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Texas recruiting notes 2019


bigup2dahorns

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13 minutes ago, Spider2YBanana said:

This is true. But Cain going all the way to Pennsylvania? I don't know the kid, but he has better options. We might as well sell him on being the next Jamaal Charles or Cedric Benson of that's the case. 

Jamaal graduated from Texas when Cain was 8 years old. Benson graduated when Cain was 5 years old. You may as well tell him he's Earl Campbell.

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6 minutes ago, texifornia said:

I mean, we're 4th in the conference (though bottom-half at yds/att): http://www.espn.com/college-football/conferences/statistics/team/_/stat/rushing/year/2018/id/4

look at our yards per carry (third to last) and yards per game (4th to last), and factor in the fact that sam ellinger accounts for 21 percent of the yards and 28 percent of the carries, and the fact that we're a spread pass-first offense. we suck at running the football.

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38 minutes ago, horn_of_the_morning said:

Based on the kids actions we are the last option for him. Drayton has been on him for 2 years. He has had numerous chances to commit and become the lead back in our class.

Drayton's title is Associate Head Coach....

Been waiting for Drayton to close on a great RB since he's such a Stud RB Coach/Recruiter and was Herman's first Asst Coach hire......

giphy.gif

 

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Just now, Orange&White said:

Jamaal graduated from Texas when Cain was 8 years old. Benson graduated when Cain was 5 years old. You may as well tell him he's Earl Campbell.

Foreman didn't have a bad run in Houston last year up until his achilles blew'd up.

 

But yah. Hard sell.

 

You gotta sell some of these kids on Hand, the future of the offensive line just as much as anything. And to an extent sell them on themselves. The current situation. 

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Bizarrely, Cain's best case, out-of-this-world comp is probably Donta Foreman. Little shorter, similar builds, not considered breakaway types, but guys who will get you 4-5 yards more often than others. Obviously Foreman turned out to be special, but he was viewed as a far weaker recruit than even someone like Glass or Barlow.

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9 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

I think if we want good RBs to come to Texas we should probably start running the football effectively. Because right now we suck big dicks at running the football. In my experience, sucking dicks at the thing a recruit is being recruited to do is a recruiting disadvantage. 

Those two guys that played here a decade and two staffs ago? Yeah, that's the ticket.

Hey, I never said it was smart. But# we can use D'onta Foreman as a selling point. 

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31 minutes ago, MonkeyDoughnut said:

He flat out said why in July....

“You want a o-line that fits your style of running,” Cain said. “I think a pro-style linemen is my best fit instead of no-huddle type. That’s why schools like Georgia, LSU and Penn State stay in the mix so much. They run a pro-style type.”

Its also the reason Texas was going to be a harder sell on him.

Except PSU has a garbage line.

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33 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

look at our yards per carry (third to last) and yards per game (4th to last), and factor in the fact that sam ellinger accounts for 21 percent of the yards and 28 percent of the carries, and the fact that we're a spread pass-first offense. we suck at running the football.

Yeah, we still aren't a very good team from a running perspective. 

But I think that has little to do with the RB position and more to do with the OL. We can't run the ball worth shit between the tackles but that's not surprising when it's Vahe, Shack, and Rodriguez. 

Obviously, you want to stockpile as much talent as possible but I don't really care about RB until the interior part of the OL is fixed. Bottom line is we probably aren't going to be a good running team (regardless of RB options) until we start producing more elite offensive lineman. 

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19 minutes ago, Not a Sock said:

Except PSU has a garbage line.

If their garbage then what is ours?  They are finally back from having to rebuild post sanctions and are back to where they were. Two deep average 6'4 / 316lbs... lots of depth and very much heading in the right direction. Consistent 1k yard rushers, averaging over 200 yards/game.

I think our line is also heading in right direction and should improve dramatically in next two years but calling Penn State's line garbage? C'mon man.

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Based on the kids actions Auburn is the last option for him. Whoever Auburn's RB coach is has been on him for 2 years. He has had numerous chances to commit and become the lead back in Auburn's class.
Hey look at that, that sentence works for every school.


Except that he would probably not commit to us or Auburn as of today. So the sentence doesn't really work for every school.
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1 minute ago, longhornmatt said:

I hope we pivot to the RBs committed to TCU before Glass.

Re: Drayton, in addition to possibly missing on the big RB targets this year, it seems like he only recruits a handful of RBs each year and not really any other prospects at other positions or in specific regions.  Am I wrong on that?  Is he involved with the Missouri recruits?

Because for a RB coach and supposed recruiting rainmaker, it doesn’t seem like he does a lot of recruiting.  Even last year we got Ingram to commit early and then never heard more about Drayton.  How come he wasn’t pitching in on Operation Save Oscar’s Ass and Carrington had to get promoted so he could recruit DL guys?

I still think Drayton is an incomplete until the second signing day is finished. There's still a lot going on and there are proof points that offer at least a modicum of patience regarding his role until the dust settles.

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2 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I still think Drayton is an incomplete until the second signing day is finished. There's still a lot going on and there are proof points that offer at least a modicum of patience regarding his role until the dust settles.

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11 minutes ago, horn_of_the_morning said:

This staff needs a recruiting makeover. We have lost too many top of the board guys. I'll get flamed but I'll say it. This is turning into NOT a championship caliber class.

Prepare to call the fire dept.  We still haven't made it to ENSD let alone NSD in February.

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IT

By: Eric Nahlin and Justin Wells

We're talking UT's C/O 2019 and how we see it finish with recruiting percentages, latest on visitors this weekend including Tommy Kennedy, and more from Caleb Johnson, Peyton Powell, and running backs inside the Scoop. 

From: EN

2019 Recruiting Percentages for your reading pleasure.

Running Back

Noah Cain is going to dominate the news cycle so we might as well start with running back recruiting.

Before the Steve Wiltfong Crystal Ball prediction in Penn State's favor, I was re-thinking my math on Cain. Previously I had this as a recruitment-of-convenience for each; a recruitment that just makes too much sense, especially if LSU and Georgia filled up. But with Penn State now emerging as the leader, the case can be made that Cain has been looking for a reason not to go to Texas. In the podcast I mentioned how comical the Saquon Barkley sell is, but maybe it's working despite it being akin to telling Cody Johnson he's the next Ramonce Taylor.

Texas has been lining up contingencies and from what I can gather, there isn't unanimity in who is the best, tangible target. Of course they all agree that Trey Sanders is tops on the board, but you know how I feel there. That Georgia push I've been mentioning for him is coming to light after his visit there. The Texas staff has continued to push for Sanders. You can't win the lottery without buying a ticket.

Some like DJ Williams quite a bit, which isn't hard based on his film, but it looks unlikely he'll visit. I mentioned there may be a red flag with him, but if there is it isn't with grades. His transcript is good to go.

Cain is obviously Stan Drayton's preferred target of the tangible options (Deondrick Glass, Rhamondre Stevenson), but that view isn't shared by everyone, and as of right now it may not matter. There could be an interesting data point that comes to light down the road. We'll document that at the proper time but right now, I'm working with imperfect information.

Texas is confident it will land a commitment from one of its top-five targets. That leaves JUCO product Rhamondre Stevenson and Katy's Deondrick Glass.

I'm a fan of Stevenson. If Cain had his burst he never would have dropped in the rankings. Feeling like I was going to need to get to know him, I caught up with Stevenson last night.

"I’m looking to take a visit for sure but it will be in January, no set date yet," said Stevenson. "And UT is a great school and will definitely be considered until signing day in February."

Stevenson likes OU early on but I get the feeling his recruitment won't really hit its stride until January and other schools are under genuine consideration. He mentioned he's also considering Utah.

Texas checked in on him about month ago and has been working quietly behind the scenes. He would be an immediate contributor despite not arriving until May.

There's a Glass advocate or two in Moncrief and after watching him in his first game of the year (the only time a Katy running back is ever fresh) against a fast and physical North Shore defense, I understand those who like him. I mentioned he impressed me at the time, so don't take that as me trying to sell you on him now.

I caught up with Deondrick's father, and he said they're looking at official visits to Texas, Michigan, and maybe Georgia (I think Georgia will be full). The Michigan mention reminded me of Mike Hart. I could see that in Glass. It might not be ideal for UT fans to read, but he's a player the heavyweight schools have shown a lot of genuine interest in. Maybe all those schools know something.

Sanders: 1%
Williams: 5%
Cain: 25%
Stevenson: 40%
Glass: 55%

Of course this assumes that Texas will be pushing for one of Stevenson and Glass in January.

Offensive Line

Texas has two committed and looks great for Dulles offensive tackle Isaiah Hookfin. That will probably do it for high school recruiting on the offensive line but I can't entirely rule out a surprise visit by Andrew Coker. If the Katy Taylor product and TCU pledge did visit, I'd predict the flip.

Most of the intrigue remaining stems from the JUCO and grad transfer ranks. Former Butler tackle Tommy Kennedy visited this weekend. Justin will have more on that, but it is interesting he didn't receive a public offer. Maybe that was done to not alienate Jay Williams who didn't receive an offer either. I'm not sure. Williams not being offered probably guarantees he'll end up at FSU, but clearly the staff had some reservations.

One negative development was Myron Cunningham stating he was done taking visits and he'll announce his decision this Tuesday. By all accounts he's leaning towards Arkansas over OU, meaning Oklahoma will still be in the offensive tackle market when Kennedy visits Norman next weekend.

Hookfin: 90%
Kennedy: 40%
Coker: 20%

Kennedy being able to enroll at the semester increases his value to me. Last week I mistakenly wrote he wouldn't count towards the class, but he would.

Wide Receiver

This is a big week in Bru McCoy's recruitment as Tom Herman and Drew Mehringer head west to see him. My confidence has waned some since USC hired Kliff Kingsbury but that wasn't the nail in the coffin. What won't help is any Mehringer job rumors.

We still believe Elijah Higgins is waiting on Stanford admissions. My best Stanford sources of information, Russ Roberts and Thomas Sowell, have heard nothing here. I'll check with Peter Robinson later today. I know Florida is still kicking the tires here and the Gators feel they have a decent chance if he isn't accepted.

Tim Beck visited Kennedy Lewis last week and he'll OV to Washington soon. Clearly UT is trying to get him to wait to sign in February. With Demariyon Houston de-committing, Lewis is a take to me. If they miss on Bru, I think he'll become an obvious take for the staff.

McCoy: 35%
Higgins: 15% 
Lewis: 50%

If Higgins doesn't get in to Stanford, his percentage will jump sharply. There's a lot of room for movement in Lewis' recruitment too.

Linebacker

I asked Caleb what percentage I should put him at. He replied, "50." That puts Texas in the lead.

Johnson: 60%

It may seem foolish to put him higher than Johnson's own percentages, but Herman and Orlando will visit him this week. I think they have the best sell and they'll hammer that home this week. More from JW on him later.

Johnson is probably the biggest need on the board and the fact he has three years of eligibility remaining is flying a bit under the radar. He'll be around to help Texas defend its title. :)

Defensive Back

Jalen Catalon's official visit will be this coming weekend. This will serve as the best chance for Tom Herman to win over Catalon's parents, and overcome some negative recruiting. I want to believe there's a good chance Texas can flip this recruitment on its head but sourcing isn't leading me to that assumption. Keep an eye on TCU.

Peyton Powell. Long-time readers will know I abhor unclear projections. There is validity to taking high level athletes and letting their position sort itself on campus, but you have to make assumptions with Powell and that's not a good way to go about things. Are his hands good for receiver? Does he have the temperament to play defense? Can he play corner? Corner would be his best value to the roster, yet he apparently wants to play quarterback. I'm sorry, Peyton, did you say cornerback? Powell has a bit of leverage here, Texas needs corners and receivers, but I'm not sure how hard I'd try and keep him if I was the staff.

Catalon: 25%
Powell: 50%

I wouldn't be surprised to see another defensive back candidate emerge in January.


From: JW

TOMMY KENNEDY

After hitting on grad transfers Calvin Anderson and Tre Watson last season, it would only make sense for Texas to comb the market for guys that can come in and play immediately. So...meet Tommy Kennedy.

The 6-foot-5, 290-pound second team all-conference tackle is available. And after Texas OL coach Herb Hand visited him last week, Kennedy jumped on the opportunity to visit the Longhorns over the weekend.

“It was great," said Kennedy, who attended Lake Forest High School in Lake Bluff, Ill. "Everything was first class. Didn’t expect anything different from a first class university like UT. Definitely lived up to my expectations.”

What are a few factors that really stood out to Kennedy?

“The brotherhood," said Kennedy. "They truly have guys on their team that love and care about each other. Coach Herman has done a really good job with the culture.”

There's that word again; culture. And it's a big reason on where he'll decide to play his final year of collegiate ball.

“Definitely culture," Kennedy explained. "The offensive line is one of those positions where you need to have good chemistry with the four other guys in order to be successful. There is a lot of trust that goes on in the trenches. Everyone needs to be able to trust that the guy next to them is going to do what they are coached. It’s really important to me because I’m a one year guy and I don’t have the luxury of time.”

This is a smart kid who might come in and play right tackle, but is versatile enough to possibly slide inside if needed.

He'll see OU this coming weekend, then hit Coral Gables for Miami a few days later. He wants to announce on December 19th, the first day to ink his LOI. Texas put themselves in pouncing position here. Just by his voice, you can tell the Longhorns made a strong impression. As for an offer, he might have one and was told to keep it quiet.

CALEB JOHNSON

One of, if not the single most important recruit left on the Texas Big Board, the Fullerton College LB announced this weekend he would be committing on Thursday, December 13th. His ability to come in and play immediately benefits both Johnson and the Longhorns defensive depth chart next fall.

I asked Johnson to describe in one word his feelings on each of the final four schools in the mix. His answer, in order:

Texas: BIG.
Oregon: Dream.
Colorado: Slept on.
Arkansas: SEC.

What's the important factor in his decision?

“A program that helps me reach my full potential," said Johnson. "I’ve got a huge decision in the next five days.”

Former Georgia DC, and new Colorado coach Mel Tucker will do an in-home visit with Johnson today. Coach Herman follows with his in-home tomorrow. I agree with Eric's assessment of Texas' chances here, but I'm tempted to add a few percentage points.

We'll have more closer to his announcement in the next few days. This is an important recruitment, y'all.

PEYTON POWELL

Last summer, Texas WR coach Drew Mehringer woke up with offers on his mind. In a matter of 24 hours, three potential wide receivers were extended UT invitations. One of those was Odessa Permian ATH Peyton Powell. Fast forward to last month, his official to Austin was a big success and his subsequent commitment to the good guys happened soon after his trip. He was told he'd have an opportunity to play QB, and if that didn't work out, WR or nickel on defense would be the next move.

Either way, it's what Powell wanted. Just a chance.

It was reported he took an OV to Baylor last weekend after telling me on Saturday morning he wasn’t. Beck and Mehringer spoke to him on Friday and were under the impression the visit wouldn't take place. I reported last week he’d strongly consider signing during NSD2, and now we know why. Baylor and Texas Tech are pushing hard.

Texas has also discussed the possibility of him enrolling early, but this recruitment might have some twists and turns to it. Losing Powell isn't ideal, but like DeMaryion Houston, it's not a prospect you'd lose sleep over.

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44 minutes ago, horn_of_the_morning said:



 

 


Except that he would probably not commit to us or Auburn as of today. So the sentence doesn't really work for every school.

 

The sentence works for literally every school he's looking at until he commits somewhere. I picked Auburn because they were the first ones in the sentence. 

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Just now, Not a Sock said:

They only play 4 OL?  That would seem to make it awfully tough on the RB.

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2 hours ago, MonkeyDoughnut said:

He flat out said why in July....

“You want a o-line that fits your style of running,” Cain said. “I think a pro-style linemen is my best fit instead of no-huddle type. That’s why schools like Georgia, LSU and Penn State stay in the mix so much. They run a pro-style type.”

Its also the reason Texas was going to be a harder sell on him.

Cain must not being paying attention to the NFL. Only Stone Age teams like the Raiders and Jaguars are running “pro style” offenses. The RBs that are being valued are guys that can contribute in the passing game (Kamara, Barkley, Zeke, McCaff, etc). The three down grinders are going to be extinct soon.

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6 minutes ago, Not a Sock said:

He’s such a great RB that he got scholarships for his linemen.

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2 hours ago, UncleBuck said:

Foreman didn't have a bad run in Houston last year up until his achilles blew'd up.

 

But yah. Hard sell.

 

You gotta sell some of these kids on Hand, the future of the offensive line just as much as anything. And to an extent sell them on themselves. The current situation. 

 

 

No shit. "SOMEBODY has to be the next Ricky, Cedric, Jammal etc....   might as well be you, kid."

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57 minutes ago, Machinator said:

I asked Johnson to describe in one word his feelings on each of the final four schools in the mix. His answer, in order:

Texas: BIG.
Oregon: Dream.
Colorado: Slept on.
Arkansas: SEC.

Chad Morris' aggy is showing on that sales job.

"Come to Arkansas so Alabama can run a train on us. SEC!"

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A question for those Surls who seem to have behind-the-scenes info/insight:  wrt the Foster rb from Wichita Falls, is our lack of interest due to on-the-field issues, i.e., he isn't a good fit for Herman's offense, or off-the-field issues?  Is he too small?  Lifelong Horned Frog fan?  Thanks, I'll hang up and listen.

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The negativity towards Glass is pretty funny. I get that you fucks like to portray Katy RBs as the high school version of Wisconsin RBs, and we are all nursing a pounding hangover from watching Kyle Porter. But Glass to me looks like the kind of RB that will go to Okie Lite and torture us for 3 years, while the announcers say shit like "he grew up wanting to go to Texas", and the casual fans start asking "why didn't Texas get that guy?"

I also recall watching that Katy vs Westlake game a couple years back and thinking "who is that kid" while watching him run wild. He and Sam were the two best players on the field that night. I'd rather get Cain or Sanders, but I don't think the kid sucks. 

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9 minutes ago, cafe society said:

A question for those Surls who seem to have behind-the-scenes info/insight:  wrt the Foster rb from Wichita Falls, is our lack of interest due to on-the-field issues, i.e., he isn't a good fit for Herman's offense, or off-the-field issues?  Is he too small?  Lifelong Horned Frog fan?  Thanks, I'll hang up and listen.

No inside information, here. I’ve wondered the same thing. I’ve watched this kid from Hirschi several times in the last few years and I think he’s a game changer...at least at that level. He came on about the same time their new coaching staff did and they turned a perennial basement dweller into overachieving playoff crashers. I haven’t watched his highlights, but in person I saw him carve up some pretty stout run d’s with quickness and breakaway speed. Maybe it was the level of competition, but he sure looks good live.

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