing out of position and I think the staff looked at going another direction. Johnson was also looking around so it made it easy for both sides to part ways.

(Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— I’d imagine the recruitment of Javien Toviano was as frustrating for those in Austin as any other prospect on the board. Toviano was so mysterious throughout his recruitment and incredibly hard to reach via the phone, but in person, he’s an incredibly nice and respectful kid. Texas was one of the first schools to offer and there were several times throughout the recruitment where Toviano told me Texas was out in front, but he wanted to really take advantage of a long recruitment. Coming out of his visit to Austin last spring, Texas had re-established ground as a leader and they seemed to be trending positively in the summer. Still, Toviano canceling several visits was concerning for some, but those close to him maintained that Texas was a strong contender. LSU started to get into the game, but Toviano was telling people that he was trying to keep his commitment a mystery. As we moved into the fall, all of those illusions fell apart. While Texas attempted to get him on campus many times, he never made it back. After signing with LSU, Toviano told me that part of his decision was that everyone expected him to go to Texas and he wanted to create his own path. While I told him that he gave me some headaches covering him, Javien was one of my favorites in the cycle.

— I’m not sure there’s much to say about Dalton Brooks. Sources near him told Horns247 it would likely come down to Texas and Texas A&M. The Aggies opened up a big lead and Brooks never seemed to click with Texas. With small-town prospects, we always hear funny anecdotes from trips and one thing that I remember is hearing how Brooks liked that Jimbo Fisher had a button on his desk that could automatically close his door. I doubt it was definitely something funny that stood out to me. Texas A&M ran the show in this recruitment from the very beginning.

Jelani McDonald (Photo: Blair Angulo, 247Sports)
 

— Jelani McDonald came out of nowhere as a prospect, and all credit goes to Oklahoma State for identifying him early and landing him. I went to see Waco Connally during the season and talked to McDonald after the game to see if Texas had been in contact at all. He said at that time he hadn’t heard anything from them, but the Longhorns came through with an offer less than two weeks later. The Longhorns seemed to have all of the momentum from that point and hosted him on an unofficial visit with plans for him to return for an official. McDonald came back on an unofficial for the TCU game but those logistical issues popped up causing him to have an unpleasant trip. While he told the staff he understood how mistakes can happen, it slowed the momentum Texas had with him. It also didn’t help that TCU was making a push and had just beat Texas in front of him. As we came into December, TCU seemed to have the edge but the Horned Frogs took a lot of defensive back prospects and told some folks they were full at the position. That allowed Texas to host McDonald on the last week and win him over. McDonald made it easy on us admitting quickly after signing that he would be a Longhorn.

— Texas went back and forth on Mikal Harrison-Pilot for most of his recruitment, but they appeared to focus in on him during the summer. I believe there was a push to get MHP to make a decision, but his desire to carry the recruitment out caused Texas to move on when they thought they were getting some other players at the wide receiver position. Harrison-Pilot mentioned as much after signing, but he said he’s glad he waited because he felt that Brennan Marion wasn’t always straight up with him.

Tyler White (Photo: 247Sports)
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COMMENTS
 

— The Longhorns were actually a one-time favorite to land Tyler White who is the highest-ranked punter in 247Sports history, but Texas A&M won out. There isn’t a lot of drama that goes along with recruiting specialists and it usually comes down to whoever feels like the best fit. White’s family told me that Texas did everything right but they felt that A&M was simply the better opportunity. White has a twin brother who also kicks and will play both baseball and football at Tyler Junior College this year. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Texas monitor him and maybe come calling after a year or so.

 

[Doc Daneeka 6769]

I can see the strong case A&M made for someone wanting to showcase his punting. 

[TexasRenegade 2435]

How I picture roach sneaking down to isidore newman.......

[Laxtonto 12080]

So Roach worked really hard to gloss over the “strange” sudden commitments to targets to A&M and how some recruits families all of the sudden soured on the Texas staff… I guess I can’t blame him, but at some point it is so blatant that it would might be worthwhile to imply when random $$ collectives first got involved.

[Tex Pete 20339]

Quote

how Brooks liked that Jimbo Fisher had a button on his desk that could automatically close his door.

What a fucking idiot.

Doesn't surprise me in the least. Like a cat chasing a laser on the floor.

[Moderator 98]

3 hours ago, Handcruser said:

Full disclosure - I’d read the part about chicken fried steak.

And if you’re not going to plowmans kitchen in Taylor for chicken fried steak you’re doing it wrong.

Good to hear!  Mark Plowman was a boss of mine when i used to bartend at Chuy's.  Nicest guy on the planet and has amazing stories.  Been trying to get out there but havent been able to. 

[BurntOrange&White 39930]

3 minutes ago, Moderator said:

Good to hear!  Mark Plowman was a boss of mine when i used to bartend at Chuy's.  Nicest guy on the planet and has amazing stories.  Been trying to get out there but havent been able to. 

I'm sure you know CTJ very well too!

[Kwix 2186]

4 minutes ago, Tex Pete said:

how Brooks liked that Jimbo Fisher had a button on his desk that could automatically close his door.

Isn't that what Matt Lauer used to assault women in his office? 

[NoName 16351]

1 hour ago, Teryor said:

Roach p2

  Hide contents

— I’ve said several times throughout the cycle that I never saw a recruitment turn cold like the one of David Hicks. When Hicks was a young prospect coming up, we were told by several people close to him that Texas would be tough to beat. In fact, we were told early on that it would be hard for Texas not to win outright. Add in the fact that Hicks and his family were close with Bo Davis and we thought it would be a bit of a slam dunk. Hicks made his first visit to Austin in the summer of 2021 coming out of the COVID dead period where every school was adjusting to being open again. It was the first time this Texas staff hosted players and to say there were some hiccups would be an understatement. Remember at that time, Moncrief-Neuhaus was still under construction and the staff was running their operation out of a makeshift space in the north end zone. Combine that with the rush of hosting a bunch of kids at once and it didn’t seem like it was a good recipe. From there, things never seemed to get better. While Texas fell in his eyes, Texas A&M and Oklahoma rose. Texas tried to turn the tide, but they never could. It also didn’t help that Texas had a poor year on the field in 2022. By then, they were well behind in the race and unlikely to catch up. I spoke with Hicks after the season who told me he just never really clicked with Steve Sarkisian. Hicks didn’t go into detail about why, but he did mention the two had a disagreement at one point in time.

— The recruitment of Markis Deal was odd from the beginning. It goes back to when Deal was first offered and visited Austin for the elite camp. This was back in 2021 when visits first opened and we’ve detailed in the past that several kids didn’t feel like a priority due to the sheer number of prospects on campus. Texas actually cicrcled back with Deal and got into the game with a renewed push. Bo Davis seemed all in on Deal though many felt his best upside was on the offensive side of the ball. Though Davis indicated to Deal he was a priority, the feedback I heard from different sources on him was always mixed. In the end, I do feel Texas made a credible push for Deal and there was a point where they seemed to be sitting at the top of the group for him. TCU just did a better job with the recruitment front to back.

Sydir Mitchell (Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— Four-star defensive lineman Hunter Osborne was probably always destined to end up at Alabama, but Texas would have been more dangerous had they offered sooner. The staff was incredibly familiar with Osborne considering he played alongside Justice Finkley at Hewitt-Trussville, but for whatever reason, they seemed hesitant to pull the trigger on an offer. Once they did, the Longhorns ended up in his top group and he came to Austin on a visit. They did a good job on the trip and I was told that Osborne’s family was sold on Texas thanks to a big assist from the Finkley family. While Osborne loved the visit, it was never enough to overcome the head start others had in the visit. Once Alabama made it clear that Osborne was a priority and pushed for him, it was over.

— I didn’t quite buy into Sydir Mitchell being a real possibility for Texas until it was clear how real they were. It just didn’t seem to fit and Mitchell was considering A&M and Georgia. After his trip to Austin the noise became too much to ignore. Bo Davis really did a bang up job connecting with Mitchell and showing him the vision for his future in Austin. I was also told that the attention Mitchell got from guys like Arch Manning and Johntay Cook really helped to solidify things. Georgia and Texas A&M both made pushes throughout the fall, but getting Mitchell back to campus in December locked it up for Texas.

— Johnny Bowens and Ashton Porter were two in-state guys the staff never seemed all in on. Bowens committed to Texas A&M so early and never really showed Texas a lot of love. When his commitment opened again, Texas never seemed to re-engage. Despite him having Texas amongst his finalists, I was told the Longhorns hadn’t communicated with him in some time leading up to that. Porter is a different story. Early on he seemed like a heavy favorite to end up in the class and was acting like a commit every time he came to campus. There was a point where the staff pushed for a decision and Porter wasn’t ready to give it. They seemed to go their separate ways after that. One thing that came up was a difference in philosophy of where they saw Porter versus where he saw himself. The Longhorns saw him as an interior defensive line prospect while Porter saw himself as an edge rusher. Terrance Green was another prospect who never seemed to lock in with Texas. From the beginning we were told that Oregon would be an attractive destination for Green and he ended up there. Avion Carter was close to committing to Texas during his junior year per some reports but I think the Longhorns moved on there after further evaluation.

— Dylan Spencer was the biggest surprise commitment of the class. He literally came out of nowhere thanks to some stealthy work from Bo Davis and all was well following his initial commitment. When we saw Spencer in the spring, he was glad to be done with the process and seemed locked into Texas. Fast forward to the fall and Spencer made a couple of under the radar visits to other schools. Houston was a program that was around him quite a bit, but there wasn’t much worry. The night of the TCU game there were some logistical issues with the visit that caused problems with a few prospects. Following the Elite Camp in 2021, the recruiting staff seemed to have the issues worked out when it came to hosting big groups, but some of those problems reared their head on one of the biggest visit weekends of the season. Following the trip, Spencer started to tell everyone he didn’t feel like a priority and was going to decommit. We reported at that point that Spencer was close to decommitting but the staff seemed to calm things down. Everything looked good until Spencer started making secret visits again. Sark never had a huge problem with guys going elsewhere as long as those plans were communicated to the staff. There did come a time where he wanted guys to be locked in and not taking trips. After Spencer went to Houston, the staff decided to separate from him. We expected him to stay home and play for the Cougs but Texas Tech did a great job recruiting him and got him to close the deal after an official visit.

Samu Taumanupepe (Photo: Brian Perroni, 247Sports)
 

— Early in the cycle, Samu Taumanupepe was a prospect Bo Davis was recruiting hard. The massive nose tackle visited campus a few times and Texas seemed to be in a good position. It seemed like they wanted to close him quickly but Taumanupepe wanted to see some other schools. When Texas gained traction with Sydir Mitchell, they moved on in that direction.

— There was a small window when it seemed like the possibility of Texas getting into the race for five-star EDGE Damon Wilson was real. Despite not visiting Texas, Wilson included the Longhorns in his Top 5 and talked up plans of visiting Austin. Everyone I spoke with acknowledged that Texas seemed real at the time but couldn’t figure out where they stood. In the end, Wilson never visited so there wasn’t much to see there.

— Tyler Legacy defensive lineman Jordan Renaud was a polarizing figure for the Texas staff. Some I talked to loved his frame and upside but they didn’t always see it on tape. The recruitment with Renaud ran hot and cold, but he told me in the spring Texas would be among his finalists if they showed him he was more of a priority. I don’t think there were enough people in Austin willing to go all in on him and they never really pushed. Even if they did, Alabama was always the favorite for him.

— Throughout the spring, it seemed like a foregone conclusion the Longhorns would land Braylan Shelby. During the fall of his junior season, Texas was the offer that Shelby wanted most. It came in January and Pete Kwiatkowski zeroed in on him. USC and Tennessee were also heavily in the mix as the Vols were one of the earliest to offer and something about Los Angeles always intrigued him. When we saw Shelby in the spring, he admitted that Texas in the lead and would be tough to overcome. USC was able to host Shelby first on an official visit and they set an incredibly high bar. Texas also did well on the official visit, but USC had overtaken them by that point. Shelby went back and forth after his visits at times zeroing in on both schools. After committing, Shelby said multiple times he’d consider taking a visit to Texas during the fall but never made it. USC’s success on the field made it easy for them to retain him resulting in one of the biggest losses for Texas on the recruiting trail.

— When Texas offered Colton Vasek in January of last year, everyone thought it was a foregone conclusion they’d land him. When we spoke to Vasek following that offer, he wasn’t as excited about Texas as we expected him to be. The offer was considered relatively late given the junior year Vasek had and the fact he played just minutes from campus. Despite that, everyone involved felt Texas would win out. Going into the spring, it was clear that Texas was behind and Colton always seemed annoyed that it took so long for Texas to engage with him.

Even after offering, it was mentioned to me that Vasek still didn’t feel Texas was pursuing him as if they really wanted him. That changed during the spring evaluation period when Pete Kwiatkowski had a sit-down conversation with Vasek talking about how they could use him and how he could be developed for the NFL.

Texas earned some points after that getting a better seat at the table, but skepticism remained. Someone close to Vasek told Horns247 that he was concerned he’d be asked to drop into coverage more and not be able to pin his ears back and rush the passer. The staff went about assuring him he was seen as a dynamic pass-rusher as they went into the summer.

From the beginning, Oklahoma seemed to be a threat because of the presence of Brent Venables. The Vasek’s had a lot of respect for the OU head coach, and we were told that had Venables still been at Clemson, he would have likely been committed there already.

Colton Vasek and Connor Robertson (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
 

Still, following his official visit to Austin, it seemed that Texas had made up a ton of ground and was running at the top of the group along with Oregon who Vasek had an infatuation. With a battle expected to take place between staying home or heading to the Pacific Northwest, Vasek took an abrupt left turn and decided to find a compromise. After Oklahoma was seemingly out of it, a late unofficial visit to Norman flipped the recruitment on its ear.

It was then we got swift word out of Norman that Vasek would make his decision and pick the Sooners. After waiting a few days, there were even some last minute second thoughts on Vasek’s end. He went ahead with the pick and seemed to be locked in for the time.

I was speaking on the phone with a source following the Alabama game when that source said casually, “By the way, Vasek was here this weekend as well.” I couldn’t believe it and went through my Rolodex connecting with multiple people. While Vasek downplayed the trip as just going with some friends, I confirmed that Vasek was not using his parents’ season tickets and was there as a guest of Texas football. From there, we started to monitor his situation more closely.

The week of the Oklahoma game, Vasek told media outlets he planned to attend the game and root against Texas for the first time. I’ve always said that the biggest breaking point in a recruitment of legacies is when they have the chance to play for the team they grew up watching, they can either take that road or the one less traveled. Sometimes, that decision isn’t as big of a factor as it is with others. I’m not sure if that was the make-or-break decision for Vasek, but it didn’t hurt that Oklahoma was embarrassed as Texas rolled to a 49-0 shutout.

On that second Saturday in October, Vasek’s social media activity drew some eyes as he was very pro-Texas in many ways. When Vasek decided to make an unofficial visit for the Iowa State game, business really picked up. We were told at the time that Arch Manning was all over Vasek as Texas commits stayed in his ear about joining them in the 2023 class. It started to feel like an inevitability at that point.

The biggest tipping point for us came during the last week of October. We were told by a source outside the program that Vasek secretly visited campus for a Texas practice one morning. When we checked around, that news was confirmed but we were asked to sit on it. Vasek has proven to be unpredictable in his recruitment and there was a concern that reporting it might ruin things. At that time, we were told that the staff felt like the deal was almost done.

The week Vasek made the move we were told that Monday he was leaning toward flipping immediately. He carried that plan out making the move to commit to Texas and told me afterward how excited he was to play former teammates like Ethan Burke and Connor Robertson. It was a good lesson in how to rebound from a shaky start and win a prospect over.

— Texas was all over Derion Gullette from the time they offered him prior to his junior year. Jeff Choate recruited him as a priority from the beginning and valued his size and versatility. The staff did a great job connecting with Gullette and his family. Despite the fact they were originally from Alabama, the preference was for him to stay close to home. Several players on the team also connected well with Gullette including Jaylan Ford who reached out to him several times during the spring when Gullette was on campus for track meets. One of the funniest stories of his recruitment was when we saw him run at Texas Relays. After competing in several events, Gullette was giving an interview to several media members in attendance. In the middle of an answer he stopped and started throwing up. We found him a trainer and got him some water as it was a brutally hot day and he was obviously feeling the heat. Gullette sat on the ground recovering and apologizing for stopping the interview. Obviously we understood and offered to talk to him later but he finished his water and then he got up and resumed the interview. One factor in the recruitment was the bond Gullette shared with S’Maje Burrell who he met on early recruiting visits. Once Burrell was in the class, Gullette was starting to get a big dose of Texas in his ear. Johntay Cook was another connection he had when the two played youth basketball together at a younger age. Ohio State was always a school of interest for him, but the feeling was they were too far away. It came down to Texas and Texas A&M, but Texas was way out in front. When I went to see Gullette the day before his announcement, he made it pretty clear it would be Texas. To our knowledge, Gullette never wavered. In fact, Texas A&M worked really hard to get a late in home visit but Gullette repeatedly shut it down. We were told the A&M staff came to Marlin to try and get in regardless, but Gullette said he was firm with his decision.

Billy Walton (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— When Billy Walton was originally offered, there was a question as to how much Texas was pushing. Thanks to Chris Gilbert, the Longhorns decided to make him a priority believing in his versatility and athleticism. They hosted Walton in the spring and came away with assurances he’d be making a commitment. The South Oak Cliff coaching staff wanted their guys to make decisions in the spring so they could go through spring ball with some clarity. When Walton left Austin, everyone expected him to be a Longhorn. Walton then went on an official visit to Oklahoma State and everything quickly flipped. The Cowboys won him over initially by pitching their history of developing players like him and the failure of Texas to develop over the last decade. Texas doubled back and worked to get Walton in on an official visit. From that point, it was all Texas. There were times during the season where I saw Walton wearing Oklahoma State gear under his uniform, but he assured me he just liked the way the shirt fit.

— Before Steve Sarkisian arrived in Austin, the Longhorns weren’t anywhere close to the top group for Anthony Hill. Tom Herman’s staff offered him later than most big programs and the dysfunction on the field didn’t help matters. Sarkisian’s staff did a good job making up ground with Hill and getting near the top, but Texas A&M had such a big lead in the recruitment. We were told that the official visit to Austin went a long way with Hill as he had a great heart-to-heart with Sark and Jeff Choate. Sources in Austin felt that they had drawn even with the Aggies and were gearing up for a big battle going into the fall. After visiting College Station, Hill decided to shut it down. It wasn’t surprising given what we knew about his love for the Aggies but the timing was surprising. A source in Austin assured me that it would likely come down to how both teams performed in the fall. As Texas A&M floundered, Texas showed improvement. The defense was better with stellar play from the linebacker position. The Texas staff never gave in on Hill and showed up to a Denton Ryan game in the middle of the year. Hill decided suddenly to decommit and immediately scheduled an unofficial visit to Texas for the TCU game. We were told by several people they expected Hill to make the move that weekend, and I think it might have happened had Texas won. Hill decided to wait it out a bit and announced he’d take it to Signing Day. In reality, he decided he wanted to make the call before then and did it on the final in-home visit with Steve Sarkisian. Hill said the only person he told prior to the visit was Chris Gilbert who did a tremendous job recruiting the family through it all.

— Tausili Akana came to campus as a sophomore and I was alerted by one of our other reporters. That reporter gave me the number for Akana’s father and I called him to see about getting an interview. At the time of the call, Akana was at TCU for a visit and staying near Fort Worth. Through talking on the phone, I found out they were staying less than ten minutes from my house. His dad invited me over to meet with them in person and I soon found myself at the house of five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola. It turns out that Akana’s parents were friends with the Raiolas as both were from Hawaii. At the time, Raiola wasn’t a known prospect though I’d seen him at a school 7v7 event and was really impressed. After spending the evening with both families, I filed Akana’s name away but thought it would be a long shot for Texas to get him. The relationship continued and Akana’s father grew close with Jake Langi who was on staff at the time. I went to Salt Lake City in the fall of 2021 to see Devin Brown play in the state finals and talked to the Akanas while I was in town. It was then I got the feeling Texas would at least get an official visit. Things stepped up a notch when Akana’s sister transferred to Austin to play on the Texas volleyball team and the Longhorns seemed to emerge during the summer as a realistic option. Akana visited in the summer and returned for an official trip during the Alabama game. The Longhorns showed him everything he wanted to see on that trip but he wanted to take all of his visits. Utah and Oklahoma seemed like the biggest competition. There was a lot of uncertainty with Akana throughout the fall, but things heated up again during the in-home visits. Several folks I spoke with struggled to get a read on Akana and one source I knew just didn’t feel he would ultimately end up at Texas. There was a point where Crystal Balls came in heavy for Oklahoma but sources near Akana and in Austin told me that the race was really just beginning. I still thought Oklahoma would be the pick until about 24 hours before his announcement. When the family got together, they decided that Austin was the place with Tausili’s sister already there and thriving. Akana’s father told me that the job Pete Kwiatkowski and Jeff Choate did was unmatched. Akana told me that at first he didn’t want to go to school with his sister but he grew more comfortable with the thought over time.

— Texas was on S’Maje Burrell early and showed him he was a priority. Burrell’s head coach at the time was previously a longtime assistant of Chris Gilbert, so the Longhorns had a great advantage in the race. Burrell decided he wanted to commit early but told the staff at the time that he planned to still take his visits and have some fun. Burrell did just that taking several official and unofficial visits but he was pretty locked in throughout the summer. Baylor made a big push down the stretch and we do think there was some uncertainty there as the Longhorns continued to add linebackers to the group. In the end, the staff was able to get through to Burrell that he was priority on an in-home visit and he ended things with no real drama. Burrell was a big driving force behind the scenes helping to recruit several guys to Austin.

(Photo: Texas Football)
 

— Liona Lefau was one of the visitors who made his way to Austin during that 2021 Elite Camp. While he was there, I was told that Lefau spent the day sizing up the competition, especially Anthony Hill. Lefau is a very confident kid and he saw Hill as an elite linebacker. From that point in time, Lefau knew he wanted to compete with guys like that seeing himself in the same light and Texas became a real possibility. No coach logged more air miles than Jeff Choate who took every opportunity to fly to Hawaii when possible. When coaches hit the road to nail things down with the senior prospects in 2022, Choate’s first trip was to Hawaii to see Lefau. Still, it felt like a big task getting a kid from Hawaii to Austin, Texas. One thing that helped was a bigger availability of direct flights from Austin to Hawaii and the fact that the staff pursued Lefau as if he were a five-star prospect. After getting him on campus in June for an official visit, Texas took the lead and Lefau was growing tired of the recruiting process. Shortly after Arch Manning committed, a source told us that Texas would land Lefau shortly after. Though Oregon and Utah were big players, Lefau wanted to challenge himself in the SEC and play with the elite. The tip helped us scoop the entire market and be all over the commitment. Hudson and I drove home from College Station after the Texas State 7v7 Tournament on the phone with Lefau getting quotes. We pulled over at a gas station to transcribe them and send them to Blair Angulo who was working with us. Even after committing, Oregon and Utah didn’t let up and there were some moments wheer it felt like he might take a look around. Texas was able to get Lefau back on campus for an unofficial visit on a an off-week when he could have visited one of the other campuses. Tennessee also came in strong backed by a huge collective. Lefau’s desire to compete with Anthony Hill was so strong that Lefau was one of the biggest voices recruiting him when he decommitted. Lefau showed up in Austin ready to work and I was told during the first week freshmen were on campus that he was rallying other guys to get to workouts. I think he’s going to be a really big addition to this roster.

— Texas was early to offer Malik Muhammad, but they fell behind quickly. A big reason for that was Muhammad’s primary recruiter was Jeff Banks. While Muhammad and Banks got along well, he wanted to get a better relationship with his future position coach. Muhammad also started to look favorably toward Texas A&M, in part because of the defensive line group they assembled in 2022. Muhammad spoke early and often about the desire to play behind an elite defensive line because of what it does for the secondary. There was a ton of buzz that Muhammad was close to committing to A&M in the spring, but he decided to stretch things out. A spring visit to Austin turned the tide for Texas. Muhammad was able to get to know the staff on a more personal level and came away with the Longhorns among the leaders for him. Texas moved into the summer with the momentum and were able to get Muhammad following an official visit and a surge of Texas momentum through the end of June. Texas A&M continued to push but it was Alabama that made the strongest case. There were some people close to Muhammad that were pushing Alabama and concerned about the defensive system at Texas. Though he talked often of making a late trip to Alabama, Muhammad never went through with it.

— Texas seemed to be in the right spot for Bravion Rogers in the spring. Coming out of Texas relays, the Longhorns were among a tight group of schools at the top for him. Oregon was mentioned as a school that could come out of nowhere, but it was Texas A&M who offered and quickly won Rogers in a matter of weeks. The recruitment was reminiscent of 2022 when Texas A&M did that often, but it would prove to be one of the last times in 2023 they weer able to do so. Rogers then decommitted, but the relationship with Texas had soured. Rogers did consider a visit to Texas for the TCU game after he recommitted to A&M but that trip never came together.

Jordan Matthews (Photo: Mike Roach, 247Sports)
 

— The Longhorns were also early on Jayvon Thomas and hosted him several times, but A&M pulled ahead in the spring and quickly won him over. Thomas was supposed to visit Texas one last time before committing, but he decided to make the call anyway. Thomas stayed in contact with Texas while being committed but the two never came together for a trip. There was some contact late in the cycle when Thomas started taking other official visits, but they couldn’t work out a time for a trip with South Oak Cliff’s state title run.

— The recruitment of Jordan Matthews didn’t play out like anyone thought it would. Texas raced out to a heavy lead by recruiting Matthews as a priority and benefitting from LSU not recruiting him. When I went to Baton Rouge in the spring for the Lousiana state track meet, Matthews talked openly about his commitment plans and how comfortable he felt with Texas. Tennessee was always the other school in the picture, but nobody near him was taking them seriously. In fact, Matthews told me at the time that he would take all of his official visits during the summer and save one for the school he committed to in the fall. When I asked him if he scheduled one to Austin yet, he said he was saving it for the fall. As the decision drew near, nobody seemed to think it would go any other way, but the night before I got a call from a source who told me something didn’t feel right. The Matthews family told the Texas staff they were in several times before making the announcement, according to several sources I spoke with, but the original source told me it still didn’t feel right. Matthews caught a lot of people off-guard the next day when he picked Tennessee and that was that. Even though sources in Austin felt uneasy, nobody felt they had lost in the moments leading up to the announcement.

— The Longhorns flirted with Micah Bell, Tay’Shawn Wilson and Jasiah Wagoner, but none of them fit the physical profile Texas wanted in a defensive back. Rodrick Pleasant also fell into that category despite being one of the fastest players in the country.

— The Longhorns started off on the wrong foot with Peyton Bowen. Let’s go back to that oft-referenced Elite Camp in 2021. Bowen attended but he left quickly after arriving and I got the sense Texas had fallen out of contention. Through talking to several people, I was told they didn’t have the best visit experience and didn’t feel like enough of a priority. Through the next year and into the spring, any time I’d check in with Bowen he would tell me things hadn’t changed with Texas. I wrote Bowen off until the late fall. After a visit almost came together for the TCU game I connected with Bowen several times who told me that Texas was coming on strong and he was noticing what they were putting together in their class. He was working to set up a visit, but a deep playoff run took a lot of his weekends off the board. Though Bowen admitted it would be hard for Texas to overcome the long time contenders, he said he wanted to go see Austin again with an open mind. It never came together and Bowen made news on signing day for all of the wrong reasons. I talked to him after he signed because I wanted to get to the bottom of what happened at that Elite Camp visit. According to Bowen, he was told the visit was just a regular trip and he felt they sprung the camp on him without telling him. He felt he’d camped enough and earned his offers by that point. It soured him from the beginning and Texas never recovered.

Derek Williams (Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— While sources in Louisiana wouldn’t admit it, Texas was a front-runner for Derek Williams from the beginning. Everyone naturally felt he’d end up at LSU or Alabama like most Louisiana prospects, but Texas went all out to win this recruitment. During the summer, Williams came down on an unofficial visit when the Longhorns brought in a large group of prospects from his high school for a camp, and I was told then that things were moving in a very positive direction. After he committed, several schools continued to pour the pressure on. In the fall, Williams told several people he wouldn’t sign in December and would instead take his official visits in January. There were some really aggressive NIL pitches at him. Texas seemed to lock down his signature, but going into the 24 hours leading up to signing day, his camp was telling people that he wouldn’t be signing after all. The next morning, Williams was one of the first signatures to come across ending any drama before it really started. Williams said that Miami made a really strong push and almost got him to hold off of signing.

— Jamel Johnson committed early and while he talked about taking other visits, he seemed pretty firm. The evaluation process is always ongoing and Texas took Johnson before his junior year was over. Johnson’s senior year was plagued with playing out of position and I think the staff looked at going another direction. Johnson was also looking around so it made it easy for both sides to part ways.

(Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)
 

— I’d imagine the recruitment of Javien Toviano was as frustrating for those in Austin as any other prospect on the board. Toviano was so mysterious throughout his recruitment and incredibly hard to reach via the phone, but in person, he’s an incredibly nice and respectful kid. Texas was one of the first schools to offer and there were several times throughout the recruitment where Toviano told me Texas was out in front, but he wanted to really take advantage of a long recruitment. Coming out of his visit to Austin last spring, Texas had re-established ground as a leader and they seemed to be trending positively in the summer. Still, Toviano canceling several visits was concerning for some, but those close to him maintained that Texas was a strong contender. LSU started to get into the game, but Toviano was telling people that he was trying to keep his commitment a mystery. As we moved into the fall, all of those illusions fell apart. While Texas attempted to get him on campus many times, he never made it back. After signing with LSU, Toviano told me that part of his decision was that everyone expected him to go to Texas and he wanted to create his own path. While I told him that he gave me some headaches covering him, Javien was one of my favorites in the cycle.

— I’m not sure there’s much to say about Dalton Brooks. Sources near him told Horns247 it would likely come down to Texas and Texas A&M. The Aggies opened up a big lead and Brooks never seemed to click with Texas. With small-town prospects, we always hear funny anecdotes from trips and one thing that I remember is hearing how Brooks liked that Jimbo Fisher had a button on his desk that could automatically close his door. I doubt it was definitely something funny that stood out to me. Texas A&M ran the show in this recruitment from the very beginning.

Jelani McDonald (Photo: Blair Angulo, 247Sports)
 

— Jelani McDonald came out of nowhere as a prospect, and all credit goes to Oklahoma State for identifying him early and landing him. I went to see Waco Connally during the season and talked to McDonald after the game to see if Texas had been in contact at all. He said at that time he hadn’t heard anything from them, but the Longhorns came through with an offer less than two weeks later. The Longhorns seemed to have all of the momentum from that point and hosted him on an unofficial visit with plans for him to return for an official. McDonald came back on an unofficial for the TCU game but those logistical issues popped up causing him to have an unpleasant trip. While he told the staff he understood how mistakes can happen, it slowed the momentum Texas had with him. It also didn’t help that TCU was making a push and had just beat Texas in front of him. As we came into December, TCU seemed to have the edge but the Horned Frogs took a lot of defensive back prospects and told some folks they were full at the position. That allowed Texas to host McDonald on the last week and win him over. McDonald made it easy on us admitting quickly after signing that he would be a Longhorn.

— Texas went back and forth on Mikal Harrison-Pilot for most of his recruitment, but they appeared to focus in on him during the summer. I believe there was a push to get MHP to make a decision, but his desire to carry the recruitment out caused Texas to move on when they thought they were getting some other players at the wide receiver position. Harrison-Pilot mentioned as much after signing, but he said he’s glad he waited because he felt that Brennan Marion wasn’t always straight up with him.

Tyler White (Photo: 247Sports)
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COMMENTS
 

— The Longhorns were actually a one-time favorite to land Tyler White who is the highest-ranked punter in 247Sports history, but Texas A&M won out. There isn’t a lot of drama that goes along with recruiting specialists and it usually comes down to whoever feels like the best fit. White’s family told me that Texas did everything right but they felt that A&M was simply the better opportunity. White has a twin brother who also kicks and will play both baseball and football at Tyler Junior College this year. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Texas monitor him and maybe come calling after a year or so.

 

Quote

I’m not sure there’s much to say about Dalton Brooks. Sources near him told Horns247 it would likely come down to Texas and Texas A&M. The Aggies opened up a big lead and Brooks never seemed to click with Texas. With small-town prospects, we always hear funny anecdotes from trips and one thing that I remember is hearing how Brooks liked that Jimbo Fisher had a button on his desk that could automatically close his door. I doubt it was definitely something funny that stood out to me. Texas A&M ran the show in this recruitment from the very beginning.

that's close to Matt Lauer having the button which locks the door from his desk.

yikes.

[Viper 12108]

13 minutes ago, NoName said:

that's close to Matt Lauer having the button which locks the door from his desk.

yikes.

but does Matt Lauer have another button that will lower the top shelf so Jimbo can reach the pickles? 

Advantage: A&M

[BurntOrange&White 39930]

4 minutes ago, Viper said:

but does Matt Lauer have another button that will lower the top shelf so Jimbo can reach the pickles? 

Advantage: A&M

He most certainly doesn't have a button that will make Karen Key Largo pop out of a cake.

[stork642 4498]

20 hours ago, Getafix said:

 

The story started off with so much promise ... a cute Finnish girl and a cute Norwegian girl, on missions.  Oh, the pun possibilities alone are endless (finish?  missionary finish?  Norwegian wood?).  

Instead, we end up with references to two guys on a bicycle, paganism and atheism.

Sorta like the Chris Beard saga.

 

Made me think of this

[RGBIII 22839]

4 hours ago, Teryor said:

I never quite determined what caused both sides to move on

Lol really Roach...you dont know why Texas backed off Lane...pretty sure everyone on this board knows

[Burt Macklin 19020]

29 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Lol really Roach...you dont know why Texas backed off Lane...pretty sure everyone on this board knows

Do you dare question the bounds of Roach’s cluelessness? 

[RGBIII 22839]

2 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

Do you dare question the bounds of Roach’s cluelessness? 

Looch would have banned me for that comment if I was on texags

[SydneyCarton 48070]

7 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

Do you dare question the bounds of Roach’s cluelessness? 

I feel like going down the road of questioning Roach's cluelessness is like some kind of fucking puzzle trap where at the end a Cenobite pops out and drags my soul to a hell dimension. Hard pass. 

4 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Looch would have banned me for that comment if I was on texags

If you were on Texags you'd have been banned years ago for having the audacity to point out that while Tom Herman is without a doubt a shitty coach and a terrible hire, at least he is handsome.

The only man allowed to be called Handsome on Texags is one William Liucci..and obviously Johnny Manziel. 

[RGBIII 22839]

16 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

I feel like going down the road of questioning Roach's cluelessness is like some kind of fucking puzzle trap where at the end a Cenobite pops out and drags my soul to a hell dimension. Hard pass. 

If you were on Texags you'd have been banned years ago for having the audacity to point out that while Tom Herman is without a doubt a shitty coach and a terrible hire, at least he is handsome.

The only man allowed to be called Handsome on Texags is one William Liucci..and obviously Johnny Manziel. 

Speaking of Handsome Billy Liucci (as he is known around Texags HQ) which Looch look is your favorite

 

We have

Wearing a shirt to the pool while touching wet dudes Looch 

We have

Too many consecutive days at the Dixie Chicken Looch

We have

 

Old Glamour Shots that hangs on his moms wall Looch

We have

I'll just try cocaine once, it should be fine but then it turns into a problem Looch

We have

Just binge watched Yellowstone, went to Tecovas because Lucchese was too expensive Looch

We have

Got off the cocaine finally and now I am a youth minister now doing TikTok dances to keep kids off drugs Looch

We have

Gets told twice a day by the high school nurse to shave his chin but he cant figure out how Looch

and finally we have...

Need no additional explanation Looch

[UDontKnow 10443]

4 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Speaking of Handsome Billy Liucci (as he is known around Texags HQ) which Looch look is your favorite

 

We have

Wearing a shirt to the pool while touching wet dudes Looch 

We have

Too many consecutive days at the Dixie Chicken Looch

We have

 

Old Glamour Shots that hangs on his moms wall Looch

We have

I'll just try cocaine once, it should be fine but then it turns into a problem Looch

We have

Just binge watched Yellowstone, went to Tecovas because Lucchese was too expensive Looch

We have

Got off the cocaine finally and now I am a youth minister now doing TikTok dances to keep kids off drugs Looch

We have

Gets told twice a day by the high school nurse to shave his chin but he cant figure out how Looch

and finally we have...

Need no additional explanation Looch

 

[IDIOTsavant 8483]

28 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

The only man allowed to be called Handsome on Texags is one William Liucci..and obviously Johnny Manziel. 

So no one. You could’ve just said no one.

Spoiler

5 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Speaking of Handsome Billy Liucci (as he is known around Texags HQ) which Looch look is your favorite

 

We have

Wearing a shirt to the pool while touching wet dudes Looch 

We have

Too many consecutive days at the Dixie Chicken Looch

We have

 

Old Glamour Shots that hangs on his moms wall Looch

We have

I'll just try cocaine once, it should be fine but then it turns into a problem Looch

We have

Just binge watched Yellowstone, went to Tecovas because Lucchese was too expensive Looch

We have

Got off the cocaine finally and now I am a youth minister now doing TikTok dances to keep kids off drugs Looch

We have

Gets told twice a day by the high school nurse to shave his chin but he cant figure out how Looch

and finally we have...

Need no additional explanation Looch

 

And for fuck’s sake, you SHOULD’VE just said no one. I know he called you Tom Herman, but this is just too fucking far man.

[SydneyCarton 48070]

11 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Speaking of Handsome Billy Liucci (as he is known around Texags HQ) which Looch look is your favorite

 

We have

Wearing a shirt to the pool while touching wet dudes Looch 

We have

Too many consecutive days at the Dixie Chicken Looch

We have

 

Old Glamour Shots that hangs on his moms wall Looch

We have

I'll just try cocaine once, it should be fine but then it turns into a problem Looch

We have

Just binge watched Yellowstone, went to Tecovas because Lucchese was too expensive Looch

We have

Got off the cocaine finally and now I am a youth minister now doing TikTok dances to keep kids off drugs Looch

We have

Gets told twice a day by the high school nurse to shave his chin but he cant figure out how Looch

and finally we have...

Need no additional explanation Looch

Rookie list. The answer is Mug Shot Looch. 
 

I’d have also accepted Dead Looch. 

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

@RGBIII How the fuck do you forget mugshot Looch?

[ATXhorn17 1617]

I wish TexAgs would get audited… I’m sure those guys run a tight ship. 

Edited February 2, 2023 by ATXhorn17

[TexasGary 833]

9 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

@RGBIII How the fuck do you forget mugshot Looch?

[Deej 76757]

12 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

@RGBIII How the fuck do you forget mugshot Looch?

"Can you please not tilt your head to the right while we take your picture?"

"I'm not."

[ousux 5597]

Honestly there's not a ton of new/surprising info in there for anyone that's followed the whole cycle. Probably the most interesting thing to me was that Johntay Cook was Texas all the way behind the scenes, despite social media stuff. Sure seemed like he was leaning aggy for a minute there.

I never got the impression aggy was a real threat, may just be me

[Cairn Horn88 8260]

Checking in…..apparently no news.

[SarkAfterDark 1688]

Some of you are seriously some weird fucks. Just straight up strange individuals.

[SomeoneYouKnow2 235]

[speed817 19256]

9 minutes ago, SarkAfterDark said:

Some of you are seriously some weird fucks. Just straight up strange individuals.

At least most of us know what chicken fried steak is...

[Hmbre97 6305]

Mugshot Looch is a 2-for-1 special

 

 

[Vito Andolini 9125]

28 minutes ago, Cairn Horn88 said:

Checking in…..apparently no news.

Roberson news comes tomorrow