Texas recruiting notes 2019

[Wishbone 4,731]

If Shepherd signs with us and and flames out (on/off the field, or both), he’s positioned  himself to receive a crucification in these parts to rival anything the Romans did.

[texifornia 56,434]

1 minute ago, Newy25 said:

Really, really great news. It's much easier to target two players (1 RB, 1 OL) than 3 obviously. 

Unless Hookfin pushes it out all the way to NSD2. Then we're still having to recruit him.

[UncleBuck 6,444]

My favorite thing about Derrian Brown is how I forgot multiple times the dude was even in the class. Never heard a peep out of him. Then on signing day the dude signs his LOI in a Longhorns bowtie like it's nothing.

 

Kid is business.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[George Clooney 378]

23 minutes ago, Not a Sock said:

Who the fuck considers WVU and ISU elite teams? OU is half of an elite team and we 1-1 with them. Georgia, bama, Clemson and OSU are elite.

OU is better than OSU, FWIW.

[Newy25 7,638]

Just now, Machinator said:

Wiltfong on Hookfin. Sounds like the F250 was delivered just in time

 

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Heard at the final hour a change of heart, not sure what it was, but it's not Baylor, at least right now. Seems Texas is alive if not trending towards the Longhorns moving forward.

One source believes Hookfin's parents are high on the Longhorns.

 

Him delaying is good news for us. 

 

I should know this but when does early signing period officially end? Friday? 

[Machinator 32,097]

Just now, Newy25 said:

Him delaying is good news for us. 

 

I should know this but when does early signing period officially end? Friday? 

Yes, Friday.

[satyanash 14,276]

Hookfin news is pretty fucking awesome. Also makes it much easier to not care about Shepherd-associated drama

[SydneyCarton 47,809]

Just now, Wishbone said:

If Shepherd signs with us and and flames out (on/off the field, or both), he’s positioned  himself to receive a crucification in these parts to rival anything the Romans did.

Not sure I see that. At least on this board. Most people seem to accept he's a flake and has a high flameout potential. No one is hanging their hat on him being a surefire first rounder. Everyone here will say "Yup, saw that coming" and move on. At this point, he is a perception recruit as much as he is a valued roster addition. 

[Ricky Butler 2,657]

1 minute ago, Wishbone said:

If Shepherd signs with us and and flames out (on/off the field, or both), he’s positioned  himself to receive a crucification in these parts to rival anything the Romans did.

I'm not sure. I bet we forget about him for 2 years until we're arguing about "beef" in the 2021 recruiting thread.

But we'll be coming off a playoff appearance, so it won't matter.

[texifornia 56,434]

4 minutes ago, UncleBuck said:

My favorite thing about Derrian Brown is how I forgot multiple times the dude was even in the class. Never heard a peep out of him. Then on signing day the dude signs his LOI in a Longhorns bowtie like it's nothing.

 

Kid is business.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Hah I missed it was a UT bowtie. That's rad.

[ztejas 43,244]

12 minutes ago, ruitxn said:

I agree with your post..but RB???

Yeah I don't think we are deep at running back. Outside chance we have 3 solid options in KI, Young and Brown, but Brown is young and unproven and Young hasn't proven much in the way of being a solid #2 option. KI needs to get healthy because he will likely be our only reliable option. 

*Grad transfer/JUCO could change that, though

Edited December 19, 2018 by ztejas

[Machinator 32,097]

I'm not wild on Hookfin, but he's a better OT2 than Shepherd, considering all the red flags for the latter.

The staff needs to monitor both of these guys closely if they come to the 40.

Edited December 19, 2018 by Machinator

[Gardner Barnes 1,562]

22 minutes ago, Happy Gilmore said:

Not a fan of The Office I see

thats not michael scott, its prison mike.  He was in prison, but never got caught

Edited December 19, 2018 by Gardner Barnes

[Wishbone 4,731]

6 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Not sure I see that. At least on this board. Most people seem to accept he's a flake and has a high flameout potential. No one is hanging their hat on him being a surefire first rounder. Everyone here will say "Yup, saw that coming" and move on. At this point, he is a perception recruit as much as he is a valued roster addition. 

Prolly right. But I’ll do my part anyway.

Edits to add, however, I hope he comes in and wrecks shop. He has the ability and opportunity. Needs the maturity.

Edited December 19, 2018 by Wishbone

[satyanash 14,276]

1 minute ago, Machinator said:

I'm not wild on Hookfin, but he's a better OT2 than Shepherd, considering all the red flags for the latter.

The staff needs to monitor both of these guys closely if they come to the 40.

Might be good to give them as much playing time in mop-up duty as possible? Sometimes that's what keeps them engaged in the program

[texifornia 56,434]

Just now, satyanash said:

Might be good to give them as much playing time in mop-up duty as possible? Sometimes that's what keeps them engaged in the program

Lol nah winning games by more than 10 is for other teams, we live life on the edge

[Chili dog 1,787]

27 minutes ago, Tex Pete said:

He's nothing like Shepard, though. I think Hookfin is truly indecisive. This has all come at him in the last couple of months.

Exactly. This is one of few instances where I think the kid would be best served to postpone. None of his offers are getting pulled. 

[UncleBuck 6,444]

I'm not wild on Hookfin, but he's a better OT2 than Shepherd, considering all the red flags for the latter.
The staff needs to monitor both of these guys closely if they come to the 40.

Yah, he's hella developmental, but not sure what kinda ceiling that's at. I just want another kid in here with potential and he's as good as any realistic option right now. So it excites me to that extent.

2020 is where the staff has a chance to do some really good things in the OL unit, as we've all acknowledged. So i'm cool with a Hookfin take added to Johnson and whatever Shep does, okay. Would love to have him, but...


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[Saint Tacky 1,609]

2 hours ago, texifornia said:

Important cake news

 

Committed to Schulenburg?

[Machinator 32,097]

Just now, satyanash said:

Might be good to give them as much playing time in mop-up duty as possible? Sometimes that's what keeps them engaged in the program

The problem with OL/DL is that these guys tend to be physically overmatched. It's not just about skill/technique, they're just not strong or big enough to compete with the guys lined up against them who have usually gone through multiple years of college S&C.

It would have certainly been nice to win big in a few games this year so we could have given players such as Dele, Overshown, Green, Eagles, Leitao playing time.

[thepop 4,409]

 

[Wishbone 4,731]

1 minute ago, thepop said:

 

Thought Jake was early. Guess not.

[Istian 241]

3 minutes ago, thepop said:

 

3 LB enrolling early. Nice. 

[Bodacious Bevo 3,575]

2 hours ago, Machinator said:

Eric Nahlin: Scattershotting NSD1 Thoughts

 

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If you're looking for negativity you've come to the wrong place. If you're looking for positivity, also, the wrong place. Objectivity is the name of the game. Here's how I see things during the 7th inning stretch (H/t @btown1110)

I'll have a long post breaking down the entire class early tomorrow morning. If you don't follow recruiting much and are only interested in Texas players, that will be the read for you.

This is more about the coaches approach to the cycle.

QB:

I love Roschon Johnson. He's anti-drama. He's confident on the field but humble off it. He's a quiet leader who sets a fantastic example. One story always stands out to me: while at a track meet in the spring of his sophomore year, he was spotted working on his drops in the in-field between events. 

Herman had this one locked up while he was still at U of H. Roschon understands it's the perfect scheme for him. This was easy money.

RB:

The staff knew it needed numbers heading into the cycle. Two was always the number. It raised a lot of eyebrows when Noah Cain went to IMG. That added a measure of difficulty to his recruitment that should have had the staff expanding its scope. The staff did expand its scope, to his teammate at IMG, Trey Sanders, an impossible player to pull while working at Texas. 

Early on in the cycle, Noah Cain spoke highly of Stan Drayton. It should have brought Cain to tears to tell Drayton he was going elsewhere. That's how strong relationships need to be built. 

Dreaming big is admirable, but if that baseball career doesn't work out, maybe have a fallback plan. Deondrick Glass went six months without hearing from UT. That's not how you cultivate a relationship you may need. Glass is at Katy high school, in a talent rich area, surrounded by Texas targets in multiple classes. He should be visited by Giles when he comes through. He should be visited by Hand when he's is in the area. And he should definitely be visited by Stan Drayton numerous times. Glass should be begging for you to take his commitment. He's the one who should be cultivating back-up plans with schools. Instead, he's looking very hard at Oklahoma State, and as prideful and competitive as he is, it wouldn't surprise me if he spurned Texas to go elsewhere. Hopefully they can get him but I don't have this as a slam dunk.

It was a down year in-state at most positions. This was recognized nearly across the board, especially on the defense (multiple OOS players at each level of defense). Even in a down year nationally you can't tell me there weren't more running backs worth exploring.

OL:

Tom Herman discusses the importance of finding guys who fit the new Texas culture. This requires evaluating the mental side of a player and doing a background check of sorts. There is no position where the mental evaluation is more important than offensive line because of the long developmental curve for most of them. 

Tyler Johnson checks every box you could look for.

Javonne Shepherd has as many questions about him as you can think of.

The staff targeted Isaiah Hookfin rather late and clearly didn't get a good read on how he's wired. If a player ever needed a red-shirt it's him, and yet, he doesn't think he needs one. 

Where were the JUCOS? We know they liked some but it doesn't seem any were prioritized. 

Where were the OOS players? At some point you have to expand your net and give yourself options down the stretch. 

Texas had Andrew Coker, a player who improved noticeably over time, but didn't prioritize him early enough.

If you miss on Hookfin, Coker, and maybe even Shepherd, where do you go from here? It's not good missing on your priority options, especially when you state you only want "championship level players." Are there more of those available? If so, presumably they would have been offered already.

Texas is doing a good job of putting parts on the assembly line on the d-line, but I'm a bit surprised with the paucity of options on the o-line.

Program numbers at the position are low already. It's enticing to hold back numbers to save for the next two classes but that isn't practical. It also isn't practical to hope to be bailed out by the grad transfer market, but at least it's there to provide some much needed help.

WR:

It was a weird cycle. I'm not sure the process is something you want to duplicate but you'll take the results. Getting spurned by Austin talent isn't ideal, though the Higgins miss probably won't be that bad. 

This is a really talented group. Three of the four have high floors, and four have high ceilings. 

TE:

Both are fantastic prospects. Tim Beck deserves a lot of credit for the work he did of being a good ambassador for Texas in Arizona.

I'll have many more thoughts on Brayden Liebrock and Jared Wiley tomorrow.

DL:

After needing all hands on deck last year and some good fortune with late emerging talent, Oscar Giles has his class put to bed. The group certainly fits the program approach of upside players with room for growth. 

Missing on Leal hurts. That shouldn't have caught the staff by surprise. Let that be a lesson in the very talented 2020 cycle. Giles should spend January bouncing between Cypress, Houston, Manor, and Dallas.

LB:

Great class. You'll notice defensive recruiting was on point across the board. Between the four signees I could make the case for each at Mac and Rover. They totally reset the program's floor talent-wise. Each guy can run and hit, which underscores the mindset Orlando demands.

Three are early enrollees, and for a program that needs immediate help, that's huge. The fourth, is an intelligent, four-year type who will knock your head off.

Don't sleep on Marcus Tillman. He's the most well-rounded of the bunch thanks to his ability in coverage.

DB: 

Topping 2018 was never the goal, or even doable under the best case scenario. But put this group and the 2018 group in a pool and draft based on appearance and you'd end up with a bunch of players from 2019.

I love Chris Adimora. Whoever identified him should get a raise. Kenyatta Watson is total stud, give whoever ID'd his willingness to leave the southeast a raise. Tyler Owens is Adrian Colbert with better timing in life. Marques Caldwell has some interesting things going on that may not come across until you see him, mainly his size and frame.

I'll have complete player breakdowns tomorrow.

 

As EN kind of pointed out, this class is significantly better on defense than on offense even though we have 4 defensive coaches and 6 offensive coaches + Herman. I've talked about how I don't like that imbalance, and that is especially true when the combined recruiting efforts of those 7 coaches are worse than a defensive staff that's significantly smaller (and that includes Giles).

 

 

Unrelated parting thought: Development is much more important than recruiting for us right now. LOIs don't win football games. We could have landed Bru and Trey and still sucked for the next decade, if they weren't developed properly. Sure, recruiting is important for our ceiling and NC contention, but I can't get too emotionally invested in recruiting after watching us do the least with the most for the last decade. The bowl practices that none of us are paying attention to are just as important as all this NSD drama.

[Machinator 32,097]

DJ Williams to Auburn.

[RGBIII 22,798]

 

[texifornia 56,434]

2 minutes ago, Machinator said:

DJ Williams to Auburn.

And the RB roulette wheel has stopped spinning

Edited December 19, 2018 by texifornia

[LebongJames 1,781]

Agreed I see this as year 2 of a complete rebuild. The parts that were signed this year and last being developed properly will win the Big 12. Win the Big 12, make the playoffs or even NY6 bowl consistently and then we can start worrying about being on Alabama and Clemson’s level. 

Brown is the best RB signed by a Big 12 team.

Edited December 19, 2018 by LebongJames

[Machinator 32,097]

Just now, RGBIII said:

 

Crossing his fingers now, eh?

Even the great Carrington's faith is shaken.

[texasstrong12 4,668]

Do we need a 3rd tackle? If Hoofkin signs with Texas I would say there is a slim chance we sign Shepherd. 

IT initially reported that we wanted Shepherd to wait until NSD2 but that was before it looked like we were going to miss on Hoofkin and Coker. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if Texas just completely moves on and tries to find a late rising interior OL. 

But tough to tell until there is certainty with Hoofkin. 

Edited December 19, 2018 by texasstrong12

[Machinator 32,097]

It's Hookfin, dammit.

[Elmer_Fudd 22,084]

2 minutes ago, texasstrong12 said:

Do we need a 3rd tackle? If Hoofkin signs with Texas I would say there is a slim chance we sign Shepherd. 

IT initially reported that we wanted Shepherd to wait until NSD2 until it looked like we were going to miss on Hoofkin and Coker. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if Texas just completely moves on and tries to find s late rising interior OL. 

But tough to tell until there is certainty with Hoofkin. 

I could see Tyler Johnson also playing on the interior if it comes to it.

[FizzleFish 137]

Herman said he needed to add speed to the team. What commits on both sides of the ball did he sign to address this?

[Machinator 32,097]

Just now, FizzleFish said:

Herman said he needed to add speed to the team. What commits on both sides of the ball did he sign to address this?

Jake Smith

Jordan Whittington

Tyler Owens

Caleb Johnson

David Gbenda

Kennedy Lewis

Kenyatta Watson

[LebongJames 1,781]

Owens and Adimora

all of the lbs are fast for LBs

All WRs have good to great speed 

Edited December 19, 2018 by LebongJames

[Reynolds Woodcock 4,656]

2 minutes ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

I could see Tyler Johnson also playing on the interior if it comes to it.

I agree, if we hit on some combination of Moore, Jones, Shepherd and/or Hookfin at tackle, Johnson could move inside.  

[rickyspub 801]

2 minutes ago, FizzleFish said:

Herman said he needed to add speed to the team. What commits on both sides of the ball did he sign to address this?

I know he hasn't signed yet, but Sheppard supposedly ran a 4.3 40 at 395 pounds.

[Wishbone 4,731]

1 minute ago, rickyspub said:

I know he hasn't signed yet, but Sheppard supposedly ran a 4.3 40 at 395 pounds.

Lulz

[CravenTaters 17]

So besides the Shepard drama and Hookfin, is there anything else to wait for today?

I'm just ready for the Waddle talk to start up again so I can lurk as usual.

[UncleBuck 6,444]

I know he hasn't signed yet, but Sheppard supposedly ran a 4.3 40 at 395 pounds.

I just laughcoughchoked


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[texifornia 56,434]

1 minute ago, CravenTaters said:

So besides the Shepard drama and Hookfin, is there anything else to wait for today?

I'm just ready for the Waddle talk to start up again so I can lurk as usual.

no

[Spawn of Cthulhu 2,241]

9 minutes ago, Machinator said:

It's Hookfin, dammit.

It's Hildo, dammit.

[BERT 4,345]

33 minutes ago, UncleBuck said:

My favorite thing about Derrian Brown is how I forgot multiple times the dude was even in the class. Never heard a peep out of him. Then on signing day the dude signs his LOI in a Longhorns bowtie like it's nothing.

 

Kid is business.

 

 

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Wasn't Kyle Porter all business with little to no social media?

 

 

*runs and hides*

[texifornia 56,434]

1 minute ago, BERT said:

Wasn't Kyle Porter all business with little to no social media?

 

 

*runs and hides*

Zero social media at all. His friend announced his commitment.

[Machinator 32,097]

Scipio Tex: Random National Signing Day 1 Thoughts

Some quick thoughts post-NSD 1. I'll probably have more on individual players later.

The class was saved by OOS recruiting. 11 of the 21 signees are from out of state and I think there could have been more if we'd hit the California mix a bit harder and earlier. To my knowledge, that gross number and percentage of OOS recruits are the highest in Texas Longhorn history. The reasons why were unique and had something to do with both the quality of the possibilities and the necessity of looking elsewhere due to in-state dynamics, a few staff bricks, the mental and dispositional composition of the in-state class, OU and A&M's in-state recruiting resurgence along with various other national recruiters, and some larger currents already described by @Eric Nahlin. The takeaway? 1) OOS recruiting is here to stay for the reasons I've outlined multiple times and 2) a strong Texas should get the players it wants both in state and out. We'll need to do better with the former in 2020. 

There's a tendency to discount birds-in-hand, particularly when they're low drama recruits who don't play the game late to feed ego (or pad a wallet). Be excited that guys like Jake Smith, Tyler Johnson, Roschon Johnson, De'Gabriel Floyd, Brayden Liebrock, Chris Adimora and Jordan Whittington made up their minds early and then cruised into signing day. Strong late finishes always feel better perceptually, but the player is what matters. Charlie Strong finished his 2016 class strong perceptually, didn't he? With busts. 

Along those lines, there's a lot of talk about optics in recruiting. How losing Player X looks or will be perceived. How we should sign Player Y even if he's a likely bust, a bad mental eval, or has poor film that hasn't quite penetrated the analyst's brains because it's a "rankings win." This is Recruiting Fetishism at its worst and a failure to understand its actual purpose. You recruit players so that you can develop them and turn them into a two deep who can win the conference and take you to the NCAA playoffs. When you replace a viable recruit with a higher ranked high probability wash out, you harm your program culturally and those development holes always show up 2-3 years later as we puzzle over a thin depth chart or start freshmen who should be redshirting. The optics that matter happen during the college football playoffs and the final polls. Nick Saban isn't lecturing his staff about perceptual recruiting wins.

One OL in a class that needs four won't cut it. Particularly when there are no complementary DL or TE takes who might be future conversions. There are NSD2 and grad transfer options to explore, but the former will be a hard slog and the latter should be viewed as a bonus, not the core of a developmental OL. You can't progress the biggest positional core of your program on rentals. Grad transfers are welcome stopgaps. Not foundation. 

Landing RB2 didn't work out. Let's just say I wasn't surprised. The loss of Noah Cain to Penn State hurts because the RB room needed a high floor, high volume inside zone runner serious about football who was durable, mature and capable of contributing instantly. He was basically guaranteed 8-12 carries a game next year and a legitimate shot at starting if he proved dynamic. Instead, Cain is going to a late compromise school with a solid depth chart. The staff got distracted chasing ghosts while being used as an honest name to give a SEC bidding war legitimacy. The rationalizations around this aren't compelling and miss the big picture. You have to prioritize contingency plans. In June. Let's see what the staff can turn up down the stretch. 

The linebacker class is compelling. I wouldn't be surprised if equal parts desperation and precocious talent mean that De'Gabriel Floyd is starting by Game 4 next year. How Tillman, Gbenda and Johnson go will tell the tale. Each represents a specific type of off-the-ball LB (which Orlando needs badly) and charting how each develops will be an interesting case study. 

The DL class is full of interesting developmental types. I like how they all profile, though they each require some imagination and obvious development to hit. The lack of a no brainer elite is unfortunate, so cleaning up in 2020 with pipe hitters is imperative. If we can't, I'll have some questions. 

You obviously want to land your priority targets at any position, but there's no more forgiving position than WR for contingency plans. That written, there was an incoherence to our recruiting there that suggests more flailing about than master plan. Texas always wants to be in the position of selecting from a positional strength, even in areas of relative riches. 

There are clear rainmaker recruiting positions on a football staff with modest positional responsibilities. If they aren't killing it, you'll never maximize. The staff that gets you the Texas job is never good enough to maximize there. Every Longhorn head coach learns this the hard way. The question is how quick they are on the uptake. 

The sheer stupidity of some of the advisors, relatives and hangers-on in various recruit's ears can be shocking. It's tough to blame staff for losing out on a badly advised athlete. It's also hard to know when to switch from sweet-talking to a hard reality shock. 

There's a tendency to narrow the prospective recruiting universe in a class to who the staff prioritizes. We saw several instances in 2019 where the staff did a terrific job of expanding the positional universe of prospective recruits (sometimes by choice, sometimes by necessity) while also doing a relatively poor job with some others. It's up to the staff to suss out the disconnects there. Is it not keeping enough back-ups warm? Not having the recruiting support staff aggressively identify more OOS or JUCO options? Did we let some lead recruiters hyper-focus without seeing the big picture? Is every positional and geographically assigned coach looking aggressively to improve his hand or just settling for the cards dealt? 

This class has a good mix of guys who are good at football who play the game better than they currently test and have their best football well ahead of them (Mpagi, Sweat, Wiley, Lewis, Jones) and crazy SPARQ freaks who already look like college athletes that we'll try to coach up (Watson, Owens) on the finer points and translate those traits to production. The SPARQ freaks will always be higher rated than the blue collar pluggers, but programs are built on strong reliable floors as much as high theoretical ceilings. The idea is to hit a good mix of both. 

With 21 in the bag, an already good class is far from over. Let's see how we finish.

[Snotrocket 108]

Jalen Catalon?  Anything new?  

[fellside 1,076]

41 minutes ago, ruitxn said:

I agree with your post..but RB???

I'm not at the point where I'm freaking out about a 4th string RB.  If I had to rank the position group by year the past 7 or 8 years, a group of Ingram, Young and Brown is probably in the top half.

[Machinator 32,097]

1 minute ago, Snotrocket said:

Jalen Catalon?  Anything new?  

Announcing in January, probably not Texas.

[Machinator 32,097]

Just now, fellside said:

I'm not at the point where I'm freaking out about a 4th string RB.  If I had to rank the position group by year the past 7 or 8 years, a group of Ingram, Young and Brown is probably in the top half.

Young is not a viable RB2 if we want to win the Big 12. Not unless he develops in a big way, and the stakes are too high to rely on that.

[pearlandhorn 3,277]

When is shepherd signing?  Today or waiting until NSD2?