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Texas Recruiting Notes 2021

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(Ian Boyd) Inside the gameplan: How does the 2021 class fit Sarkisian's vision?

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Texas’ incoming class for 2021 is now more or less complete with the passing of NSD2. Most of the thought and analysis these days occurs around NSD1 when the strong majority of recruits sign. For Texas, the complicating factor is the fact they hired a completely new staff in between NSD1 (to the shock of newspaper readers) and NSD2. Football is football and most of these players will be in the same positions regardless of who is coaching them to play the game.

However, a lot of positions and schemes are changing which will bring differences in how these players’ skill sets and talents will project at Texas. So here’s a rundown for 20 of the 21 new Longhorns and how they’ll be impacted by the new schemes brought by Steve Sarkisian and his staff. For punter Isaac Pearson, hopefully the only serious development in his utilization is a decreased demand for his skill.

Quarterback

Charles Wright: 6-1, 194. 3*** from CTX (Austin)
Wright is unquestionably one of the big winners from the coaching transition. He was a big winner when Tom Herman fired Tim Beck and brought in Mike Yurcich, who then cleared out Texas’ existing quarterback class before circling back to Wright when they needed a 2021 take as insurance before the Quinn Ewers era.

Yurcich’s offense was bringing more of a RPO and play-action bent to the Texas offense than Herman’s quarterback run-heavy system, but Sarkisian’s offense is even further along the pocket quarterback trail. Austin High asked Wright to be the engine for a sizable chunk of their offense. He averaged 38 pass attempts and 12.4 rushing attempts per game, often pairing each on quarterback run RPOs in which he had to threaten the perimeter with his arm and the interior with his legs.

The reason he got a scholarship offer from Texas is what he did with his arm in the RPO game and throwing down the field often on double moves. Those dimensions were also the primary features in the 2020 Mac Jones Alabama offense Sarkisian just coordinated. Texas became an even better fit for Wright with the Sark hire. The local quarterback will have the chance to grow into the job both mentally and physically, and the job will be one that fits his skill set and projection. The “Colt McCoy” energy around Wright definitely increased with Texas’ staff changes.

Running back

Jonathan Brooks: 6-0, 185. 4**** from STX (Hallettsville)
Brooks is a pure running back prospect. He has amazing lateral agility that allows him to set up and find holes and then enough burst to hit the hole. He’s the type who can learn to be effective in a variety of running schemes as what makes him amazing is his balance and ability to accelerate AND decelerate. He can cut and go faster than opponents can adjust. Once he’s adjusted to running lower against Big 12 defenders Brooks should be able to learn how to manipulate defenders in multiple schemes.

Wide receiver/tight end

Gunnar Helm: 6-5, 225. 3*** from CO (Cherry Creek)
Helm is a big, fluid receiver whose move to tight end is guaranteed by his frame and inevitable future as a 250-pound (or bigger) collegian. Under the Herman staff he’d be sentenced to a redshirt and three years of toil under the rod of Yancy McKnight before seeing the light of day. He still may face that fate, sans McKnight, but Sark has shown a willingness to involve multiple tight end sets and to flex receiving tight ends who aren’t terrific blockers. Those are both wins for Gunnar Helm while he adds the strength and knowhow to block inline.

Ja’Tavion Sanders: 6-4, 240. 5**** from DFW (Denton Ryan)
Sanders is a bigger winner still from the new philosophy in tight end deployment. Sarkisian sees tight ends as potential vertical RPO targets and not just mobile bludgeons for generating two-back run game concepts. Denton Ryan threw Sanders 16 touchdown passes and a fair percentage of them were goal line fades where he posted up some helpless corner and went up and one-handed the ball. Sarkisian is going to see him as Austin Sefarian-Jenkins 2.0 and know just what to do with his skill set.

Casey Cain: 6-2, 175. 3*** from NOLA (Warren Easton)
Casey Cain was a Mike Yurcich special. The former Oklahoma State offensive coordinator was convinced they had something in Cain similar to some of the overlooked 3-stars the Cowboys would regularly develop into big time stars in the Big 12. Was he right? The hangup with Cain is his lack of elite speed. His body control and hands are both fantastic. It’s not hard to imagine him as a chain-moving slot within a few years but in a RPO and play-action heavy scheme that also incorporates several receiving tight ends, his potential role in the new offense is diminished.

Keithron Lee: 5-10, 175. 3*** from CTX (Bryan Rudder)
Jaden Alexis: 5-11, 185. 4**** from SFL (Monarch)
Lee and Alexis are both much cleaner fits for the Sarkisian offense. The 2019 Alabama Crimson Tide famously had four future first round wide receivers in Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs, Jaylen Waddle, and DeVonta Smith and all of them were shorter than 6-foot-2 and under 200 pounds. The key feature was speed, all of them were hell on wheels catching glance routes, perimeter screens, crossing routes, and deep posts and double moves.

Lee and Alexis are both of the same mold, burning fast receivers who’d be typecast as slot receivers in another offense but will get opportunities in different parts of the field for Sarkisian.

Offensive line

Hayden Conner: 6-6, 317. 3*** from HOU (Katy Taylor)
Conner looked a bit more spry and tackle-capable as a junior than as a senior. He’s a truly large kid who’s listed size is no exaggeration. The obvious trajectory for him is to develop into an inside zone guard who can cover up a defensive tackle and prevent tackles for loss or be a large piece of the wall in pass protection. Kyle Flood has become pretty multiple in the run game so Conner’s upside will depend on the extent to which he can develop as a versatile athlete.

Max Merril: 6-4, 273. 3*** from HOU (Strake Jesuit)
Merril was a valuable and extremely necessary addition to the paltry 2021 offensive line class. He meets the same profile as some of Texas’ best offensive linemen over the years, a scrappy and athletic but underweight 3-star (Conner Williams, Sam Cosmi). Merril has fantastic reach for the position and will undoubtedly add the needed strength and weight in time. Flood’s emphasis on multiplicity along the line and NFL background suggest athleticism will be the name of the game for the Texas O-line moving forward, which is a positive for Merril who could project to multiple positions once he fills out.

Defensive line

Byron Murphy: 6-1, 290. 3*** from DFW (DeSoto)
Murphy is going to be one of a few interesting test cases for how Pete Kwiatkowski’s approach on the defensive line translates at Texas. Murphy has a quick first step and had a Poona Ford sort of role at DeSoto, shooting A-gaps and creating problems at the jump for opposing run schemes. He’d be a great fit as a nose in the tite front, helping to cancel out interior gaps with quickness while keeping the linebackers clean to run to the ball.

Barryn Sorrell: 6-3, 250. 3*** from NOLA (Holy Cross)
Sorrell is a big winner from the transition to Kwiatkowski’s scheme. His power and motor on the edge is a great fit for what Kwiatkowski has tended to utilize at the field defensive end position. Sorrell will likely be able to grow into a 270 or 280 pounder who lines up in the B-gap at times in a 4i-technique but then also stand-up on the edge and have a chance to pin his ears back and get after the quarterback.

Juan Davis: 6-4, 217. 3*** from DFW (Everman)
Davis could end up at tight end as well. At Everman he played mostly at quarterback (for wildcat runs), H-back (often taking hand-offs on trap plays), and as a more traditional tight end running down the seams. He has good hands, length, and wiggle that allows him to be effective as a ball-carrier in the box or breaking off routes to get open coming off the hash marks. Given Texas’ depth at tight end and need for potential defensive ends and jack linebackers, I’m guessing Davis will end up on this side of the ball. He should be effective with time using his length and agility to execute stunts and set the edge.

Derrick Harris, Jr: 6-3, 215. 4**** from HOU (New Caney)
Harris is another winner from the schematic update going from Chris Ash’s 4-down to Kwiatkowski’s multiple, 3-down scheme. He’s a jack linebacker all the way who is made better by the opportunity to play wider on the edge and mix coverage drops. Ash was going to have to fill him out into a true, full-time hand in the dirt lineman to make the most of his scholarship. Harris is more of a true hybrid, outside linebacker who might be able to find the field more quickly in this scheme.

Jordan Thomas: 6-3, 240. 4**** from GTX (Port Arthur)
Thomas is another outside linebacker who will benefit from being able to play standing up and outside-in within Kwiatkowski’s scheme. He may grow into more of a true defensive lineman and could be another guy to play the hybrid field end position if he adds more size to translate his power into playing interior gaps and inside shades.

David Abiara: 6-4, 248. 4**** from DFW (Mansfield Legacy)
Abiara is similar to Sorrell. He has a lot of power to stay outside when he could be lining up inside down the line and using his length and explosiveness to take on offensive linemen more directly than the jack linebacker tends to do. He could grow into a 3-technique but is probably a field-side end for Kwiatkowski who balances his edge-rushing potential with some interior run-stopping responsibilities. One or two of these guys might grow into defensive tackles.

Linebacker

Terrence Cooks: 6-2, 210. 4**** from HOU (Shadow Creek)
Morice Blackwell: 6-1, 196. 4**** from DFW (Arlington Martin)
Texas added a pair of legit Big 12 inside linebackers for this class, courtesy of the work put in by Coleman Hutzler. Both of these guys are ideal fits for the new defensive scheme. Kwiatkowski will cover them up and allow them to match some routes on RPOs and to use their speed to run to the football without having to deal with a lot of trash. The days of Texas lacking athleticism at linebacker and getting easily targeted by Big 12 offenses in space should at last be over.

Secondary

Jamier Johnson: 6-0, 170. 4**** from CA (John Muir)
Ishmael Ibraheem: 6-1, 175. 4**** from DFW (Kimball)
In the schemes Terry Joseph was running at Notre Dame, Ibraheem and Johnson would both fit best as field side cornerbacks. They have good length and both play a mean cover 3 corner in their high school film, playing the ball in front of them effectively and often closing and tackling well in the screen and run game. Terry Joseph plays more quarters but often has the field corner sit back in off coverage and close on the ball from a deep quarter or third, much like a cover 3 cornerback.

JD Coffey: 6-1, 180. 4**** from DFW (Kennedale)
Coffey’s most promising skill, covering a lot of grass from a deep alignment and possessing the range and tackling ability to line up deep, translates to a variety of defensive schemes. He’d be at his best as a true free safety, playing over the top behind coverage rather than positioned to have to match inside receivers in man coverage.

Overall Sarkisian and his staff have to be fairly pleased, though not blown away, with this class they inherited with a few notable exceptions. The offensive line depth is terrible and hasn’t set Flood and Sarkisian up to mimic their success at Alabama. Of course they mostly have themselves to blame since they poached the state’s best lineman AND speedy wide receiver in the 2021 class on behalf of Alabama.

The rest of the incoming pieces on offense are mostly going to be upgraded by the change in scheme. On defense, Kwiatkowski and Bo Davis will have lots of players to start developing along the defensive line and will be in great shape for the foreseeable future at linebacker. For 2022 and beyond they’ll want to rebuild the numbers in the secondary and aim to land some press-man cornerbacks.

 

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(Mike Roach) 2021 Behind the Scenes: How things unfolded for Texas, Part I

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The 2021 cycle wasn't what most Texas fans had come to expect under Tom Herman's recruiting. In what would eventually become his last full cycle as Texas head coach, Herman saw his program flounder and his staff fail to land many of the big targets in the state of Texas. Along the way, Texas managed to sign some talented prospects, but the story of the cycle is how many missed opportunities the Longhorns had.

As always, there was drama, intrigue, and plenty of crazy moments behind closed doors. As we do each year, Horns247 has a full rundown of how exactly the 2021 class played out. So without further ado, we take you behind the scenes of the 2021 Texas signing class in this first of two parts of Horns247's annual post-National Signing Day look back at how things unfolded in the recruiting cycle that was.

— Jalen Milroe looked to be the guy who could ignite the 2021 class for Texas, and for a while it looked like he couldn’t be beat on the recruiting trail. Milroe emerged somewhat late as a target for Tim Beck who was focused on Parish Episcopal quarterback Preston Stone. Texas pressed Stone for a commitment repeatedly, but he wasn’t quite ready to pull the trigger. Milroe came down to throw for Texas, and Beck offered him with the knowledge that Stone was still the top guy on the board. Milroe started talking about shutting his recruitment down, and Alabama was initially going to be the pick.

When the Crimson Tide got a commitment from Drake Maye, Milroe started looking at Texas and Florida State. When Milroe made it clear he wanted to commit, Beck told Stone and his family one last time that he had the opportunity to take the spot but Texas wouldn’t turn down Milroe if he wanted in. Stone's father turned Texas down one last time and the Longhorns moved on Milroe. As soon as he committed, he convinced Hayden Conner, Derrick Harris and Billy Bowman to pull the trigger. There were also a few bigger names in there, but we will get to those later.

— When Milroe committed he was firm to Texas, but he always kept in contact with staffs who were recruiting him prior to his commitment. While there was always a sense of loyalty to Texas, Milroe felt a bit dicey after Tim Beck left. It didn’t help that Mike Yurcich came in and immediately offered Garrett Nussmeier and Sawyer Robertson. I can say with confidence that many people around Milroe were encouraging him to look around as it seemed that Yurcich wanted his own guy. Milroe held out until Texas landed a commitment from Quinn Ewers. We had heard he was leaning towards flipping anyway but looking at what was in front of him and Ewers coming behind him seemed to be the final straw. Milroe was a true pro through the whole recruitment and handled things really well.

— Texas seemed to be behind at quarterback once Tim Beck left. Yurcich held the commitment from Milroe but wanted more of a pocket passer. Robertson was high on Mississippi State because of Mike Leach from the beginning, but Texas finished second for him. They also probably finished second for Garrett Nussmeier, but it was a distant second as Nuss seemed to always be heading for LSU. I’m not sure what it would have taken to get it done with Nussmeier as his biggest hang up was an inability to play for Tom Herman.

— Once Milroe bounced, Texas had to make a move at quarterback. Local prospect Charles Wright was a Texas legacy and coveted a Texas offer. Mike Yurcich made a pretty quick decision to offer and the Iowa State commit flipped on the spot.

— Running back recruiting was somewhat lowkey to start. Texas focused in on Jonathon Brooks as one of its targets and recruited him as a priority right off the bat. Brooks went on to a historic season, and I was told early on that Texas was incredibly excited about him and weren’t really worried about no other schools jumping in. The Longhorns went national with an eye toward an eventual in-state battle for two running backs. Five-star TreVeyon Henderson was set to make an official before the pandemic, but there was never any real traction with Texas there. Brandon Campbell held an offer, but it wasn’t committable by the time he picked USC.

— Let’s go back to the time Quaydarius Davis committed to Texas. Ra’Shaad Samples was big in starting the Dallas to Austin movement for Texas and Davis was the first commit. Camar Wheaton was nearly the second. Shortly after Davis committed, I was told by a key source close to Wheaton that he was giving serious thought to picking Texas and shutting things down. Wheaton was close friends with Davis, and Samples was close with some influential people in his recruitment.

The Longhorns had to hit the reset button with him when Samples left, and it took some re-building to get back in it. Oklahoma took a pretty commanding lead in this race heading into 2020. The Sooners were a hot team and the offense was one Wheaton felt he could see himself in. It seemed all but certain he would be a Sooner, but Texas fought back. Wheaton visited Austin right before the COVID dead period, and the Longhorns picked up some momentum going into the summer.
Oklahoma was the perceived leader for Wheaton for most of the cycle (Photo: Brandon Drumm-OUinsider, 247Sports)

— I mentioned on a number of occasions that Wheaton had some concerns with the development prowess of Oklahoma running back coach Demarco Murray. That’s where Texas started to gain some positive ground. Drayton had a strong resume and pushed that while Murray focused on the flash of being an NFL star flying on private jets and driving expensive cars. I was told this didn’t resonate well with Wheaton who didn’t come from a program of means. Despite his relationship with Lincoln Riley, which I’m told was incredibly strong, he never seemed to be able to pull the trigger on the Sooners. When Quinn Ewers committed, there were rumors Wheaton was going to jump on a commitment, but nothing ever came of it. The negative recruiting from both Texas and OU got to be too much for Wheaton and he felt he had to eliminate one of those schools from his favorites to eliminate it. While he did have a great relationship with Drayton and Brandon Harris, Wheaton never felt a connection with Herman and didn’t trust the direction of the program which allowed him to move on. He eventually committed to Alabama which seemed to reinforce that he was never completely sold on OU despite leaning towards the Sooners for most of his recruitment.

— The LJ Johnson recruitment was always tough to get information on, and it got progressively worse as his recruitment went on. Johnson was always a quiet kid, but he became more withdrawn near the end of his recruitment. Texas and Texas A&M battled back and forth through most of the year, but it looked like Texas took a lead in the late summer. In fact, we received intel that Johnson gave a silent to Texas that resulted in a few Crystal Balls to be flipped. While Johnson never acknowledged the silent, several sources at Texas said they believed the Longhorns were in the top position to nab the four-star back.  Even after Tom Herman’s dismissal, Johnson was giving positive feedback to the Texas staff, and his family even told the staff on several occasions he was coming to Texas. It did get interesting down the stretch between both schools. When a source close to Johnson's decision process told us it was 99% A&M in mid-January, we flipped our picks back to the Aggies. He ultimately chose Texas A&M due to the offensive line class and opportunity to make an impact on the depth chart in College Station.

—Wide Receiver recruiting also got off to a crazy start. The transition from Drew Mehringer to Andre Coleman caused some ups and downs for Texas. While the Longhorns appeared to be in the top position for Aledo wide receiver JoJo Earle early on, the staff changes really shook things up for him. Earle released a list of top schools in January and excluded Texas. Jay Valai had a pre-existing relationship with Earle and went to work on getting Texas back into the race. Shortly before the COVID-19 shutdown, Earle took a visit to Austin that I was told went really well. I spoke to Earle the Monday after and he told me that Texas did a lot to get back in and would be considered highly with Oklahoma and TCU.

When the COVID-19 shutdown happened, we heard a lot about TCU making some progress, but LSU was lurking in the background. The Tigers used their national championship and draft results to put the pressure on Earle and land him. Never one for the recruiting attention, Earle pretty much shut it down but kept communicating with Texas and a few other staffs. Down the stretch, the Texas staff felt there were a few opportunities to flip him, but Alabama pulled off the same big flip they were able to get with Aledo running back Jase McClellan the year before.

— The recruitment of Quaydarius Davis was one of the most quiet but wild recruitments I’d covered. The Skyline wide receiver became the first commit in the Texas 2021 class. Davis decommitted citing wanting to take some more visits, but I saw him in late January and he talked of wanting to re-commit to Texas. Davis had kids and wanted to stay closer to home, but Texas wasn’t sure about his actual commitment. Davis called me during my post-signing day vacation to tell me he was re-committing and I got quotes in a Flagstaff hotel room and wrote the story. The Longhorns asked him to hold off citing the decommitment and making sure he didn’t want to take any additional visits before locking it back down again. As the spring went on, Davis and Texas moved in different directions. He committed to USC, but I was told the Trojans dropped him before the fall season started. He eventually ended up at Kansas where he will have the chance to make an impact if he qualifies.

— Texas moved on to some secondary options in the spring and focused on Royse City wide receiver Ketron Jackson. At first, Jackson seemed like Texas was too late and he was developing a strong relationship with Arkansas and TCU. Jackson did have a bunch of pro-Texas voices in his corner, and he even took a visit to Texas on his own during the summer where he spent a lot of time with Brennan Eagles who he had a pre existing relationship with. When Jackson came back, he and the people around him were talking up Texas big time. In fact, Horns247 offered to shoot his video for him no matter where he went, but we did think the fact that he jumped all over it solidified he would be going to Texas.

Sources in Austin felt very confident on him, and when Nick Harris showed up to shoot it, I told him to call me if there were any problems. It was then that Nick told me the ending was in favor of the Razorbacks. The video was incomplete for a few weeks while Texas began to push again. Out of the blue, Jackson called up stating he wanted to do a total re-shoot of the video. Those around him felt this would likely end up as a Texas commitment. When Nick went back out to re-shoot, it was still Arkansas. Jackson said through the entire process that Texas was his dream school growing up and he loved his relationship with Andre Coleman. He could just never get over the late offer.

— Hal Presley and JJ Henry both were guys Texas moved on as well, but neither ever showed an overwhelming amount of interest in Texas. The Longhorns could have pushed a little harder for Henry, but it sounds like grades were a concern. Jaden Alexis’s name popped up in May as the Longhorns had been keeping in contact during the pandemic. When I finally connected with Alexis, it was evident that the Longhorns were in control. The Texas staff actually expected Alexis’s commitment for a long time, and there were some nerves when it didn’t come in the next month. There wasn’t much to worry about as Alexis committed and never really wavered.

— From everyone we talked to in Mississippi, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Antonio Harmon would be at Texas if they wanted to take him. There was some back and forth as to whether they needed a player like him on the roster currently. Harmon called Texas late in the season to offer a commitment, but they weren’t ready to take it at the time, so he moved on.

— The Longhorns took shot after shot at out of state receivers including Jack Bech, Dekel Crowdus, Chase Jackson and Malik Nabers. They did find some traction with Casey Cain who they evaluated early and felt had great tools. Cain made his commitment pretty quick, and despite some late thoughts of opening it up, he stayed committed and signed. Several members of the offensive staff thought they got a steal with him, and they felt the same about Keithron Lee who was offered after a monster year. Lee committed to Texas on Christmas Day without much fanfare. Texas was also in on Teddy Knox who really liked Texas but chose Mississippi State due to a longer and closer relationship with the staff.

— From the beginning, tight end recruiting saw the most turnover at Texas. Lake Travis tight end Lake McRee committed almost immediately after being offered but chose to open his commitment following Texas staff turnover, and the Longhorns didn’t seem to mind losing him. Juan Davis committed almost immediately after being offered and never wavered giving Texas a solid prospect at the position. Texas thought it was over when they landed Atascocita tight end Landen King. King opened his recruitment just weeks after shutting it down in a puzzling fashion. After leaning to Texas for the spring and his sister being enrolled in Austin, King didn’t give much feedback on why he decommitted. Nick was actually supposed to see him and other teammates the day he decommitted, but King didn’t show. He flipped to Auburn to play with friend Dematrius Davis following his commitment. Texas actually did call him back when Chad Morris was fired, but King decided he was going to sign with the Tigers.

— Texas offered Gunnar Helm after losing out on King and moved into his top group right away. Helm took a self-guided visit to Austin and committed shortly after. He never seemed to have any second thoughts even as the coaching staff turned over.

— When Texas offered Tommy Brockermeyer, it was thought that there was no way they could lose out on the five-star prospect and Texas legacy. However, everything went wrong from the beginning. To start, Oklahoma beat Texas to the punch which irked the family a bit. It didn’t help matters when they visited during the spring. Tom Herman offered James Brockermeyer a preferred walk on spot which really pissed off a competitive kid in James. On the way home from that visit, Iowa called to offer James and their history of offensive line play was higher than Texas historically. The Longhorns continued to pursue James and later offered, but the boys were looking around. As I reported prior to their junior season, Alabama and Clemson were going to be major players if they offered James. Had they done it, the boys would have likely picked the Tigers, but Saban’s offer was also huge for them. As Alabama showed off its history of NFL development and championship play, Tom Herman fumbled through a disastrous 2019 season. Lost in all of this was the fact their brother Luke was inside the locker room during a tumultuous season for the Longhorns. He didn’t actively dissuade them from joining him, but they obviously had an inside look into the state of the program. By this past spring it was headed in a strong direction toward Alabama despite protests from their mom and grandfather who wanted them at Texas. Blake Brockermeyer worked at the college level for SMU, and there were several coaches in the business who didn’t have the highest opinion of Tom Herman. I was told that Herb Hand did a really good job of recruiting the brothers and the family liked him, but there was more trust in the teaching ability and development skill of Kyle Flood.

— At the time Milroe committed to Texas before his junior season and started a tidal wave of commitments that included Hayden Conner, Billy Bowman and Derrick Harris, we received credible buzz that Bryce Foster was close to jumping in on the party as well. I never got it from Foster’s mouth or his family, but there was just too much smoke at the time to ignore. The same could be said for Donovan Jackson. The five-star offensive lineman was close to Milroe and Conner and I was told several times by many sources that Jackson gave off the vibe he was headed to Austin. In fact, I was told that he communicated that several times to commits in the class. Then, Texas had a down year that resulted in massive staff turnover and hit reset on the whole cycle. I think that Jackson and his family loved everything about the Texas education and even liked Herb Hand, but they couldn’t place a lot of trust in the future of the program moving forward under Tom Herman. Jackson eventually picked Ohio State thanks to his family’s history with that program and a stellar record of pro-development that Texas couldn’t boast.

— The Savion Byrd recruitment was perhaps the most frustrating recruitment for Texas. At the time Ja’Quinden Jackson committed, someone at Duncanville told me they’d be flabbergasted if Byrd went everywhere else. In fact, the exact quote was, “Byrd would walk through hell for Ja’Quinden Jackson.” Byrd was reportedly close to closing it down at times, but something happened between his junior and senior year. It seemed that his family was looking hard at SMU and there was some pressure to stay home. Since assistants were only allowed so many visits and Duncanville was loaded with big-name prospects, Byrd’s main relationship was with Tim Beck and Craig Naivar who were frequently at Duncanville. Losing Ra’Shaad Samples hurt the recruitment a bit, but losing those recruiters hurt. It also didn’t help that Byrd said he experienced a big drop in contact for a period of time. By the time Texas came back around and turned it up, it was too far gone.

— I believe Texas would have had a better shot at Jonah Miller had they pushed earlier. There was a time where the former Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe Catholic offensive lineman was leaning toward following Bijan Robinson, but Texas tried to put the brakes on anticipating a big recruiting class. Once Texas started to push again the COVID-19 pandemic stopped Texas from hosting Miller and Oregon added him to one of the strongest offensive line classes in the country.

— Following a long list of misses on their primary targets, Texas whiffed on secondary targets Tristan Bounds, Jack Leyrer, Jacoby Jackson and Ryan Lengyel. In most cases they were just too late to the party and by the time they offered, Texas looked like it was headed toward a dead end with Tom Herman. It was an incredible failure in a year where the program could have set itself up with a strong group.

— The Longhorns were able to grab a commitment from Michael Myslinski thanks to a personal relationship with Herb Hand. Hand chose Myslinski over Ezra Dotson-Oyetade who was rated a better prospect and had a ton of vocal support from the staff. Dotson-Oyetade also could have helped with Camar Wheaton, but he would have been one of the better offensive line prospects in this class. If Texas would have offered, Dotson-Oyetade likely would have chosen them, In the end, Texas missed out on both as Myslinski defected following Hand's departure.

— Texas gave it a run but ultimately came in second for Austin Uke.  The four-star Parish Episcopal offensive lineman rose quickly after a strong start to the year, and Texas waited quite a bit to offer.  Once they did Uke was soured on the program and Herb Hand.  Kyle Flood got Texas back into the game, and in the final two on the morning of the decision.  Stanford ultimately won over Uke's mother, but he said that Flood connected on a personal level with him.

 

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(Mike Roach) 2021 Behind the Scenes: How things unfolded for Texas, Part II

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The 2021 cycle wasn't what most Texas fans had come to expect under Tom Herman's recruiting. In what would eventually become his last full cycle as Texas head coach, Herman saw his program flounder and staff fail to land many of the big targets in the state of Texas. Along the way, Texas managed to sign some talented prospects, but the story of the cycle is how many missed opportunities the Longhorns had.

As always, there was drama, intrigue, and plenty of crazy moments behind closed doors. As we do each year, Horns247 has a full rundown of how exactly the 2021 class played out. So without further ado, we take you behind the scenes of the 2021 Texas signing class in this second of two parts of Horns247's annual post-National Signing Day look back at how things unfolded in the recruiting cycle that was.

— Texas was one of the schools Clayton Smith wanted most from the moment they offered. Texas was probably the early pick, but there was a big lapse in communication when Todd Orlando was removed and Chris Ash was put in place. Once Ash picked it back up, Texas started to trend. The Longhorns and LSU were going head-to-head with Oklahoma somewhat in the background at the time. Smith’s brother had played for Ash previously and nobody recruited him harder. The Longhorns thought they’d have a shot to show Smith what they could do on defense going into the fall, but Smith decided to shut his recruitment down early. On a Friday night out of nowhere, Smith texted me and told me he’d made a decision and it would be Oklahoma. I never gave them strong consideration as they always seemed to be in the background, but Smith said they checked all of the boxes. At the time, Smith told me Oklahoma was in third until he really started digging into all of the schools. I think he really liked the idea of Texas, but he didn’t have faith in Tom Herman and Chris Ash sticking around. Turns out he was right.

— There was a time when it seemed like Texarkana Pleasant Grove defensive end Landon Jackson would likely land with the Longhorns. It was always going to be a spirited fight with Texas A&M for his services, but LSU started to make an impression after his first visit to Baton Rouge. Following a trip to Austin for junior day last January, Texas was starting to make up some ground because of Ash’s four-man front. Throw in Oscar Giles who I’m told did a fantastic job recruiting both Jackson and Marcus Burris, and Texas felt like it had a fighting chance. The biggest issue facing them was that Tom Herman just wasn’t as involved in the recruitment as other head coaches recruiting him. In fact, I was told recently that Jackson would have probably ended up at Texas if there was a different head coach. LSU was able to parlay an incredible draft weekend into instant momentum and capitalized on Jackson’s urge to get the recruiting process over.

— Tunmise Adeleye was pretty upfront early on that while he liked Texas, he did not want to play in a three-man front. He also doubted the ability of Texas to develop him at the next level. When Jalen Milroe committed, Adeleye kept Texas in consideration but they always seemed far behind. During the junior day weekend where the commits met the new staff, Adeleye was supposed to be in attendance. Instead, he no-showed letting Texas know he wasn’t really interested. Adeleye committed to Ohio State during the spring, and despite a brief flirtation with the Longhorns in the summer, Adeleye went his own way.

— Jordon Thomas was a great early find by the Texas staff, and the Longhorns recruited him aggressively. Texas led the race the entire time and Oscar Giles did a great job connecting with Thomas. Texas also went to different lengths to show they supported his Islamic faith. Thomas committed early and never really looked around even when the coaching staff changed.

— David Abiara was committed to Notre Dame before Texas even got into the game with an offer. When they did, Abiara told Horns247 that he would definitely give Texas a hard look due to the education and proximity. He was expected to commit to Oklahoma at some point throughout the process as he had some strong Sooner influence around him. As time went on, Abiara opened his recruitment and Oklahoma seemed to move on. Abiara stayed pretty quiet through the fall, but Texas remained in contact. That translated to the new coaching staff as well, and Bo Davis moved quickly to land him after being put in place.  Texas might have had a fight with Washington on their hands, but the addition of Pete Kwiatkowski knocked it out of the park for Texas.

— Texas was half-hearted in pursuit of a few other defensive linemen. They entertained Englewood (Colo.) Cherry Creek defensive end Arden Walker, but never pushed hard. If they had he would have likely committed to Texas. Garfield Lawrence was offered late, but Texas never really pushed after he initial offer and a transfer from Ovie Oghoufo seemed rule him out, and after making an impressive evaluation on McKinney’s Jonathan Jones, Texas was hot and cold while Missouri applied constant pressure.

— The battle for Shemar Turner was one of missed opportunities from the beginning. It started when Turner first visited Texas as a sophomore along with a bunch of other DeSoto prospects and the Longhorns didn’t offer. Texas A&M jumped into the race that same day and Texas started playing from behind. Tom Herman had a natural advantage at DeSoto as former Ohio State running back Dontre Wilson’s father was a great resource for him. I was told that Herman’s communication with Wilson’s father was cut off and he didn’t make the most of that relationship. Texas entered the summer a slight leader as Turner grew up a Texas fan and visited Austin more than any other campus. Heading into the fall, Texas A&M was able to make a push thanks to constant pressure from Terry Price and an assist from former DeSoto and Texas A&M defensive end Von Miller who worked out at the same facility where Turner trained. Had Texas offered Byron Murphy earlier in the cycle, it might have made a difference, but this one was decided midway through the fall as Texas floundered and Texas A&M thrived.

— Texas kept in touch with Byron Murphy even before making an offer, and the flip came pretty quickly after the Longhorns made the offer. Murphy was thought of as one of the best interior prospects despite his size, but the Longhorns were initially concerned about how big he was. Fortunately for them, Murphy didn’t hold it against Texas when they came calling.

— Texas made a similar move for La Porte DT Albert Regis and pushed hard but lost out on him. Regis had an up and down season playing on both sides of the ball and seemed too big at times. Texas also tried with Ikechukwu Iwunnah when they needed some other options, but Iwunnah drug his feet and Murphy ultimately took his spot.

— Landing Morice Blackwell was a huge surprise for Texas fans. While the Longhorns seemed to be in the running for him, most thought Baylor or Arkansas would land Blackwell. Instead, he made a mother’s day commitment to Texas after Coleman Hutzler closed the deal. Blackwell was a pretty quiet guy throughout, but he never wavered. Blackwell was a great find and put up incredible production in high school. He should be one of the best members of this class.

—From the time Terrence Cooks visited Texas in January, the countdown seemed to start toward his commitment. As Cooks seemed like he might commit several times through the spring and summer, Texas always held the lead. There was a short period of time where LSU threatened to change the game after offering in the summer, but nobody outworked Coleman Hutzler in this recruitment. Cooks committed to Texas during the fall after pulling the plug on multiple opportunities.  His mother was the reason he kept delaying a decision. She was deadset on only making one commitment and she urged him to look into everything and make sure they were making the right decision. His father being from Baton Rouge made LSU a bit of a factor. When the staff was let go, Cooks and his family thought about asking out of the LOI, but they decided to give it a go, especially after Pete Kwiatkowski was hired who was someone he had an extensive relationship with in his time being recruited by Washington. He enrolled early and is taking part in workouts.

— There was probably too much hubris on the part of Texas when recruiting Jaydon Williams. The Longhorns became an instant favorite shortly after offering the South Oak Cliff pass rusher, and that was mostly due to a large amount of confidence in Austin. In reality, that confidence counted out Arizona State and Antonio Pierce who did a great job recruiting in Texas this year. Williams picked Arizona State in the end because they had been recruiting him longer and harder.

—Texas would have probably landed Deuce Harmon had they offered early. In fact, that goes back to Jason Washington and the first Herman staff who saw Harmon tear it up at a camp his sophomore summer. The staff had too many questions about his size, but there was some thoughts things would change once Jay Valai was hired. Valai had a personal relationship with the Harmon family, but Texas balked early on. Chris Ash had worries about his size and scheme fit, but the staff ended up offering Harmon late. They made a valiant push and went from out of the pack to second, but Texas A&M won by a lot. There was a perception on the family’s part that Texas thought it could swoop in any time and offer land him, and that was slightly off-putting. Harmon and his family gave Texas every shot, but it was simply way too late as Texas A&M had been recruiting him like a priority from the very beginning. One other thing that hurt was a self-guided visit Harmon took to Austin during COVID-19. Since they couldn’t take a guided tour, it was up to them to make their way across campus. It was then that the family realized how big the campus was, and it seemed like a turnoff to Harmon.

— Hunter Washington was a guy Texas could have had last spring. The four-star Katy cornerback tried to commit to the Longhorns, but Chris Ash and Jay Valai decided to hold off at the moment. Texas decided to move in another direction as there were some questions about Washington’s grades and his play on the field, and he jumped on an offer from the Seminoles.

— Texas was always the front runner for Ishmael Ibraheem. Despite a brief moment when he seemed to be favoring Oklahoma, Jay Valai dominated this recruitment and won him over. I was actually at a training session of his when he came up to me and told me flat out he’d be committing soon. Ibraheem has actually been one of the more vocal recruiters in the DFW area behind the scenes for both the 2021 and 2022 classes.

— Jamier Johnson’s recruitment came together pretty quickly. When I saw Johnson last February at Pylon Las Vegas, he was the only guy with a Texas offer who seemed legitimately interested in the Longhorns. I was told Texas did the best job of quarantine recruiting winning over Johnson and his mother with a unique pitch centered on academics. Still, Johnson was a bit apprehensive because he wasn’t able to visit Austin. Oregon looked like they would edge out Texas, but the Ducks told Johnson to hold off and he ended up picking Texas. From that point he was locked in.

— Texas lost some battles to programs they shouldn’t have this year and one of those was SMU. Chris Ash pursued Isaiah Nwokobia, but SMU was able to close the deal with the benefit of pitching the hometown angle. Nwokobia chose the Mustangs in order to stay close to his mother, but the decision definitely took some folks in Austin by surprise.

— The Andrew Mukuba recruitment was somewhat odd. After originally being an Oklahoma lean, Mukuba started to lean Texas after Oklahoma backed off of him. There was no one Chris Ash recruited harder throughout the year, but Mukuba could never quite pull the trigger. After telling Ash several times that Texas was his leader, Mukuba would tell others that there was no way he would end up at Texas. He seemed a bit obsessed with misinformation and always keeping folks guessing. He would constantly give out a different list of top schools to mix in with the favorites. In the end, Clemson won out pretty decisively.

— The arc for JD Coffey was odd. Craig Naivar offered him but held him off of a commitment during the summer before his junior season. Coffey’s junior year didn’t go as well as his sophomore season did, and Texas seemed down on him. When Chris Ash came in, he didn’t show a ton of enthusiasm at first, but he became more familiar with Coffey and his intangibles and decided to make him a priority. There was a time when Coffey was thinking about Washington and Oregon, but in reality, it was probably always going to be Texas. Coffey did almost leave before December signing day because he was worried about losing Chris Ash. Chris Del Conte spoke with him on a Zoom call and he told Horns247 that he was assured the coaching staff would be there. Herman was fired shortly after Coffey signed which caused some initial issues. After going back and forth, Coffey decided to enroll.

— Mukuba’s teammate Latrell McCutchin certainly started trouble with Texas any time he got the opportunity. The local prospect thought he deserved an offer from the hometown Longhorns and was upset that Texas offered after Alabama. When Jason Washington originally offered him during the summer before his junior season, I was told McCutchin was pretty rude about things and made it a point to use some pretty harsh language with him. From there he seemed hellbent on making a point to talk down on Texas. When Chris Ash arrived, he attempted to reach out and start fresh, but McCutchin told him he wasn’t interested in any of that. All in all, McCutchin had a bit of a reputation with schools around this region.

— From the time I met Ja’Tavion Sanders it seemed clear he’d end up at Texas. The first time we ever talked he raved about how his family wanted him to play at Texas. After the Longhorns added Billy Bowman, Sanders came to visit Austin for the LSU game. He committed on the field before the game and shut things down. Despite any rumors, Sanders never wavered. He hated the recruiting process and wouldn’t even field phone calls from other schools. He was excited to put everything behind him.

— For the longest time, it was inconceivable to think Billy Bowman would play somewhere else. He committed early and told me that Texas had always been the dream. Even throughout the summer when it seemed like there may be reason to look around, Bowman assured me he was locked in and not talking to other schools. In hindsight, the red flag was him posting an Oklahoma offer. He and his family had been talking to Lincoln Riley for sometime, and the Sooners didn’t offer until they knew they could get him. Bowman later told me he wanted to play on offense and felt Norman was the best opportunity for that. It didn’t hurt that his girlfriend signed there to play softball either.

— The only thing I can say about Juan Davis is he gave me the easiest commitment story I’ve ever had. Shortly after Davis was offered I ran into him at the Prime 21 camp in Dallas. I asked him if he planned on visiting Texas anytime soon and he said, “I’m going next week and then I’m going to commit.” I’m not accustomed to finding things out so easily so I grilled him a little longer and then he let me do some pictures. I’ll always be a big fan of the kid for that reason.

 

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11515

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17 minutes ago, satyanash said:

😥

 

This is funny. But also an indictment of Herman. We've got an alumni trainer who was clearly pushing this kid to go to Texas because he finally felt engaged, and a part of the program. Herman's arrogant ass never bothered to form a relationship with a guy that could push kids to Texas, which he was clearly doing with Uke. While it didn't work out this time, it's good to know that Donald Hawkins is an ally and an advocate for the program.

Jesus. Fuck Tom Herman. Dumbass.

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closetohumping

closetohumping 17435

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8 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

This is funny. But also an indictment of Herman. We've got an alumni trainer who was clearly pushing this kid to go to Texas because he finally felt engaged, and a part of the program. Herman's arrogant ass never bothered to form a relationship with a guy that could push kids to Texas, which he was clearly doing with Uke. While it didn't work out this time, it's good to know that Donald Hawkins is an ally and an advocate for the program.

Jesus. Fuck Tom Herman. Dumbass.

Yep, reading Roach's behind the scenes article, it appears Tom is his own worst enemy.

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texifornia

texifornia 56864

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but Iwunnah drug his feet

Lol come on Roach

Quote

Chris Del Conte spoke with him on a Zoom call and he told Horns247 that he was assured the coaching staff would be there. Herman was fired shortly after Coffey signed which caused some initial issues.

Way to go CDC

Also the two Austin LBJ kids sound like complete fucking headcases. Good luck Clemson/OU.

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Teryor

Teryor 4450

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Posted
3 minutes ago, texifornia said:

Texas sucked and fired its staff, aggy was top 5, time for little brother to run this state!

Oops

Good on Scott Frost for somehow convincing at least a kid or two to leave Hawaii for Lincoln and a failing Nebraska program is my big takeaway

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victory88

victory88 5663

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Posted

That article just confirms that literally no one likes Tom Herman.  And it confirms that CDC is a fucking moron that gave him an extra year when it was clear recruiting was heading in a bad way.  Th faster Texas rids itself of CDC, the faster his program will be to getting back to the top.  That doofus has no clue what it takes to compete with Bama, Clemson, tOSU.

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maninblack

maninblack 7974

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Posted
27 minutes ago, texifornia said:

Texas sucked and fired its staff, aggy was top 5, time for little brother to run this state!

Some interesting takeaways.

Alabama not only owned Texas but Florida as well. If there's going to be a threat to Saban's dominance Texas and a couple Florida schools will need to reemerge.

Butter teeth outpaced Dabo and USCe in South Carolina.

Arkansas made hay in Oklahoma.

Oregon State got whatever prospects exist in Oregon while UO went heavy into Nevada, Arizona and chased Utah up to Idaho.

 

 

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Vertigo

Vertigo 20276

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4 hours ago, closetojumping said:

I enjoyed your analysis. My problem with really thinking about either guy as anything more than roster fodder is that I start to feel like we’re just buttering a turd biscuit, but hell, maybe Wright turns out to be the second coming of Colt McCoy. 

I actually really like Wright from the little I have seen of him. If someone had told me he was a 4 star guy after I had watched his hudl I wouldn't have argued. He seems like a really good eval by the previous staff, which was their strength. That said, who knows if he ever sees the field, but he certainly looks like more than a roster filler to me. 

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Vertigo

Vertigo 20276

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25 minutes ago, maninblack said:

Some interesting takeaways.

Alabama not only owned Texas but Florida as well. If there's going to be a threat to Saban's dominance Texas and a couple Florida schools will need to reemerge.

Butter teeth outpaced Dabo and USCe in South Carolina.

Arkansas made hay in Oklahoma.

Oregon State got whatever prospects exist in Oregon while UO went heavy into Nevada, Arizona and chased Utah up to Idaho.

 

 

I has the sads about losing Beck's Arizona connections. There are some really good players there like Bijan, Ringo, Smith, Leibrock, etc. If ASU could lock down the borders they could be a top 10 program.  

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texifornia

texifornia 56864

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Posted (edited)
2 minutes ago, Spider2YBanana said:

I would also like to say fuck you to Mike Yurcich along with Herman for allowing Milroe to leave our class for Bama. Fuck them both up the ass with a chlamydia infested fist wrapped in an AIDS bow

He was also pretty much the only football-related reason Ewers committed to UT so there's that.

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closetohumping

closetohumping 17435

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35 minutes ago, maninblack said:

Some interesting takeaways.

Alabama not only owned Texas but Florida as well. If there's going to be a threat to Saban's dominance Texas and a couple Florida schools will need to reemerge.

Butter teeth outpaced Dabo and USCe in South Carolina.

Arkansas made hay in Oklahoma.

Oregon State got whatever prospects exist in Oregon while UO went heavy into Nevada, Arizona and chased Utah up to Idaho.

 

 

I'm thinking Dabo took a more national approach?

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TexasRenegade

TexasRenegade 2435

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Enter Texas. First reported by Mike Scarborough of Tiger Bait and then confirmed by Jason Suchomel of Orangebloods, the Longhorns are looking to add Lourd to the 2021 recruiting class as a preferred walk on who could eventually earn a scholarship.

Texas only has three scholarship quarterbacks on the roster for spring practice this year and while new head coach Steve Sarkisian understands that the days of four or five scholarship quarterbacks is probably a thing of the past, he is still working to add depth. And since graduate transfers want to compete for actual playing time, landing a prospect like Lourd with scholarship upside could be the perfect fit.

247Sports recruiting analyst Greg Biggins watched Lourd at the 2020 Elite 11 regional in Los Angeles and came away impressed:

“Lourd was consistent throughout the camp and threw the ball as well as we’ve seen him. You won’t find many players who work harder on their game and it’s really starting to pay off. He looked very comfortable throwing the entire route tree and his confidence is high right now. He showed touch on the deep ball, is very good throwing on the run, was accurate all camp long and made every throw look easy.

“He has filled out over the last year and looks bigger and stronger and his arm more live as well. He has a tight release and gets the ball out quick. He’s very solid mechanically and has made a nice jump as a player this off-season.”

Lourd plans to announce his decision on Thursday.

 

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Hornlover

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56 minutes ago, victory88 said:

That article just confirms that literally no one likes Tom Herman.  And it confirms that CDC is a fucking moron that gave him an extra year when it was clear recruiting was heading in a bad way.  Th faster Texas rids itself of CDC, the faster his program will be to getting back to the top.  That doofus has no clue what it takes to compete with Bama, Clemson, tOSU.

The bitching about CDC by some of you guys is ridiculous.

The contract extension happened after the 2019 Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, and a Top 3 recruiting ranking. It was certainly justified at the time.

What the fuck else is CDC supposed to do with Herman, other than give him a bullshit vote of confidence and tell everybody Texas is committed to him? Did you seriously want to fire him in the middle of the season during a pandemic season with interrupted practices and games? That's an even bigger disaster. No assistant is going to keep recruiting when they know they are getting axed at the end of the year. Let them try to work their asses off to save their jobs and recruit like motherfuckers. Otherwise, you have a dead-man-walking staff and you just have to hope recruits will stay on board through NSD1 with nobody recruiting them and no idea who the next coach is gonna be. Brilliant. 

Or I guess you could try poaching a new coaching staff in October? Good luck with that. I'm sure Urban Meyer was just itching to come out of retirement to work somewhere that fires coaches in the middle of the season.

If you want to bitch about CDC for not firing Herman after the 2019-2020 season, then whatever. The 2020 class was top 10 (mainly cause we only took 20), and a top 5 recruiting class was still a possibility for 2021, even if the on-field results didn't live up to expectations for 2019-2020. There was at least a reasonable chance that with a senior QB and a new coaching staff, the team could win the Big XII in 2020. CDC let Herman try, he sucked a giant dick, and got fired.

What a fucking dumb fucking take.

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Dijon Robinson

Dijon Robinson 1511

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1 minute ago, Hornlover said:

The bitching about CDC by some of you guys is ridiculous.

The contract extension happened after the 2019 Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, and a Top 3 recruiting ranking. It was certainly justified at the time.

What the fuck else is CDC supposed to do with Herman, other than give him a bullshit vote of confidence and tell everybody Texas is committed to him? Did you seriously want to fire him in the middle of the season during a pandemic season with interrupted practices and games? That's an even bigger disaster. No assistant is going to keep recruiting when they know they are getting axed at the end of the year. Let them try to work their asses off to save their jobs and recruit like motherfuckers. Otherwise, you have a dead-man-walking staff and you just have to hope recruits will stay on board through NSD1 with nobody recruiting them and no idea who the next coach is gonna be. Brilliant. 

Or I guess you could try poaching a new coaching staff in October? Good luck with that. I'm sure Urban Meyer was just itching to come out of retirement to work somewhere that fires coaches in the middle of the season.

If you want to bitch about CDC for not firing Herman after the 2019-2020 season, then whatever. The 2020 class was top 10 (mainly cause we only took 20), and a top 5 recruiting class was still a possibility for 2021, even if the on-field results didn't live up to expectations for 2019-2020. There was at least a reasonable chance that with a senior QB and a new coaching staff, the team could win the Big XII in 2020. CDC let Herman try, he sucked a giant dick, and got fired.

What a fucking dumb fucking take.

The Herman extension was a shit decision. Herman was at his dream job, why rush to extend him when he was (probably) a minimal flight risk?

The best defense for CDC there is that Fenves was the one who pushed for the extension (iirc)

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Funk Doctor Spock

Funk Doctor Spock 12178

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Hindsight and all that shit, it was bizarre to extend him when we lost 4 games and backed our way into the CCG. Georgia win was great, but let's be real, he didn't earn an extention. We hoped he would learn from his second 4+ loss season, but before he was hired people were justified in being worried that he loses to shit teams.

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Tex Pete

Tex Pete 20336

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Posted
2 hours ago, Teryor said:

Good on Scott Frost for somehow convincing at least a kid or two to leave Hawaii for Lincoln and a failing Nebraska program is my big takeaway

Crazy that Nebraska got the best players in Iowa (such that they are) when Iowa and Iowa State are both decent to good and Nebraska sucks ass.

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UncleSonny

UncleSonny 6570

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12 hours ago, Napoleon said:

For either of these guys to get an opportunity to learn under Sark for 3 years while they get an accelerated degree and then go start for 2 years somewhere else while earning a grad degree would be totally worth it. I think that you'd like to have 4 arms throwing during preseason, so it would be nice to have Cole come on board.

I agree with what you are getting at here. Obviously it's ideal to stack up 5 star qbs when you can but we've seen those guys will hit the portal with the quickness once it's clear they won't be the starter by about year 2. That can thin out a QB room pretty quickly so it's not the worst thing in the world to slot in guys like this who have the expectation to stick around the program a few years and develop. Maybe they turn into Mac Jones (unlikely) or maybe they save you in their 3rd year when your QB room has thinned out because of transfers and an injury and they are competent enough come in and pull out a 2nd half win.

Thank god we didn't need him but I always think about how it was nice to have senior Matt Nordgren backing up Vince in 2005. That was more common then but just doesn't seem to happen anymore. 

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Zhorn96

Zhorn96 1773

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2 hours ago, maninblack said:

Some interesting takeaways.

Alabama not only owned Texas but Florida as well. If there's going to be a threat to Saban's dominance Texas and a couple Florida schools will need to reemerge.

Butter teeth outpaced Dabo and USCe in South Carolina.

Arkansas made hay in Oklahoma.

Oregon State got whatever prospects exist in Oregon while UO went heavy into Nevada, Arizona and chased Utah up to Idaho.

 

 

there were only 1 or 2 good (and no high level) prospects in Oregon this year and Oregon wasn't high on any of them.  Better takes for them elsewhere

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