2019 Recruiting - Football

Those of us who suffered through the Ron Morris circus wanted to send you a greeting. I think that might have been the first time my recruiting desire became disgust.

 

I was around for that. I used to have a T-shirt that was SMU colors with their pony upside down, with dead eyes. Some Austin frat produced it in house. I loved that shirt. But I dont see what I wrote as contrary to any of that.

 

^^^^
I had the same shirt.

 

there was also a bumper sticker of the above with the caption reading "Undefeeted"

 

I think Whittington is a pretty darn good player in his own right. I think it's "almost" too bad that we have two guys with extremely similar skill sets and skill levels coming in the same class. As I've said before, good problem to have, but it's going to be interesting to find enough footballs to go around.

 

Gbenda punches well above his weight class.

You've got to like these fast, quick, undersized guys that still (despite their relatively smallish size) hit like sledgehammers. You can put BJ Foster into that category.

 

Well, Gatorade seems to think that Jake Smith is the best player in the nation at any position...

Past Gatorade National POYs include Jeff George, Emmitt Smith, Peyton Manning, Tim Couch, Chris Lewis, Garrett Gilbert (oops...), and Kyler Murray.

Who's to say a sugary sports drink maker doesn't know recruits better than the folks at Rivals or other self-appointed gurus.

 

From TFB --

" am told that Texas is going after Tennessee grad transfer starting OT, Drew Richmond.

Last Friday, I spoke with a source in the building about Richmond and was told that the Vols planned on letting Richmond go. However, same source let me know, yesterday, that they have decided to work to keep him.

The initial sense I got was the Vols believed they had younger guys who would unseat Richmond. At some point between last Friday and yesterday, they obviously decided that they can’t afford to lose him...."​

 

The final ESPN 300
ESPN Football Recruiting - 300 Player Rankings

1. Kayvon Thibodeaux
3. Kenyon Green
6. Jadon Haselwood
16. Trey Sanders
17. Garrett Wilson
27. Bru McCoy
29. Spencer Rattler
32. Tyler Johnson
33. Theo Wease
35. Lewis Cine
37. Jeffery Carter
40. Jordan Whittington
55. De'Gabriel Floyd
56. Kardell Thomas
60. DeMarvin Leal
69. Noah Cain
76. Jake Smith
83. Kenyatta Watson
97. Dylan Wright
99. Erick Young
104. Roschon Johnson
112. Elijah Higgins
125. David Gbenda
130. Marcus Washington
152. Branson Bragg
181. Deondrick Glass
190. Derrian Brown
233. Peyton Powell
243. Marcus Tillman
283. Brayden Liebrock
289. Chris Adimora

 

Texas signee movement in the last ESPN 300^

Tyler Johnson (-16)
Jordan Whittington (-1)
De'Gabriel Floyd (+2)
Jake Smith (-1)
Kenyatta Watson (+6)
Roschon Johnson (-18)
David Gbenda (+75)
Marcus Washington (+41)
Derrian Brown (+3)
Marcus Tillman (+4)
Brayden Liebrock (+4)
Chris Adimora (unranked to 287)

Also, no Tyler Owens somehow
-Catalon fell out of the rankings completely
-Demariyon Houston fell out of the rankings
-NaNa Osafo-Mensah fell 95 spots
-Higgins jumped up nearly 40 spots

 

It's kind of odd, mathematically, that having 12 out of the top 300 players, and none higher than 32, can be a top-10 class.

 

We are supposed to be making a push for 2019 OT Ira Henry, from the same St Louis school as Washington and Cooper. We had an in-home with him yesterday. OV was probably set then

 

Whittington senior film (cant rmbr if i already posted it)

 

Good long IT/Eric Nahlin article on what Roschon Johnson brings to the table, if you like this sort of thing

"THE IMPORTANCE OF FIT
I often use the benefit of knowing where a player is going when doing rankings. If you’re a press corner and can’t play off, don’t go to a zone team. If you’re a dual-threat quarterback, don’t go to a traditional pro-passing offense. Etc.

You’d be hard pressed to find a better marriage of talent and fit than between Texas and Roschon Johnson. Herman knows it and Johnson know it.

Most everyone else does too, but it came into clear resolution as I attended a coaches clinic in which Faircloth discussed his offense.

Here’s a quick breakdown of how PN-G’s offense is hard-wired:

- Identity: Play fast, play physical, protect the football
– West Coast philosophy: high percentage passing (quick screens/quick passes); QB progression/3-step drop
– Downhill run game: Power, counter, iso, Buck Sweep
– Multiple personnel groups and formations with balanced 50/50 run/pass split.
– Lots of shifting and motioning to hide intentions but still keep things simple for the offensive line.
– RPO’s and RRO’s (inside run, outside run, option)
– Won’t run what’s on your scout card.
– Sequential Football: For every motion and every shift there is a run, pass, draw, screen, reverse, and trick in the quiver. After a run or pass is used in a game they build off of it. Everything is a setup. Build stuff off of stuff.​

The comparison between Johnson and Heard (or any run-first dual) really breaks down at this point. Heard was more ZR, ZR, ZR, play action over the top. Johnson has considerably more on his plate and he understands it at a very high level. I could underline this point further but don’t want to reveal some things that might help PN-G’s opponents......"​

A complete view of Texas quarterback commit Roschon Johnson - Inside Texas

 

Good. We need at least one more quality OL this year, and who knows what Shephard will do on signing day.

 

Some more Eric Nahlin on a couple of the new offensive players --

RB Derrian Brown, Buford (Buford, GA) - 5-11, 190 (.9129)
The Player: A slick, slashing runner with excellent hands out of the back-field. I think he has the vision and feel for inside zone, not to mention the ability to get through creases quickly, while also being a good off-tackle runner. Keep those hands in mind as Herman and Tim Beck found throwing to the position increasingly useful over the course of the season.
The Projection: He'll play at 205 pounds and because he's not easy to hit square, he can log volume carries if needed, and also play early. As we learned with Ingram, Herman isn't going to rush a young running back into a big role, rather he'll give the player more snaps as he earns them over time. Reliability must be proven, but with how thin the position is opportunity awaits Brown upon arrival. With a well-rounded skill-set, as well as time spent playing big-time ball in Georgia, Brown shouldn't need too much time to acclimate to college.​

Your 2019 Offensive Class (So Far) - Inside Texas

ATH/WR Jordan Whittington, Cuero (Cuero, TX) - 6-1, 205 (.9734)
The Player: Funny enough, he'd be a five-star if he elected to play safety as he profiles to 'Brandon Jones with ball skills.' As a receiver he's still a fantastic prospect thanks to quickness and ability to get open on the ground or attack the ball in the air above it. He profiles to any receiver position thanks to his versatility, but was recruited to play H (slot). Don't rule out X where he can out-muscle defensive backs and win 50/50 balls, or Z where he can run by them or over them in the screen game. His best traits are his combination of quickness and strength. That's where things get interesting, because of his build he will likely see time at running back as well. He's just as much a Swiss Army knife as Jake Smith, just not quite as Swiss looking.
The Projection: Another early enrollee, expect Whittington to play a lot of snaps as a freshman, especially with Lil'Jordan Humphrey electing to forego his senior season and the lack of depth and play-making ability at running back. With one player Texas will strengthen two position groupings. It's hard to project where he'll have his greatest impact as a junior because he's so versatile he can play wherever he's most needed. The good news is he's such a natural player he should excel wherever they put him.​

 

Nice article.

There are different philosophies on this, but for the college game, I'm in the dual-threat QB is usually the best camp. RJ is clearly in the ultra-quick sort of dual-threat QB (as opposed to the power runner sort of dual-threat QB like Sam or Tebow), but either can work well. And I mean ultra-quick, see his all star game film.

Something else that really stood out from the article is RJ's coach's remarks about RJ's very strong work ethic. He sounds like the sort of guy that will take care of business, work out on his own, and watch a whole lot of film of the upcoming opponent on his own free time.

 

4.0 GPA according to Sabre

 

IT is very high on him, but some people say he needs to re-work his throwing motion, that his mechanics are inconsistent which affects his accuracy. If true, he should have plenty of time to work it out.

 

Here are Rivals 250 updated
2019 Rivals250 Prospect Ranking
Owens with big bump, Smith, Liebrock + MWashington with nice bumps, TJohnson -15 spots. Gbenda and Hoofin first time on this list (I think)

1. Derek Stingley
3. Trey Sanders
4. Jadon Haselwood
10. DeMarvin Leal
11. Theo Wease
12. Bru McCoy
13. Spencer Rattler
18. Marcel Brooks
19. Chris Steele
22. Kenyon Green
26. Kardell Thomas
30. Erick Young
32. Garrett Wilson
33. Jordan Whittington
43. Noah Cain
48. Jake Smith
53. Marcus Banks
54. Lewis Cine
62. Tyler Owens
77. Brayden Liebrock
88. Dylan Wright
97. Tyler Johnson
105. Marcus Washington
109. Demani Richardson
112. Kenyatta Watson
119. Elijah Higgins
123. De'Gabriel Floyd
154. Chris Adimora
169. Isaiah Hookfin
210. Branson Bragg
212. Kenyon Jackson
219. David Gbenda
236. Peyton Powell
238. Derrian Brown
243. Jalen Catalon
250. Deondrick Glass

 

Here is another one of Nahlin's write-ups. They whole list is well done, but I thought Wiley's stood out a bit since he is someone who is not discussed that often -- (link above)

TE Jared Wiley, Temple (Temple, TX) - 6-6, 230 (.8546)
The Recruitment: Wiley was offered during the spring evaluation period at a time when not much was known about him. He had a quiet, drama free recruitment and wasted little time with his decision, committing in May.
The Player: Here's where it gets interesting. The more homework I did on Wiley the more apparent it became he was a steal. Obviously he had great size, but he also hit 8 home runs and hit for a high average in baseball. He was set to play quarterback for his storied high school (which he also played at a high level). With baseball comes good hand-eye coordination, processing, and reactions. With playing quarterback comes an understanding of where to run your routes versus differing defenses. It gives you a certain field vision you might not have otherwise. Now roll these unique traits into a giant, easy moving tight end. to top it off, I hear he has good hands and is highly competitive. He may end up being the steal of the class.
The Projection: If he's as competitive as I think he is he'll become a good blocker in time. Like with Liebrock, that's an unknown as he gets set to begin his career but obviously the staff has no concerns. Wiley running down seams isn't going to be fair for defenses worried about the other skill talent around him. While Liebrock gets most of the press, Wiley has some very unique traits that make it likely he makes a farce out of his rating. Enrolling early will give him a jump on working towards that end. Texas has questions at tight end heading into next year. Wiley will be a quick responder to S&C. While I think he'll red-shirt, playing next year isn't out of the question. After a year in the program he should become a solid contributor at a minimum.​

 

Some more on potential grad transfer OT Drew Richmond from Tenn

Tennessee OL Drew Richmond is in the transfer portal but is an interesting situation in the sense that he would technically be a grad transfer. As y'all have figured out, Richmond is on the Texas radar. I'm actually told that Herb Hand is slated to see him this week. Look for interest with Richmond to ramp up after Hand makes his stop as Texas continues to look for immediate OL help-- EJ Holland of 247​

 

Apparently Craig Naivar, our safeties coach, is going to be at Jalen Catalon's (4-star safety from Mansfield) high school tomorrow for his commitment announcement.

Also, Bryan Carrington is sending our cryptic tweets like it's "1:38 pm", which he does before we get a commitment.

Keep your fingers crossed.

 

I did not read the full article on Roschon, but he does indeed have a 4.0 GPA. As for his strong work ethic, he arrives at the field house before 6 AM every morning to do his running and workouts before school.

It is my understanding from friends still living in MidCounty that Fairloth doesn't call the plays, but rather sends in suggestions from which RJ chooses at the LOS. I've never been completely clear on RJ's ability to select a different play at the LOS.

 

If Shepherd does sign with us, I'm not sure how much to expect out of him. Too much attention seeking behavior here for comfort. I hope he signs with us and proves me wrong, wrong, wrong.
So getting a quality JUCO in the house would be a good move.

 

Impressive indeed. He sounds like a coach's dream. As has been suggested elsewhere, maybe RJ's persona is affecting Rising's thinking.

 

Who can tell how this one will turn out in the end? All the more reason to press hard on remaining quality OL targets (HS, JC, and Transfer). Hand can work magic in developing a line, but the building blocks have to be in place. We were fortunate to have a mostly healthy OL this year. Unfortunately, the odds are that won't always be the case. Gotta get that quality OL depth for now and for the future.

 

That last Rivals updated player ranking is now part of the composite team rankings and it bumped us up to #7 in the overall 247 team composite. Also, Texas is 91.19 for the avg per player rating (which pushed us ahead of aggy who is at 91.07)

poor aggy