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Texas Recruiting Notes 2020


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2 minutes ago, texifornia said:

Also big fucking lolz at people acting like getting Ingram that year was some kind of recruiting failure. 

Only miss Drayton has had was missing on Cain and wasting time with sanders and now losing Jordan

Edited by RGBIII
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Just now, RGBIII said:

Only miss Drayton has had was missing on Cain and wasting time with sanders

Only miss? We've offered plenty in his time here. He did fail with Cain and if by miss you mean a player he recruited who everyone thought was ours yet we missed on, you're right.

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1 minute ago, Goodman said:

Only miss? We've offered plenty in his time here. He did fail with Cain and if by miss you mean a player he recruited who everyone thought was ours yet we missed on, you're right.

Yes, I mean recruiting wise. I can’t think of any other backs that we were tied to that would be considered misses. We got our number one choice in Ingram in 2017, we missed big in 2018 with sanders and Cain (brown was unfortunate) and we hit big with Bijan (miss on Jordan). I’m not defending Drayton but it’s not like he has been a complete non factor. Maybe I’m too big on Bijan but the kid looks like an absolute monster. He also took rojo and made him a legit running back

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1 hour ago, Goodman said:

Best how? He is not bad but not what we should have starting here.

You said this in response to someone asking you why you said Ingram wasn't a "legit" RB take. He was a high four star and #1 in-state with every major program after him.

That's a different argument than whether he's panned out while he's here.

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8 minutes ago, Goodman said:

Only miss? We've offered plenty in his time here. He did fail with Cain and if by miss you mean a player he recruited who everyone thought was ours yet we missed on, you're right.

Don't be obtuse, if we just went by offer lists then our whole staff has missed on the vast majority of the top 20 recruits at their position every year. And so has Ohio State's. 

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2 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Yes, I mean recruiting wise. I can’t think of any other backs that we were tied to that would be considered misses. We got our number one choice in Ingram in 2017, we missed big in 2018 with sanders and Cain (brown was unfortunate) and we hit big with Bijan (miss on Jordan). I’m not defending Drayton but it’s not like he has been a complete non factor. Maybe I’m too big on Bijan but the kid looks like an absolute monster. He also took rojo and made him a legit running back

If he holds on to Bijan he should stay but my expectations for the type of recruiter our RB coach should be is far higher than he's proved. 

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1 minute ago, Goodman said:

If he holds on to Bijan he should stay but my expectations for the type of recruiter our RB coach should be is far higher than he's proved. 

I want a rainmaker recruiter at rb coach as well but it’s not like he’s Giles out there 

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Wiltfong / 247 / Some Texas RB recruiting buzz

Spoiler

Flipped my 247Sports Crystal Ball forecast from Texas to Utah for Longhorns commit Ty Jordan. He took an official to see the Utes the weekend of Nov. 29 and after it looked like the in-state program would still hold on, sources indicate the Pac 12 program is in good shape for a flip.

With that being said, Tom Herman and his staff have continued to recruit other running backs. A name to keep an eye on moving forward is Lancaster (Texas) High Top247 running back Kevontre Bradford. Texas went and saw him on Tuesday, and Bradford isn't expected to sign until February.

The industry-generated 247Sports Composite tabs Bradford as the nation's No. 14 running back and No. 136 prospect overall. 247Sports National Analyst Gabe Brooks compares Bradford's game to Longhorns running back Keaontay Ingram.

"Big-play running back with adequate height and frame for the position. Lean and muscular with enough space to add weight in college and play in the 210-215 range. Capable of playing running back, receiver, or safety at Power Five level, but projects best to RB. Slashing galloper who hits the hole with purpose, whether downhill or on the cutback. Dangerous in the stretch game. Impressive stop-start burst for a long-strider with somewhat longer frame. Flashes great acceleration off stops. Good top-end speed thanks to initial burst and long-striding speed-building. Flashes home run-hitting ability against strong high school competition. Athleticism not verified in combine testing environment. Upright runner who can improve pad level. Limited pass-catching opportunities to date. High-major running back prospect with big-play and high-volume capabilities. Should become a quality P5 starter with long-term NFL Draft ceiling."

This fall Bradford rushed for 1,563 yards and 23 touchdowns.

Of course Texas has arguably the top running back in this class Bijan Robinson committed. Pairing a guy like Bradford with him would give the Longhorns arguably the best duo anywhere in the country this cycle.

 

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This cycle has been absolutely wild. Slow start, decent spring with huge dreams, losing Bru and the Zach Evans top 5 within a week in May, huge early summer lull, then the recruiting equivalent of cocaine in averaging a commit every other day for over a month, very quiet fall as our season went to shit, and capping off the cycle by losing multiple to commits to the Utes of Utah. 

Thank God we recruited well enough in '18 and '19 that I don't have to stress about this class. I am scared about 2021 though.

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8 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

I'm not speculating on Whittingham's likeliness to return here, but you think that a player that might have been unhappy before the season, got injured, and is still unhappy on campus for whatever reason would look at a College Football industry worth Billions annually, which is built on the backs of players who don't get compensated squat and would say "You know what, I hate it here, and I'm miserable, but gosh these guys paid for a surgery I suffered while playing football for them. I guess I just need to stay here being unhappy."

Yeah....that feels like a stretch.

His sports hernia is from HS, he aggravated it in playoffs but was still the best player on the field.

actually not a bad plan, sign with UT and have them fix it.  LSU would have told him to rub dirt on it and get back in the huddle.  

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2 hours ago, RGBIII said:

Yes, I mean recruiting wise. I can’t think of any other backs that we were tied to that would be considered misses. We got our number one choice in Ingram in 2017, we missed big in 2018 with sanders and Cain (brown was unfortunate) and we hit big with Bijan (miss on Jordan). I’m not defending Drayton but it’s not like he has been a complete non factor. Maybe I’m too big on Bijan but the kid looks like an absolute monster. He also took rojo and made him a legit running back

Maybe you’re counting your unhitched chickens 

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2017- Both Toenail Carter and Young were committed before Drayton was hired. The staff chose to take Carter over Eno Benjamin, but this had nothing to do with Drayton. Incomplete grade. 

2018- Landed the consensus top running back in the state, Ingram, who was a natural Texas lean. A&M and LSU were after him hard. Things got difficult behind the scenes once Jimbo was hired and attempted to pull out all the stops. Chip Brown's article didn't help here. Drayton closed on a recruitment that appeared to be over for most of the cycle but got hairy at the end, but this was mostly a recruitment that a replacement level RB coach at a school like Texas should close. I believe the play was to only take one RB in the class. Still no complaints, has mostly done his job as a recruiter at this point. 

2019- Noah Cain and Deondrick Glass, known prospects since their freshmen years, are identified as targets early, although the staff never falls in love with Glass enough to recruit him like they want him. Cain transfers to IMG and rooms with 5* Trey Sanders, who eventually visits and silently commits; the staff knows he's likely full of shit, but continues to recruit him just in case. Eventual OU commits Marcus Major and Rhamondre Stevenson eventually become targets as well; Stevenson as a potential RB1, Major as an RB2 type. Georgia RB Derrian Brown is taken as a fine RB2 option; Drayton had some help here from other coaches. Late riser DJ Williams seems to be an option, but Texas never went all in on him; perhaps he had his hand out, given the teams recruiting him? The sum of the interest from Cain and Sanders, to a lesser extent guys like Stevenson and Glass, and Jordan Whittington turning into a potential running back option late in his senior season once he returned from injury leads to the staff never seriously pursuing adequate RB takes like Darwin Barlow, Daimarique Foster, and King Doerue; the three are arguably RB2 types who might be RB1.5s if you squint hard enough, but depth is a potential concern. I think down the stretch Texas knows they aren't landing Sanders, and puts their eggs in the Cain train. After they miss on Cain, they pass on pursuing Glass and the other RB1.5-RB2 types while thinking that Whittington and Brown are enough, with an eye towards a historically loaded 2021 RB class, both locally and nationally. Whiffing on Noah Cain here while not finding a replacement between the Glass/Foster/Doerue/Barlow types in-state or any other adequate options out of state is Drayton's single big recruiting whiff of his Texas tenure at this point, and it's a big one considering his only previous big recruitment was Ingram. Landing Brown as a RB2 was good, not landing another RB was terrible; Brown has an unexpected career threatening illness, and then Whittington gets injured, and a true freshman QB is forced into the lineup. Someone like Glass or Foster would have helped there. 

2020- In a historically loaded RB class, both locally and nationally, means the RB class is a failure if the class doesn't land at least one heavily pursued running back, preferably a 5*. Drayton closes the deal with arguably the best of the best over strong competition from Ohio State and deserves strong applause for this recruitment, and then lands an interesting Darren Sproles/Quentin Griffin type of RB2 in Ty Jordan. The national class being so strong helps Drayton land a 5* since the supply is high leading to less competition than you'd typically expect, but landing a 5* means you're doing your job, and then some. Ty Jordan decommits, which isn't a big deal if he's replaced. Tre Bradford would be an adequate replacement, arguably an improvement, and would give Drayton at least an A-grade for this class. 

TLDR: Drayton had nothing to do with 2017, did fine in 2018, did poorly in 2019, and great for 2020. Mixed bag; ok, poor, and great, so far. 

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28 minutes ago, Fud said:

2017- Both Toenail Carter and Young were committed before Drayton was hired. The staff chose to take Carter over Eno Benjamin, but this had nothing to do with Drayton. Incomplete grade. 

2018- Landed the consensus top running back in the state, Ingram, who was a natural Texas lean. A&M and LSU were after him hard. Things got difficult behind the scenes once Jimbo was hired and attempted to pull out all the stops. Chip Brown's article didn't help here. Drayton closed on a recruitment that appeared to be over for most of the cycle but got hairy at the end, but this was mostly a recruitment that a replacement level RB coach at a school like Texas should close. I believe the play was to only take one RB in the class. Still no complaints, has mostly done his job as a recruiter at this point. 

2019- Noah Cain and Deondrick Glass, known prospects since their freshmen years, are identified as targets early, although the staff never falls in love with Glass enough to recruit him like they want him. Cain transfers to IMG and rooms with 5* Trey Sanders, who eventually visits and silently commits; the staff knows he's likely full of shit, but continues to recruit him just in case. Eventual OU commits Marcus Major and Rhamondre Stevenson eventually become targets as well; Stevenson as a potential RB1, Major as an RB2 type. Georgia RB Derrian Brown is taken as a fine RB2 option; Drayton had some help here from other coaches. Late riser DJ Williams seems to be an option, but Texas never went all in on him; perhaps he had his hand out, given the teams recruiting him? The sum of the interest from Cain and Sanders, to a lesser extent guys like Stevenson and Glass, and Jordan Whittington turning into a potential running back option late in his senior season once he returned from injury leads to the staff never seriously pursuing adequate RB takes like Darwin Barlow, Daimarique Foster, and King Doerue; the three are arguably RB2 types who might be RB1.5s if you squint hard enough, but depth is a potential concern. I think down the stretch Texas knows they aren't landing Sanders, and puts their eggs in the Cain train. After they miss on Cain, they pass on pursuing Glass and the other RB1.5-RB2 types while thinking that Whittington and Brown are enough, with an eye towards a historically loaded 2021 RB class, both locally and nationally. Whiffing on Noah Cain here while not finding a replacement between the Glass/Foster/Doerue/Barlow types in-state or any other adequate options out of state is Drayton's single big recruiting whiff of his Texas tenure at this point, and it's a big one considering his only previous big recruitment was Ingram. Landing Brown as a RB2 was good, not landing another RB was terrible; Brown has an unexpected career threatening illness, and then Whittington gets injured, and a true freshman QB is forced into the lineup. Someone like Glass or Foster would have helped there. 

2020- In a historically loaded RB class, both locally and nationally, means the RB class is a failure if the class doesn't land at least one heavily pursued running back, preferably a 5*. Drayton closes the deal with arguably the best of the best over strong competition from Ohio State and deserves strong applause for this recruitment, and then lands an interesting Darren Sproles/Quentin Griffin type of RB2 in Ty Jordan. The national class being so strong helps Drayton land a 5* since the supply is high leading to less competition than you'd typically expect, but landing a 5* means you're doing your job, and then some. Ty Jordan decommits, which isn't a big deal if he's replaced. Tre Bradford would be an adequate replacement, arguably an improvement, and would give Drayton at least an A-grade for this class. 

TLDR: Drayton had nothing to do with 2017, did fine in 2018, did poorly in 2019, and great for 2020. Mixed bag; ok, poor, and great, so far. 

This is good stuff and if he can pull in Bradford as RB2 for this class, then he gets an A+ at his position for 2020, especially with all the turmoil around the team. 
 

The only thing I’d disagree with is that part of the job of a RB coach is to recruit beyond your position and help out with other elite prospects, which Drayton hasn’t done at all. So while he’a been a mixed bag at his position group, I’d say that combined with him being a complete non-factor as to recruits at any other position means he’s been poor at recruiting for a RB coach, which is the main function of a RB coach. 

Edited by Burt Macklin
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1 minute ago, Burt Macklin said:

This is good stuff. The only thing I’d disagree with is that part of the job of a RB coach is to recruit beyond your position and help out with other elite prospects, which Drayton hasn’t done at all. So while he’a been a mixed bag at his position group, I’d say that combined with him being a complete non-factor as to recruits at any other position means he’s been poor at recruiting for a RB coach. 

I read this a lot, and I don't necessarily disagree with it, but specifically who are the RB coaches across the countries who make it rain recruits across various positions? It seems like the recruiting position is actually the TE and second DL coaching spots than RB. It seems like most highly regarded RB coaches are just good at landing RBs. 

I do agree that Drayton could help out more.

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1 minute ago, Burt Macklin said:

This is good stuff. The only thing I’d disagree with is that part of the job of a RB coach is to recruit beyond your position and help out with other elite prospects, which Drayton hasn’t done at all. So while he’a been a mixed bag at his position group, I’d say that combined with him being a complete non-factor as to recruits at any other position means he’s been poor at recruiting for a RB coach. 

^^^ Drayton isn't Traylor, a recruiting chameleon that can fit into any situation and family dynamic. Drayton is Drayton, and while that's great for a man, it's not ideal for a recruiter unless your prospect is Bijan Robinson. Guys like Drayton are great as a component to the staff, but not with the expectation of being a rainmaker. 

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10 minutes ago, BrazilHorn said:

Maybe it’s because my buddy’s son plays for Rockwall and I’m following their playoff run but did Texas just never have a shot at that WR who is going to fucking Ohio State?

Losing that kid to OSU should have been enough to fire the offensive staff. 

We just never chased him until like the season had already started and he'd been a tOSU commit for months.

You might notice that our whole offensive staff except for Hand, Drayton, and (mystifyingly) Warehime has been fired or demoted, so, yeah.

Edited by texifornia
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4 minutes ago, texifornia said:

We just never chased him until like the season had already started and he'd been a tOSU commit for months.

You might notice that our whole offensive staff except for Hand and (mystifyingly) Warehime has been fired or demoted, so, yeah.

And Drayton.  But you're right in that both WR coaches and the offenses best recruiter have been demoted/fired.

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