Texas Recruiting Notes 2025: Duck Around and Find Out

[closetojumping 62010]

7 minutes ago, texifornia said:

Sounds like Brendan Harris thinks he's a stone cold lock

Well, if one impressive young man believes it, that’s good enough for me, sir!

[Bevo 13440]

14 minutes ago, immamac said:

I've already seen it, but if you want to continue to put your head in the sand wait a few years on these "misses" and tell me what your verdict is. Kids who play because of NIL aren't the kids who will be the major contributors for national championship winning teams. 

If we have to rely on the portal to fill key needs, we will have to rely on NIL. There will always be a few in the portal who don’t want to wait on a spot opening up or want to improve their draft prospects, but even those guys will be money whipped by one of the typical suspects. So it may not be what we want to do, but in the current environment, we will be forced to NIL guys.

So, I get what you are saying. And I agree we would prefer to avoid pure NIL guys. But, the future is going to drive every player to become a pure NIL guy. 
 

To put it in perspective, while I didn’t come to Surly because of the money I was offered, if someone offered me 6 figures to post on their site, I would be very tempted to take them up on the offer. While, I am joking, that is what is pretty much happening in college sports.

Edited July 1 by Bevo

[Newy25 7590]

24 minutes ago, immamac said:

I've already seen it, but if you want to continue to put your head in the sand wait a few years on these "misses" and tell me what your verdict is. Kids who play because of NIL aren't the kids who will be the major contributors for national championship winning teams. 

I don’t necessarily disagree with you but we have seen Georgia win multiple championships with complete mercenaries on their roster.  I’m not sure you make this comment without any data to back this up. 

Edited July 1 by Newy25

[immamac 41753]

6 minutes ago, Bevo said:

If we have to rely on the portal to fill key needs, we will have to rely on NIL. There will always be a few in the portal who don’t want to wait on a spot opening up or want to improve their draft prospects, but even those guys will be money whipped by one of the typical suspects. So it may not be what we want to do, but in the current environment, we will be forced to NIL guys.

So, I get what you are saying. And I agree we would prefer to avoid pure NIL guys. But, the future is going to drive every player to become a pure NIL guy. 
 

To put it in perspective, while I didn’t come to Surly because of the money I was offered, if someone offered me 6 figures to post on their site, I would be very tempted to take them up on the offer. While, I am joking, that is what is pretty much happening in college sports.

Where did any of what I said say Texas isn't paying out NIL, and at levels that are rivaled by very few in the NCAA? 

You guys are saying because we don't money whip these players who are just doing straight auctions or maybe they just didn't fit. That Texas NIL isn't the gold standard and that's just horseshit and wrong. 

What's happening is you can go post for 6 figures on some shit hole website you don't enjoy and don't really care about or you can get paid 85k to post here, but if you post there you can't be here anymore until your contract is up and when you come here it may have to be for 45k or it may be for 200k if you went off and did great things growing their site and offer a justified marketing budget spend. 

This isn't some made up fucking narrative. The New York fucking times did a piece you should go listen to it. You should read everywhere where NIL lawyers, agents, the players that came here and went other places etc all talk about how the way Texas does NIL is 2nd to none. Unpaid endorsements. 

[immamac 41753]

1 minute ago, Newy25 said:

I don’t necessarily disagree with you but we have seen Georgia win multiple championships with complete mercenaries on their roster.  I’m not sure you make this comment without any data to back this up. 

Because they did it when NIL wasnt fucking legal. Yeah when you have the best talent because you bought it when buying it wasn't a thing that schools like Texas and Michigan etc could participate. 

NIL wasn't even a thing before July 1, 2021. Happy NIL day btw. 

Georgia had an absolutely fucking stacked roster going into year 1 when no one knew jack shit. Year 2 they kept a lot of talent, but bled a lot in the portal that could get paid elsewhere, still gritted out a championship on the backs of some serious veteran leadership. Year 3 they miss the playoffs and pantsed a horrid FSU. Year 4 ?? We will fucking find out on October 19th this year how much of an advantage they have over Texas in the NIL era. 

[Longhornlove 4735]

Bunch of bleeders in here, jeez.

[Newy25 7590]

I’m not sure I follow your train of thought. The argument that Texas has the better approach over let’s say Oregon because it will yield team first guys instead of mercenaries has not been proven anywhere yet. My Georgia example was meant to show players who care about money only who are also talented do not kill team chemistry and can still build champions. 

This theory of not going after guys who want to talk NIL first is just that so far. A theory. Sark could end up being totally wrong about it. Time will tell. But you speak of it like it’s been proven already to be the right approach and there is no way to know that today, 

Edited July 1 by Newy25

[Codaxx 5458]

1 minute ago, Newy25 said:

I’m not sure I follow your train of thought. The argument that Texas has the better approach over let’s say Oregon because it will yield team first guys instead of mercenaries has not been proven anywhere yet. My Georgia example was meant to show players who care about money only who are also talented do not kill team chemistry and can still build champions. 

This theory of not going after guys who want to talk NIL first is just that so far. A theory. Sark could end up being totally wrong about it. Time will tell. But you speak of it like it’s been proven already to be the right approach and there is no way to know that today, 

A&M went all in and blew up their program. We can say Georgia, but I am not completely sure how they run things recently. I do know they threw a mercenary out of their program (Bear Alexander). 

[immamac 41753]

3 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

I’m not sure I follow your train of thought. The argument that Texas has the better approach over let’s say Oregon because it will yield team first guys instead of mercenaries has not been proven anywhere yet. My Georgia example was meant to show players who care about money only who are also talented do not kill team chemistry and can still build champions. 

This theory of not going after guys who want to talk NIL first is just that so far. A theory. Sark could end up being totally wrong about it. Time will tell. But you speak of it like it’s been proven already to be the right approach and there is no way to know that today, 

What pure mercenary team made the playoffs last season? 

[tokamak 6324]

1 hour ago, Hookem2147 said:

An edge class of Jackson and Orogbo certainly wouldn't suck

I thought we’ve been counting Jackson as a DT long term to make ourselves feel better?

Maybe we can just clone him somehow and have an all-Lance Jackson front. 

[Teryor 4390]

Stampede

Quote

It's one of the busiest times of the year in the recruiting world. 

The bulk of official visits have concluded, so now you're seeing the majority of prospects sitting down with their families and those in their support circle as they work to lock in decision dates as schools continue to jockey for pole position. 

In recent days Texas has suffered some losses on the recruiting trail, but it's nothing this staff hasn't seen before as they've found ways to rebound in the past in the form of flipped commitments or senior evals. 

On the other hand the Longhorns are set up well for a successful month of July as several targets will be announcing their commitments this month. The end of the month will be important as well, as the Longhorns are expected to host another recruiting event on the Forty Acres once the dead period opens for a few days at the end of July. 

So what's the latest Horns247 has been hearing ahead of this crucial time on the recruiting calendar? 

Well in this edition of the Stampede, we'll scattershoot the latest we've heard from several days of working the phone and in speaking with sources at the state 7on7 tournament in College Station this past weekend.

— We'll start with the bad news first. Texas obviously lost out on Josiah Sharma, Myron Charles, and Dorian Brew over the weekend. Most Texas fans have seemed to figure out what happened in the Sharma and Charles' recruitments, but with Brew I did my best to report that NIL was going to be one of, if not the biggest factors in that recruitment. That said, I'm not sure what the number offers were for Brew, but I will say that after coming off the June 14-16 official visit to Texas, my source in Houston was adamant that Oregon would be Brew's pick if every school involved came with the same dollar amount. That always stands for something, and with Oregon being one of, if not the most aggressive school in the country when it comes to using NIL to win recruitments, I was not surprised at all to see Brew choose Oregon on Saturday. I don't think it's super likely to expect Brew to flip his commitment, or at least as things currently stand, but I do think it would be possible for Texas to flip Brew later on in the fall and so does the source in Houston.

As far as Sharma goes, I see Oregon doing just about anything to keep him as high school's quarterback Ryder Lyons is the Ducks' No. 1 prospect across the entire 2026 board. Because of that among a few other reasons, I don't see a school flipping Sharma down the road as being super possible. However, I do think that of Sharma, Charles, and Brew, the Longhorns will have the best shot of flipping Charles down the road. There were several twists and turns in the last day or two leading up to Charles choosing the Seminoles, and while he might not take visits outside of Tallahassee, I'm not so sure how locked into his commitment Charles will be leading up to early signing day. Texas might have to get him back on campus to make sure a flip could happen, but for now I think it's somewhat likely to expect Texas to emerge as a potential flip threat once we get into the season.

— I spoke with a source about McKinney Top247 linebacker Riley Pettijohn yesterday, and it's looking more and more like he'll be making his decision this upcoming Saturday on July 6th. This makes sense as Pettijohn has been telling the media for a few weeks that he'll be announcing his decision in early July or the first week of July. As far as where Pettijohn could be leaning, the source thinks Ohio State has the best chances of landing the Top247 'backer based off where things currently stand, but mentioned it's likely the jockeying between the group of contenders continues leading up to the decision date. After the Buckeyes, Texas A&M and USC seem to be the most likely ahead of Texas according to the source. Texas led for the large majority of the early parts of this recruitment, and mainly because of Jeff Choate and the early prioritization Pettijohn received from the Longhorns and their staff. Then the spring came, and the Longhorns looked to be holding onto to their momentum until official visits rolled around and the DFW area native got a much better look at schools besides Texas. Coming out of the official visit circuit, I'm leaning towards the field vs. Texas in this one, and would find it surprising if I don't eventually end up switching or deleting my crystal ball prediction in favor of Texas to land Pettijohn. We reported it felt like Texas wasn't in the drivers seat weeks ago and with us now entering July nothing has changed on that front. 

Madden Faraimo (Photo: Blair Angulo, 247Sports)
— San Juan Capistrano (Calif.) J Serra Catholic Top247 linebacker Madden Faraimo is a prospect the Longhorns have gained some traction with over the last few weeks. Thought to be a heavy Notre Dame lean for the majority of the summer, there's a source in California that thinks the recruitment is actually more open then we had previously thought. The source still views the Fighting Irish as having the highest chances of landing Faraimo, but mentioned Texas and Ohio State as schools that are going to make it really difficult for Faraimo to pick Notre Dame with the Longhorns receiving more emphasis than the Buckeyes when speaking with the source. The source also believes that those around Faraimo would prefer him to stay close to home and at USC, but the Trojans and Faraimo's relationship hasn't always been super solid. Faraimo had lots of early interest in USC early on, but the Trojans didn't show much interest after offering.

That's changed in the last few weeks as the Trojans were able to get Faraimo on campus for a June unofficial visit, but those in California don't know exactly where USC stands at this moment. It's a notable data point, as Faraimo's older sister played volleyball at UCLA so there's already a fair amount of familiarity with Faraimo's camp having a family member close to home and in LA. The Trojans lost out on Noah Mikhail when he chose Texas A&M yesterday, so I'd expect USC to have turned up the heat already or expect USC to be turning up the heat in the near future. Faraimo doesn't have a timeline for a decision so there's a chance this recruitment could last all the way into the season, so if Pettijohn ends up choosing Ohio State or USC on Saturday then some believe the Buckeyes or Trojans chances could start to fade a bit. Regardless, it seems like the window of opportunity for Texas in this recruitment has only continued to grow since the Longhorns hosted Faraimo for an official visit the June 21-23 weekend.

— I'm still expecting Mansfield Timberview three-star safety Nathan Tilmon to be in the Longhorns' 2025 recruiting class eventually. The same source who was on the money about Tilmon being loosely committed to SMU continues to remain adamant in viewing Texas as the school with the best chances to land Tilmon. As far as timing goes, the source isn't sure what to expect, but leans toward the DFW area native being in the class by the end of the summer. Utah and TCU are putting up a serious fight, but sources in DFW remain confident that Texas is the most likely landing spot for the 6-foot, 185 pounder with verified 4.49 speed on the 40 yard dash.

— Since receiving his offer from LSU Friday night,  I've only continued to feel less and less confident about Texas' chances of landing Ruston three-star cornerback Aidan Anding. Anding was originally intending to commit this past weekend, but once the LSU offer came he delayed his commitment till an August or in-season decision so he could visit LSU at the end of July. Yes, for weeks if not months I've reported that there was some animosity and feelings towards the Bayou Bengals taking long to offer and not showing much interest for an extended period of time, but if you've been following recruiting for any amount of time, you'll know how hard it is to pull kids out of Louisiana that LSU actually wants. While it might've taken some time and also might've happened because Jaboree Antoine decommitted from LSU, the Tigers now actually want Anding and with Corey Raymond back in the fold in Baton Rouge I'm expecting Anding to eventually end up there as well. The fact that an overwhelming majority of kids from Louisiana grow up dreaming to play in Death Valley, the cornerback position being a higher priority to LSU than it is for Texas in 2025, and the immense amount of pressure on in-state kids to stay in Louisiana are several of the reasons I'm expecting LSU to win this one. In speaking with folks in Louisiana, the overwhelming vibe I get is that everyone believes he's basically a lock to end up with the Tigers. Although it's shaping up to be a potential blow for Texas, this does make me feel better about Kade Phillips' chances of ending up with the Longhorns.

Michael Terry III (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
— I spoke with San Antonio Alamo Heights five-star athlete Michael Terry III over the weekend at the state 7on7 tournament and later ended up catching up with a source close to Terry on Sunday, and nothing has really changed with how I view this recruitment. I still think it's Texas vs. Oregon in this one and am still leaning Texas. Nebraska is giving everything they've got into this recruitment and seem to be making a bit of progress, but I still think this one is coming down to the Longhorns and the Ducks. I'll have a story with quotes posted sometime in the next day or so, but I think Steve Sarkisian has done a better job in this recruitment than any of the other head coaches who have found their program in the top four for the nation's No. 1 athlete. AJ Milwee and Tashard Choice have been crucial as well, and with the relationship factors, the Forty Acres' proximity to San Antonio, and the fact that Terry grew up a Texas fan wanting to play in DKR, I see Texas winning out this recruitment. The source I spoke with on Sunday is also leaning towards this recruitment wrapping up sooner than later, with the source believing it's likely Terry will announce a commitment before the end of July.

— On Saturday I spent some time catching up with James Lott, a Longhorn legend and the father of Frisco Panther Creek 2026 Top247 ATH Jalen Lott. Once the dead period opens up at the end of July, the Lott's will see Texas and USC on unofficial visits before gearing up for Lott's junior season and first season at Panther Creek. Lott is still in the process of getting a feel for the schools recruiting him and probably won't start whittling it down till next spring, but with the level of prospect Lott is and his father's ties to the University of Texas, I'd be incredibly shocked if Texas isn't in this one till the end at the very least. Hank went ahead and entered in an early crystal ball prediction in favor of Texas to land Lott back in November, and with all of the factors at play I wouldn't be surprised to join Hank on the prediction sometime in the next few months.

— There isn't much new to report on Spring Dekaney Top247 ATH Nick Townsend, besides the fact that sources in Houston are all leaning Texas now that the dynamic two-way Houston area playmaker has had some time to sit down and think after his official visit circuit concluded. With Kiotti Armstrong committing to the Aggies while Townsend was visiting Texas A&M and with the Longhorns having the last official visit before the decision, Texas was set up incredibly well to win this recruitment with a standout official visit to Austin and I think that's where things have been trending since the official visit to the Forty Acres. I'm not sure if you could say Texas hit a grand slam on Townsend's official visit, but they definitely did a great job and significantly improved their chances with their top remaining tight end target. On the flip side with Townsend, Alabama had long been viewed as the main competition to Texas for the 6-foot-3, 235 pounder. In speaking with sources involved with both recruitments, it's looking more and more like El Dorado Hills (Calif.) Oak Ridge four-star tight end Kaleb Edwards will be the tight end in the Crimson Tide's 2025 recruiting class. On the same note, sources in Tuscaloosa have lost the majority of confidence that was once had with the recruitment. With Edwards set to decide July 2 and Townsend announcing six days later on July 8, this recruitment is starting to have all signs point towards it ending with the Longhorns.

Nick Townsend (Photo: Jordan Scruggs, 247Sports)
— I still think Spring Dekaney four-star wide receiver Tanook Hines is going to end up at Notre Dame, but USC has definitely made it more competitive than previously believed. He'll be announcing his decision in the same ceremony as Townsend when the two Dekaney Wildcats announce their commitment on the 247Sports College Football Recruiting Show on Monday July 8, but Townsend's recruitment seems much more cut and dry at this moment compared to Hines. Again, still think this one will end in favor of the Fighting Irish but it's worth mentioning the USC Trojans aren't going down without a fight in this one.

— After he was able to take his last official visit to USC, a source in California feels good about the Trojans' chances of holding onto their commitment from Upland (Calif.) Top247 cornerback Trestin Castro. Castro only took two official visits this summer and saw the Longhorns the June 14-16 weekend before returning to LA for the June 21-23 weekend. I expect the dialogue from the Texas staff and Castro to continue, but I'm not sure how much longer as the source thinks it likely Castro remains solid to his pledge with a little over five months left before early signing day. 

— Although he'll be announcing his commitment around 3:00 PM today, it's still pretty hard to get an amazing read on where Alief Hastings four-star EDGE Smith Orogbo is leaning. The consistent read I get is that this is coming down to the Red River Rivals of Texas and Oklahoma, and at this point I'm leaning towards Texas again. I haven't changed my crystal ball off of Texas Tech quite yet, but I should be changing it sooner or later before the announcement is made later today. Not a ton of confidence in saying this as of this morning, but I do think Texas has the best chances to win this recruitment.

 

[Reynolds Woodcock 4631]

51 minutes ago, SarkAfterDark said:

Good thing we aren’t totally dependent on just the recruiting talent on campus. And with you acknowledging the position itself takes time to develop then why do you have angst getting developed talent for that position through the portal. Recruiting is a crapshoot and even if we recruited better numbers at the position in previous years there is no guarantee they’d pan out. And y’all love to exaggerate an issue to make a point. We aren’t using the portal to build our entire DL.

Because it's very difficult to do? We missed on Caldwell, we missed on Williams, we missed on Toia. We lost Trill Carter.  We signed a bunch of mid guys that hopefully can keep us average at the position when combined with Collins and, I guess, Broughton. What we need most (in addition to elevating our DL recruiting generally) is some combination of Bledsoe, January and/or Mitchel to hit next year. Otherwise it looks really bleak. 

[Vertigo 20208]

23 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

I’m not sure I follow your train of thought. The argument that Texas has the better approach over let’s say Oregon because it will yield team first guys instead of mercenaries has not been proven anywhere yet. My Georgia example was meant to show players who care about money only who are also talented do not kill team chemistry and can still build champions. 

This theory of not going after guys who want to talk NIL first is just that so far. A theory. Sark could end up being totally wrong about it. Time will tell. But you speak of it like it’s been proven already to be the right approach and there is no way to know that today, 

Look, this isn't rocket science. If Oregon is in a recruit's top 3 schools, then you had better be very fucking careful when they really decide to push the gas pedal. They are one of the few schools that can stand toe to toe with Texas on the raw NIL dollars front, and they have some unique things to offer with their ties to Nike. If they swoop in Jimbo style at the last second and make ridiculous offers, then you need to adjust your strategy to account for that. All of the schools adjusted their approaches after that 2021 season and sunk A&M from that point forward. Oregon is overpaying right now because they really want a presence in Texas, and they were also not going to let a relatively local elite DL recruit get away from them with a top 2026 HS QB teammate that they are targeting. I would imagine we are going to have to fend them off in a big way for Moore and a few other recruits in this cycle. If we want to keep them out of Texas then we need to slap them down on principal, but ironically, we would also need A&M to do the same and I don't think they are in position to do that.   

Edited July 1 by Vertigo

[GlenFromTheMailRoom 1591]

Phil Knight is 86.  Oregon's NIL game will deteriorate when he kicks the bucket.

Edited July 1 by GlenFromTheMailRoom

[Hookem2147 20848]

So, are these the appropriate vibes right now positionally?

QB- Good

RB- Good

WR- Good even with 0 commits

TE- Good if Townsend falls our way

OL- Fairly good with Brooks and Fasusi in the balance

Edge- Good

DT- Not good. Need to hold on for dear life with Brown, get DJ Sanders and then pray for a couple of flips?

LB- Avreage with Barnes and potentially Cunningham, but Pettijohn trending away is tough

CB- Below average. Chester is solid, but no Brew or Anding means back to the drawing board

S- Average with Phillips and Tilmon, need another good piece to bump it up.

[BornAndRaised 12201]

5 minutes ago, GlenFromTheMailRoom said:

Phil Knight is 86.  Oregon's NIL game will deteriorate when he kicks the bucket.

That's simply not true. He has a large endowment set up for Oregon's NIL.

[closetojumping 62010]

57 minutes ago, Bevo said:

If we have to rely on the portal to fill key needs, we will have to rely on NIL. There will always be a few in the portal who don’t want to wait on a spot opening up or want to improve their draft prospects, but even those guys will be money whipped by one of the typical suspects. So it may not be what we want to do, but in the current environment, we will be forced to NIL guys.

So, I get what you are saying. And I agree we would prefer to avoid pure NIL guys. But, the future is going to drive every player to become a pure NIL guy. 
 

To put it in perspective, while I didn’t come to Surly because of the money I was offered, if someone offered me 6 figures to post on their site, I would be very tempted to take them up on the offer. While, I am joking, that is what is pretty much happening in college sports.

You don’t need to tell us you’re joking about getting offered to post elsewhere for money.  We’ve all seen you post. 

26 minutes ago, tokamak said:

I thought we’ve been counting Jackson as a DT long term to make ourselves feel better?

Maybe we can just clone him somehow and have an all-Lance Jackson front. 

Jackson has never been considered a DT by anyone involved. If he grows into that, great. You guys look at numbers and start getting worked up. Word is, he’s as fast and quick as ever and will be a fucking monster at edge. I’d like to see this season from him first. 

[immamac 41753]

Just now, BornAndRaised said:

That's simply not true. He has a large endowment set up for Oregon's NIL.

The overwhelmingly large force behind the direction of what's going on is still Phil Knight. First hand source. 

It's different when the guy who donates still participates in the process vs when there's just a big pot of money sitting there for whoever to do what they want with. 

[Dbeasy 14791]

I swear this thread gets depressing at some point in July EVERY year. I think I’m just going to bail on it every year on June 20th and pick it up again around September. 

[Newy25 7590]

45 minutes ago, immamac said:

What pure mercenary team made the playoffs last season? 

So disregard all history because Georgia missed the playoffs last year? Should we ignore the fact that Georgia is the number one team in the country right now? 

Edited July 1 by Newy25

[victory88 5641]

56 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

This theory of not going after guys who want to talk NIL first is just that so far. A theory. Sark could end up being totally wrong about it. Time will tell. But you speak of it like it’s been proven already to be the right approach and there is no way to know that today, 

Texas a&m's historic recruiting class with 8 five star recruits is a great example of a team taking recruits that put NIL first. 

Texas seems to be at the top when it comes to NIL.  However, it seems like Texas is NOT going to over pay for players.  It's seems like they know what market value is for positions and will be very competitive in that regard.  But if Oregon offers 7 figures to a high school recruit and you match... what are you going to do when the DTs on the roster come in and ask for the same that are already producing.  You let them walk for a high school player that may or may not pan out?  Texas probably needs to reallocate some funds to the DT position but I imagine matching over the top offers probably isn't a recipe for success.  If you match, it also gives all the current commits and recruits the leverage in the sense that they will go shop themselves and come back to Texas and ask Texas to match stupid offers.

Edited July 1 by victory88

[GlenFromTheMailRoom 1591]

16 minutes ago, immamac said:

The overwhelmingly large force behind the direction of what's going on is still Phil Knight. First hand source. 

It's different when the guy who donates still participates in the process vs when there's just a big pot of money sitting there for whoever to do what they want with. 

This is correct.  And the fact of the matter is, Oregon just doesn't have the depth of alumni support that Texas has after Phil Knight.  Oregon is always going to be dangerous in the NIL game as long as Phil is around.  Oregon is running the aggy NIL playbook at the moment to get Phil a crack a title before he passes.  Texas doesn't have that "problem".  

EDIT:  What victory88 is saying is largely correct.  With NIL being what it is, you have to manage your program like a business in order for it to be sustainable over the long term.

Edited July 1 by GlenFromTheMailRoom

[Newy25 7590]

1 minute ago, victory88 said:

Texas seems to be at the top when it comes to NIL.  However, it seems like Texas is NOT going to over pay for players.  It's seems like they know what market value is for positions and will be very competitive in that regard.  

Not to point out the obvious but this is not true for one position. And it’s not just Oregon who is taking defensive linemen from Texas. The question is this the right approach? You can argue teams are overpaying for tackles until you are blue in the face but if everyone else pays more than we do and we don’t sign any tackles, we are the ones who don’t know what the market is. 

[SydneyCarton 47488]

On 6/30/2024 at 10:50 AM, texifornia said:

Jesus Christ dude, chill the fuck out. It's June.

Also Emaree Winston and Juan Davis are about the most opposite TE takes there are. And of course Klein uses TEs, did you watch any Kansas State games, including our own against them?

This is on you, for interacting and responding to that post in the first place. 

[victory88 5641]

Just now, Newy25 said:

Not to point out the obvious but this is not true for one position. And it’s not just Oregon who is taking defensive linemen from Texas. The question is this the right approach? You can argue teams are overpaying for tackles until you are blue in the face but if everyone else pays more than we do and we don’t sign any tackles, we are the ones who don’t know what the market is. 

I think you are taking 1 instance and applying them to other recruitments.  I don't think FSU paid Myron Charles and Kevin Wynn more.  Those players have been recruited by FSU much longer and much closer to their families.  Wynn wants to be a cook and we don't offer that as a major.  Zion isn't getting more NIL from LSU.  Dude wants to play for Bo and be at the same college as his GF.  We're getting beat on most of these because a combination of factors that includes a smaller in-state crop of DTs that fit what we want, a new coach that doesn't have the resume or relationships yet, and not matching 7 figure offers.  

If Texas did not have competitive NIL offers, Brandon Brown probably isn't committed here.  

[closetojumping 62010]

23 minutes ago, BornAndRaised said:

That's simply not true. He has a large endowment set up for Oregon's NIL.

Can you link this? I’d like to read about it. 

3 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

Not to point out the obvious but this is not true for one position. And it’s not just Oregon who is taking defensive linemen from Texas. The question is this the right approach? You can argue teams are overpaying for tackles until you are blue in the face but if everyone else pays more than we do and we don’t sign any tackles, we are the ones who don’t know what the market is. 

The only DT that was truly an overpay was Sharma. Texas wasn’t outbid elsewhere. The argument may need to be “Texas is going to have to overpay for DTs until they’re able to recruit on a level playing field since they hired a nobody who has to prove he’s on the same plane as the competition. “

Then you also need someone competent, consistent and capable of original thought manning the acquisition and roster communications to both talent and staff. This one could be fixed right now, but will likely not be fixed until more surprises make appearances, this cycle and hopefully not also down the line from that. 

[immamac 41753]

10 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

So disregard all history because Georgia missed the playoffs last year? Should we ignore the fact that Georgia is the number one team in the country right now? 

NIL has had 3 seasons. 1 doesn't count because it was completely not understood and there was no infrastructure nationally to do anything. 1 counts, but my argument is Georgia benefitted from pre-NIL payments and players who didn't just leave and knew they had a great chance at a title. Year 3 they got got. Not a great trajectory. 

So "All history" is 3 years. Pre-NIL you could mercenary your way to playoffs because surprise surprise only the people doing mercenary shit were in the playoffs. See Clemson. 

[Josef Pwag 1656]

12 minutes ago, victory88 said:

what are you going to do when the DTs on the roster come in and ask for the same that are already producing.

People need to stop posting ridiculous things like this. If Oregon can figure out how to deal with the blowback, then we can do the same. 

[MichaelDicksonFanClub 2861]

[The Beast 583]

4 minutes ago, MichaelDicksonFanClub said:

Good lord, that is just fucking stupid. 

[BigHorn'13 3346]

1 hour ago, cb866 said:

I hope I am since I want to fucking win.

But honestly this seems like more arrogance. "We'll see 2 years down the line... as to why..." isn't a valuable answer.

This isn't only directed at you @cb866, but I've grown wayyy past tiresome of those that don't actually contribute to our NIL continuously bitch about our NIL. 

I'm far from a Surly 1%er but still participate (both Burnt Ends and Texas One Fund) because I want to fucking win, too! So all you fuckers start doing your part and maybe, just maybe, we'll start seeing even more of the benefits many others on here already started.  I too was skeptical when this shit became legal but after us winning our 1st conference championship in almost 15 years, plus getting into the playoffs for the first time ever, there was not a single doubt to ponder. 

https://www.surlyhorns.com/board/burnt-ends-nil-program/

https://www.texasonefund.org/donate-monthly

 

[closetojumping 62010]

2 minutes ago, Josef Pwag said:

People need to stop posting ridiculous things like this. If Oregon can figure out how to deal with the blowback, then we can do the same. 

We don’t really even know if Oregon has “figured it out”. Are they rolling 7 figures to everyone on the roster at DT? You nor I know that, and neither of us can claim that it is likely. 

Beyond that, we have figured it out at Texas. It was fucking hard and it is hard with players every cycle. So fuck off on the premise in general.

Part of how you “figure it out” is players on the roster come to an understanding of why some roles merit more than others and dealing with it, same as in the pros. Outside of QB, no one has dealt with, “hey, that third string freshman DT is getting $1.2M and I got less than half of that to come here.”

Irrespective of whether Oregon can then pony up, that dynamic among teammates is a problem. It’s a problem in the pros when it happens too. 

[Chuckie Finster 22350]

This is an embarrassing way to learn that “Smith Orogbo” is his full name and this isn’t a Jaxon Smith-Njigba situation, like I assumed.

[closetojumping 62010]

39 minutes ago, Hookem2147 said:

So, are these the appropriate vibes right now positionally?

QB- Good

RB- Good

WR- Good even with 0 commits

TE- Good if Townsend falls our way

OL- Fairly good with Brooks and Fasusi in the balance

Edge- Good

DT- Not good. Need to hold on for dear life with Brown, get DJ Sanders and then pray for a couple of flips?

LB- Avreage with Barnes and potentially Cunningham, but Pettijohn trending away is tough

CB- Below average. Chester is solid, but no Brew or Anding means back to the drawing board

S- Average with Phillips and Tilmon, need another good piece to bump it up.

Barnes is trending towards top LB in Texas.  We should be fine expecting Texas to land two more LB targets and own of them will be highly regarded. 

WR should not be anything less than great. 

You are too pessimistic on OL in general. Even right, it’s a good class. 

For what’s on the roster and what Texas is getting, DE/Edge is great to elite. Jackson is criminally underrated even with school and family pedigree in his favor. It’s fucking dumb. 

[BornAndRaised 12201]

13 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

Can you link this? I’d like to read about it. 

I can't find the exact article about it now. I'll post it if I come across it again. 

[Big Woodrows 4195]

13 minutes ago, MichaelDicksonFanClub said:

[Getafix 28364]

Jordan Scruggs (Horns 247) just put in Texas CB picks for - 

- Smith Orogbo

- DJ Sanders

- Kade Phillips

- Kaydon Finley (‘26 WR)

- Michael Terry

- Nick Townsend 

 

 

Edited July 1 by Getafix

[Lonestar88 4584]

So what exactly happened with Pettijohn?

Went from leading most of the recruitment to a distant 4th.

[Post Oak 20114]

54 minutes ago, MichaelDicksonFanClub said:

 

[Josef Pwag 1656]

47 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

We don’t really even know if Oregon has “figured it out”. 

Oregon won the bidding war. Either they are being reckless (which I doubt) or they found a way to manage things regarding existing players on their roster. Either every team who is recruiting future NFL starters at d-line is out of control and doesn't know what they are doing, or maybe, just maybe, we aren't properly accounting for the impact (or lack thereof) of our d-line coach hire. Time will tell. We are supposed to be the big swining dick when it comes to money. I would rather error on the side of overpaying for elite talent and saying adios (if necessary) to guys who have no interest in making weight. 

[closetojumping 62010]

1 minute ago, Josef Pwag said:

Oregon won the bidding war. Either they are being reckless (which I doubt) or they found a way to manage things regarding existing players on their roster. Either every team who is recruiting future NFL starters at d-line is out of control and doesn't know what they are doing, or maybe, just maybe, we aren't properly accounting for the impact (or lack thereof) of our d-line coach hire. Time will tell. We are supposed to be the big swining dick when it comes to money. I would rather error on the side of overpaying for elite talent and saying adios (if necessary) to guys who have no interest in making weight. 

So you’re just parroting what I’ve been saying on here for a while then. 

That considered, the Oregon issue is separate from all other thoughts. There is no outbidding Oregon. If they want to buy someone willing to live in Eugene, they fucking win. We are the boss in most situations, so it’s pretty much impossible for me to bitch about it. Anyone whining about it on here is a simple idiot or completely ignorant of the situation and walking into the middle of the conversation while the adults are talking. 

[closetojumping 62010]

I had this conversation with a buddy who is really, really handwringing right now about Moore to Oregon. If that dude wants to go play in Oregon for QB money, Texas can and likely will choose to match. Of Texas doesn’t do what is required to land Moore, you can knock me over with a feather. Sarkisian wants him worse than anyone else in the recruitment. Compare that to other situations and it tells a story, certainly. 

[Park Gothic 4896]

1 hour ago, closetojumping said:

Then you also need someone competent, consistent and capable of original thought manning the acquisition and roster communications to both talent and staff. This one could be fixed right now, but will likely not be fixed until more surprises make appearances, this cycle and hopefully not also down the line from that. 

[Vertigo 20208]

8 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I had this conversation with a buddy who is really, really handwringing right now about Moore to Oregon. If that dude wants to go play in Oregon for QB money, Texas can and likely will choose to match. Of Texas doesn’t do what is required to land Moore, you can knock me over with a feather. Sarkisian wants him worse than anyone else in the recruitment. Compare that to other situations and it tells a story, certainly. 

As much as we have been hammering Sark for this cycle, we absolutely ponied up for Collin Simmons, Moore, and Anthony Hill the year before. Plus we signed a stellar DB class last cycle. When there is a true difference maker on defense, I am still confident that we will do what we need to do. 

[Mother mopar 3275]

I feel like Broughton has heen here since we signed Alex Okafor and we keep hoping the bulb will come on.

I feel the same about your posting.

[BurntOrange&White 38890]

Our culture should be good enough going into year 4 that we can take mercenary types at one position

[RockyMountainHighHorn 888]

I feel pretty good that if we come out and do what we should do this year, we will see some flips. I’m sure some people might be holding out 

[HtownHorn 14344]

1 hour ago, Lonestar88 said:

So what exactly happened with Pettijohn?

Went from leading most of the recruitment to a distant 4th.

We like the LBs from California more and are prioritizing them more than Pettijohn.

[SydneyCarton 47488]

1 hour ago, Lonestar88 said:

So what exactly happened with Pettijohn?

Went from leading most of the recruitment to a distant 4th.

He doesn't like our depth chart. 

[DixonHur 10862]

1 minute ago, SydneyCarton said:

He doesn't like our depth chart. 

Neither do a lot of Surly posters based on this thread