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Texas recruiting notes 2019


bigup2dahorns

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2 minutes ago, lemonandaturd said:

I am for sure no Daddy98 when it comes to evaluating linebackers, but Mitchell looks much better than Rashad Bobino, Dusty Renfro and Aaron Harris.  

That is because the coaching staff was playing Harris out of position, he was a safety.

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5 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Probably the coolest thing I've seen in track. 

Almost a carb

 

5 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

 

 

When I saw the video of Matt Boling, I thought that was the closest thing I ever saw to Johnny Lam’s miracle race.

 

Two differences, Lam had to pass more guys even though the distance to make up was equivalent& and Lam had massive crowd support since he was bound to be a Longhorn football player.  The excitement at the end of his race will likely not be duplicated.  Huge crowd just erupted.

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2 hours ago, Modessit said:

Pretty nice. Not to keep the thread derail, but this Ireland University girl's race was pretty impressive.  

 

 

 

 

"UCC from the depths of hell" @.40

I'm here for this crazy woman calling any race from here on out

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IT

From: Justin Wells

2019 JUCO LB JUWAN MITCHELL 

The Butler C.C. linebacker and Minnesota pledge came to Austin this weekend for his official visit. With front-line ability as well as depth at LB less than ideal, the Longhorns have been looking far and wide and were aided when Jacoby Jones (recent Texas enrollee) mentioned his buddy in El Dorado (KS).

The 6-foot-1, 235-pound inside backer has been talking to UT for a little while and this weekend was a chance for both sides to get to know each other. The Middletown, NJ native has four years to play three, and fills a void on the depth chart. He took an OV to Arkansas recently, but I'm told this was his best trip by far, and don't be surprised if Texas comes out the leader here.

I'm hearing a decision could come soon and that UT might be the lead horse. Like we mentioned in the Humidor, it's unlikely UT will take him and Florida grad transfer Kylan Johnson. Our @EricNahlin will have more soon.

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9 minutes ago, lemonandaturd said:

I read that as a full qualifier out of high school, he will count against 2019 numbers and will have four years to play three. Based on that I assume he is eligible for the fall season.  I may be wrong.  

TY, if he is coming I expected him to be here in June.

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IT

JUWAN MITCHELL

Such an interesting staff in place at your favorite university.

Diligent almost to the point of passive, then bang! When they have a player they want, or a big need to fill, they have a knack for making things happen in a hurry. We saw that last year with major needs at running back and left tackle. This year we saw it again with interior offensive line and recently an unforeseen need at linebacker.

We've been a bit critical of linebacker recruiting in the past, but the unfortunate situation with De'Gabriel Floyd is obviously out of the staff's control. They expected him to be able to play early, especially with the assistance of a cerebral senior to his flank.

When they came to the conclusion the early enrollee wouldn't play in 2019 you'd figure it would be too late to address the problem from the outside. You would have figured wrong.

Currently I'm on the lookout on behalf of a Juco for a quarterback and an in-state FBS program for a safety. They're essentially telling me they'll take anyone with a pulse. The beauty of landing Juwan Mitchell from Butler CC is he has a pulse, size, striking ability, and isn't an obvious liability in space. He won't be mistaken for Roquan Smith but he's much better than you'd expect to find under such unconventional circumstances.

He has the attributes to play the run and blitz. If he simply has a solid understanding of the game and scheme he can be a player for Texas; the question is when?

Obviously the pressing need is 2019 but he doesn't have quite as much experience as your normal Juco, having only played one season at that level. But I can tell from interacting with him he does have some snap. Arriving in June is late, but it might not be too late to make an impact this upcoming season, perhaps over the back half of the schedule.

After the season, Texas will likely be viewed as a playoff contender. A big question mark going into 2020 will almost assuredly be linebacker play, but the depth chart actually sets up pretty well with the addition of Mitchell.

He says he's being recruited for Mac or Rover, and anyone reading here probably already knew that. Todd Orlando is wont to start a player at Rover until he's deemed not quite athletic enough. For some guys it's obvious to me they'll be at Mac, but there's an outside chance Mitchell can remain at Rover, particularly if he's a good blitzer which I think he will be.

You'll also have Caleb Johnson, Marcus Tillman, and David Gbenda in their second year of the system. While there isn't a sure-fire star among this group, the potential to be solid on a really good defense is there.

Where that group can take the next step is if De'Gabriel Floyd is cleared after this season. He's the wild card. There will be some football-first schools who will clear him which gives me hope this may work out in his favor at UT, but obviously the Texas medical staff is not going to clear a player if they feel he's in danger of severe injury.

We'll cross the Floyd bridge when we get there, but for now I love everything about the Mitchell add. When asked why he chose Texas, he responded, "Once you become a Longhorn you are set for life."

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20 minutes ago, Machinator said:

 

If this dude can catch a ball, I think he really can weaponize the X position once Collin Johnson leaves.  I know the staff is enamored with Epps, but I don't see how you can ignore Lewis's size/speed combo, if he has hands.

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22 minutes ago, Katfid54 said:

If this dude can catch a ball, I think he really can weaponize the X position once Collin Johnson leaves.  I know the staff is enamored with Epps, but I don't see how you can ignore Lewis's size/speed combo, if he has hands.

First you can’t tell them apart, now you can’t even tell if they have hands?

I’ve gotta say Katfid, I’m worried for you. 

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Anwar had an in-depth writeup on Juwan Mitchell. He only had to do one year of JUCO because he went to a prep academy after high school to prevent burning a year of eligibility. He actually signed an LOI with Rutgers in January (I hadn't heard that before) but they didn't accept a math credit and released him from it. Apparently the staff didn't know he wasn't going to Rutgers until Jacoby Jones told them. That makes flipping him from OU even better. 

Spoiler

By now, every Longhorn football fan knows junior college linebacker Juwan Mitchell committed to Texas earlier this week. 

However, Mitchell’s journey to Austin is one of the more fascinating recruiting stories you may read.

Mitchell played high school football at Mater Dei in New Jersey. Programs such as Syracuse and Colorado State were reportedly interested in signing Mitchell, but he could not qualify academically to play Division I football as a high school senior 

Instead of immediately attending junior college, Mitchell decided to play for New Milford Academy in New Berlin, New York. Since New Milford is a prep school, Mitchell did not have to worry about losing a year of college eligibility. After attending the prep school, he transferred to Butler Community College in Kansas. 

Mitchell, 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, recorded 55 tackles, two sacks and one interception in 11 games last season, according to Butler Community College’s website. He played well enough to earn a scholarship to Rutgers. 

He reportedly had offers from New Mexico, Old Dominion and Rutgers, as well as interest from Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Florida, Texas Tech and Nebraska. Mitchell was slated for a return to New Jersey, and it appeared he finally had a Division I home 

Instead, it was just the beginning of a wild journey. 

In January, NJ.com explained why Mitchell was not going to attend Rutgers:

“According to a source with knowledge of the events, Mitchell was one class short. Although he carries a 3.2 grade point average, Rutgers doesn't accept community college math. So he would have had to take an additional course to be admitted. He would have had to find a way to take an extra math class and pay for it out of his own pocket, or return to Butler, where the expense of the course would be covered while he could still play this upcoming season. And he chose to go back and play.

“When we caught up with Mitchell Monday morning, he said: "Nothing happened. I've just got to do what’s best for me."

According to my sources, Mitchell could have qualified and joined the team in May, but Rutgers wanted him on campus in January. Since Mitchell, could not enroll in January and participate in winter conditioning, Rutgers released the linebacker from his letter of intent. 

Mitchell was on Texas’ radar prior to his commitment to Rutgers. Once he committed to Rutgers, the Longhorns moved on and focused on other players. 

Once DeGabriel Floyd sustained a spinal stenosis injury, Texas’ depth at linebacker was an immediate problem. Floyd is expected to miss this season and will be reevaluated after the regular season. Every Longhorn player and fan knew Floyd’s injury left the team thin at linebacker. 

After Floyd’s diagnosis, defensive lineman Jacoby Jones informed the staff that Mitchell was available. 

Jones is a two-time all-conference defensive lineman transfer from Butler Community College who enrolled in January 2019. Jones and Mitchell are friends, and he was trying to put in a good word for a former teammate. Nobody at Texas knew Mitchell was back on the market after he committed to Rutgers. That is when getting Mitchell to Texas became a huge priority. 

Now, here is another plot twist. 

Mitchell verbally committed to Minnesota in March. However, he was slated to enroll in 2020 because the team was stacked with senior linebackers. However, when other programs began contacting him, including Texas, that is when Mitchell realized he did not have to spend another year at Butler Community College, but could transfer to a major program after the spring semester. 

From what I was told, Texas defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Todd Orlando visited Mitchell in the spring, and they formed an instant connection. After Mitchell’s recent visit to Texas, he did not waste any time committing to the Longhorns. 

One aspect of Mitchell’s recruitment that cannot be overlooked is something Jason Suchomel highlighted in his recent recruiting column:

“Normally when talking to prospects about their official visits – be it to Texas or any school – the focus is on the food, the facilities, the red-carpet treatment … the flash and glamour of being put on a pedestal for 48 hours.

“In talking to Mitchell as he was leaving Austin, I thought it was interesting that he took from his visit a bit of a different feel than most recruits. He does have one season of junior college ball under his belt which could explain things, but Mitchell took a more ‘mature’ view of his visit and said it was the impact that the University of Texas could have for him away from the field that really stood out.

“Mitchell said his biggest takeaway from the visit happened on Friday, his first night in town. He tagged along and observed while current team members put on their business attire and attended a career fair, watching players meet CEOs of companies like Dell and Frito Lay. It turns out these football official visits aren’t always about football only, and in this case the message really hit home with Mitchell.

“Texas has something like 500,000 living alumni,” Mitchell said while waiting to catch his flight home on Sunday morning. “People from Texas like to take care of Texas.”

“On Monday night, shortly after announcing his commitment, Mitchell reiterated that it’s the support the UT alumni base shows that really won him over.

“I feel like going to Texas, I’m going to be set for life,” Mitchell said. “I feel like going there, being a Longhorn, you’re set in all phases - community, jobs, career, fans. That means a lot.

“(The career fair) was big. They like to see all their players be successful. Knowing all the hard work they went though, all the alumni that played football, they all went through the same thing. It’s just one big family. That was huge.”

“UT Director of Player Development Kevin Washington does most of his work behind the scenes, but he was instrumental in setting up Friday’s career fair for the players, and he’s very involved in helping players be successful in their endeavors away from the field. Washington made a strong impression on Mitchell.

“He was great. He really just focuses on those things, on the players’ careers, on life,” Mitchell said. “He’s someone the players can go in his office and just talk to. There can be a lot of things going on with football, you can talk to him about football, about life, about anything. He’s just there to pick you up, pick up your spirits, help you out.”

“Up next, Mitchell will move to Austin on May 27 and begin workouts with the team the following day. He knows nothing will be given to him, but said he’s ready to join the program and do what he can to be successful.

“I want to earn everything, make a name for myself,” Mitchell said. “Every level is a new beginning. I just want to keep my head down, put in the work.”

From what I was told, Mitchell will hit campus in a few weeks and start at Mike linebacker. Everyone inside the building needs to gauge Mitchell’s ability to blitz before making a final determination about his position since the Rover position blitzes a lot. 

Regardless, Mitchell, is viewed a guy who can contribute right away. 

I was told unless a player is an offensive lineman, or a designated developmental player, everyone signed by Texas is expected to contribute right away by those inside the building. 

Mitchell’s journey to Texas has been fascinating, and everyone associated with the program is glad he found a home in Austin. 

 

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Before we ordain this guy the savior at linebacker, Minnesota and Rutgers would only take him if he met their specific enrollment timeline. For this to work out it has to be one hell of a diamond in the rough situation. Obviously I hope that is the case but one has to think our expectations for him contributing next year need to be low. 

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10 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

Before we ordain this guy the savior at linebacker, Minnesota and Rutgers would only take him if he met their specific enrollment timeline. For this to work out it has to be one hell of a diamond in the rough situation. Obviously I hope that is the case but one has to think our expectations for him contributing next year need to be low. 

I expect a Butkus candidacy from him in 2019, sir. I’m not sure what your problem is. 

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11 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

Before we ordain this guy the savior at linebacker, Minnesota and Rutgers would only take him if he met their specific enrollment timeline. For this to work out it has to be one hell of a diamond in the rough situation. Obviously I hope that is the case but one has to think our expectations for him contributing next year need to be low. 

I don't think anybody is expecting him to contribute next year. It's just an interesting story how he ended up here so it's getting a lot of updates and discussion.

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