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Texas Recruiting Notes 2022 - Idiotic Slapfights Unrelated To 2022 Recruiting


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Just now, NoName said:

i really want this rumor to be something QE gets asked about.

He has no reason to, and we don't need him to. It would literally be bad for both Ewers and Texas.

Just now, NoName said:

realllllllllllllllly going to be interesting to see where they have QE

At 6, they released their 5*s yesterday

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25 minutes ago, Ricky's one-hitter said:

He has no reason to, and we don't need him to. It would literally be bad for both Ewers and Texas.

At 6, they released their 5*s yesterday

oh i mean it is an example of how dumb shit is. poster makes something up totally and completely and it makes its way to the player.

 

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Roach on his Winfield CB

Spoiler

I’ve entered a new 247Sports Crystal Ball pick in the 2022 class. Following the commitment of Southlake Carroll quarterback Quinn Ewers, I believe receivers will be giving the Longhorns a better look.

Following the hiring of Andre Coleman, Texas was already on the rise with Armani Winfield. After landing Ewers, I believe that Texas is now an even more appealing for the four-star Lewisville product.

Following the commitment of Lancaster wide receiver Phaizon Wilson, 247Sports’ Director of Recruiting Steve Wiltfong mentioned he was also hearing that Winfield was high on the Longhorns.


Winfield holds offers from over 30 schools including programs like Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas A&M, Auburn, LSU and many others. A two-year starter in high school, Winfield totaled 1,134 yards and 11 touchdowns during his freshman and sophomore seasons at the D-FW area high school.

A unanimous first-team all-district selection as a sophomore, Winfield would be the second receiver in the class if he were to commit. He’s played for Dallas-based 7v7 clubs True Buzz and Texas Flex over the last few years.

42
COMMENTS
Oklahoma currently holds 100% of the 247Sports Crystal Ball with two predictions for Winfield on the Sooners. My pick comes with a confidence score of 7 based on what I’m hearing as of right now.

At 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, Winfield is ranked as the No. 11 wide receiver in the nation and No. 15 overall prospect in Texas, according to 247Sports Composite.

 

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Max Olson @ The Athletic: Ehlinger to Ewers: How far Texas’ QB room has come via Tom Herman’s blueprint

has a number of quotes from Riley Dodge in it

Quote

“From the Alabamas of the world, Ohio State, Clemson, Oklahoma, you can go on and on — wherever he’s gonna go, there’s gonna be legit dudes on every campus,” Dodge said. “So he’s gonna have to compete. He understands that. I don’t think that’s something that scares him whatsoever. I think he’s excited for the challenge when he does get on campus one day.”

Quote

Those young passers were thrown into starting roles too soon and saddled with unfairly high expectations. And they had to be great. Because throughout those lean years, the backups didn’t work out. Connor Brewer, Jalen Overstreet, Kai Locksley and Matthew Merrick didn’t make an impact, and all transferred. Texas tried to bring in USC’s Max Wittek, the rarest graduate transfer of all: one who failed to graduate on time. The staff bet on Zach Gentry, a 6-foot-8 recruit out of New Mexico, but he flipped to Michigan and immediately became a tight end there. They tried to flip Kyler Murray, which proved to be an infamous waste of time.


 

Quote

 

Ewers won’t have to be the Longhorns’ freshman phenom — even if he is that good.

“He’s unbelievable,” Dodge said. “He’s just so natural, so much God-gifted ability. I’ve been fortunate enough to be around some guys at the college level and the high school level up close and personal and from afar. He’s the most talented at that young age that I’ve ever been around. He’s special.”

 

 

 

text:

Spoiler

 

Ehlinger to Ewers: How far Texas’ QB room has come via Tom Herman’s blueprint

GettyImages-1088868690-scaled-e1597722968272-1024x682.jpg
By Max Olson 3h ago comment-icon.png 2 save-icon.png

Quinn Ewers still has two more years of high school. He’s not interested in two more years of recruiting. So the No. 1 prospect in the class of 2022 decided to send out a tweet last Friday afternoon and shut it all down.

“It doesn’t get him too fired up,” Southlake Carroll coach Riley Dodge said. “Obviously he’s got some time, but I think he got to the point where he was just kinda done with it.”

The five-star junior went with his gut and committed to Texas. For Ewers, it’s a dream come true for an in-state kid who always rooted for the Longhorns growing up. And for Texas, it’s further validation of how much the program’s quarterback situation has changed under Tom Herman.

 

Texas’ quarterback room now has a four-year starter in Sam Ehlinger, a seasoned third-year backup in Casey Thompson and two top-100 true freshmen in Hudson Card and Ja’Quinden Jackson. Texas has enough arms that it could move Roschon Johnson to running back last season and keep him there. And now Ewers is on board.

How does this all play out after Ehlinger graduates? Nobody knows. But that’s a great problem to have. Real competition. Best player wins. That’s how it’s supposed to work in winning programs. Texas is not betting all its hopes on any one quarterback and doesn’t have to ask anybody to be the program savior as a freshman. For Herman and offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich, this is a pretty optimal situation going forward.

That depth of passing talent was not a deal-breaker for Ewers. Dodge said they talked that out early on in his recruiting process.

“From the Alabamas of the world, Ohio State, Clemson, Oklahoma, you can go on and on — wherever he’s gonna go, there’s gonna be legit dudes on every campus,” Dodge said. “So he’s gonna have to compete. He understands that. I don’t think that’s something that scares him whatsoever. I think he’s excited for the challenge when he does get on campus one day.”

Nobody was talking about Texas’ quarterback room among that elite company five years ago. To fully appreciate Ewers’ pledge and what it means for Texas’ future at quarterback, remember what that room used to look like. Ewers’ head coach knows better than anybody. Texas was pretty darn desperate at the quarterback position when Dodge was on staff as a young quality control coach in 2013 and 2014.

“It’s a night-and-day difference,” Dodge said. “They’ve done a great job of putting all their energy in that position, because that’s where it starts.”

The Mack Brown era ended with Garrett Gilbert busting, David Ash getting knocked out for the season and Case McCoy somehow leading a run to nine wins. When Charlie Strong took over after 2013, the quarterback situation he and his new staff inherited was troubling. They had Ash, a junior with a concerning history of concussions. They had Tyrone Swoopes, a sophomore who eventually became a tight end in the NFL. They had touted freshman Jerrod Heard, who would later move to receiver. They had walk-ons Trey Holtz and Logan Vinklarek. And they had converted receiver Miles Onyegbule, who tore his ACL in preseason camp.

Ash got hurt on his first hit in Strong’s first game. His college career was over. Swoopes had to be the guy as a sophomore. He wasn’t ready. Heard had to be the guy as a redshirt freshman in 2015. He wasn’t ready. So Shane Buechele had to be the guy as a true freshman in 2016. And he was solid. If Buechele had showed up a year earlier, he might’ve been able to buy Strong more time.

But instead, Herman took over in 2017. Buechele dealt with injuries as a sophomore, so then Ehlinger had to be the guy as a true freshman. He had some big-time moments and some rough ones. Because as Texas learned many times in that four-year stretch, freshmen are gonna freshmen.

The fundamental problem during this entire period: Texas kept changing its offense. Bryan Harsin, Major Applewhite, Shawn Watson (and Joe Wickline!), Jay Norvell, Sterlin Gilbert, Tim Beck and Herman — that’s seven offensive play callers in seven years. Normal quarterback development cannot occur under those conditions. Watson and Swoopes both were benched after 14 games. Buechele and Gilbert only got one season together. You’re never really building anything if you’re always starting over.

“You feel bad for those quarterbacks just in the sense that it’s hard to get in a rhythm when you don’t have the same coordinator year in and year out,” Dodge said. “That’s tough in college football nowadays. It was new quarterback coaches, new play callers, new systems. And the guys I think about like Tyrone and Jerrod, those guys were very talented, young, raw, had great upside. But when you’re that young, you need stability in an offense. You need years and years under a guy. That’s just something those kids never had a chance, never got that opportunity.”

Those young passers were thrown into starting roles too soon and saddled with unfairly high expectations. And they had to be great. Because throughout those lean years, the backups didn’t work out. Connor Brewer, Jalen Overstreet, Kai Locksley and Matthew Merrick didn’t make an impact, and all transferred. Texas tried to bring in USC’s Max Wittek, the rarest graduate transfer of all: one who failed to graduate on time. The staff bet on Zach Gentry, a 6-foot-8 recruit out of New Mexico, but he flipped to Michigan and immediately became a tight end there. They tried to flip Kyler Murray, which proved to be an infamous waste of time.

Herman and Ehlinger finally brought an end to all the desperation and indecision. Picking Ehlinger over Buechele in 2018 was a difficult choice that has seriously paid off. Ehlinger quickly became Texas’ most beloved star since Colt McCoy, an impressive leader who got better every year, playing through injuries and playing his best in big games. When you finally find that quarterback who can be The Guy, it changes your program’s trajectory. And it also buys you so much more time to develop behind him.

“I think Sam was the right guy at the right time for Texas and Coach Herman,” said Dodge, whose father Todd Dodge coached Ehlinger at Austin Westlake. “Just with his athletic ability and how he plays the game, but on top of it with him, it’s his intangibles. He’s an amazing leader on and off the field. Guys follow him. He’s got some crap to him. And that’s what you want in the quarterback position. I think he’s kind of laid the blueprint for what the position of quarterback should be played like at the University of Texas.”

And when you finally get it right with a dude like Ehlinger, you stop hearing the narratives about who you passed on. Maybe Mack Brown can finally forgive this scribe for sending out that one viral tweet about Jameis Winston claiming he always wanted a Texas offer. Brown still gives me grief about it whenever our paths cross. He probably won’t forget it. But he could!

Herman deserves credit, no doubt, and it’s not surprising he pulled off this quarterback room turnaround. At Ohio State, he helped coach up and recruit arguably college football’s most stacked quarterback group of the decade: Braxton Miller, J.T. Barrett, Cardale Jones, Joe Burrow. Since arriving in Austin, he and his coaches and recruiting staffers have made the right evaluations and succeeded in landing their targets. They haven’t chased transfers. And they hadn’t dealt with decommitments until Monday night, when longtime 2021 commit Jalen Milroe responded to Ewers’ pledge by flipping to Alabama. Although that move was a surprise, it does make a lot of sense given just how crowded Texas’ quarterback room is about to get.

Are Thompson, Card and Jackson all going to stick around beyond 2021? That’s not how it usually goes in college football. Talented guys are going to bet on themselves and try to play somewhere else. It’s really hard to keep your backups. When Ehlinger emerged as the guy, Cam Rising left after one season. Now he’s competing to start at Utah. Thompson briefly went in the portal that winter, too, but he stayed. Johnson found a better role at running back. Card and Jackson will someday have a fascinating battle. And that’s for the best, because it’s far better to let competition and improvement dictate these season-defining decisions. If you bet it all on one guy — like Texas once did with Gilbert — you can go off the rails quickly.

All of this has put tremendous pressure on Ehlinger over the past few years. He doesn’t get enough credit for the stability he’s provided for his program by having what it takes to be The Guy. What he’s done for Texas will make it easier for kids like Ewers. The five-star can come in and develop and have a better shot at playing up to his immense potential.

Ewers won’t have to be the Longhorns’ freshman phenom — even if he is that good.

“He’s unbelievable,” Dodge said. “He’s just so natural, so much God-gifted ability. I’ve been fortunate enough to be around some guys at the college level and the high school level up close and personal and from afar. He’s the most talented at that young age that I’ve ever been around. He’s special.”

But when he gets to Texas, he’ll have to earn it.

 

 

Edited by NoName
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6 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Wait are we actually going to get this guy today? Certainly there'd be Crystal Ball movement from Ohio State, no?

Maybe they're freezing his balls like they did with Ewers wait please delete 

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1 minute ago, Thiefery said:

choosing tosu wouldn't be shocking the world..  however choosing Texas with hime being Fong'd to tosu at a level 7 would.

I haven't seen Roach's notes, but nobody is really talking about it because I don't think anyone has new information.

Feels like a bigger deal. Ewers RTs feel like a big deal. #shocktheworld wouldn't mean fOSU (I know kids are hyperbolic, fuck off), and his timeline was previously longer. What triggered a commit now? Feels more promising than it's being made out to be by the 9.95ers

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1 minute ago, thepop said:

I feel like this would not be the first time a recruit has said "shock the world" and proceeds to commit to the school everyone expected.

The most shocked I've ever been when a recruit has said something about "shocking the world" was when Javonne Shepherd didn't flip away on signing day. Then he didn't shock me when he elected to portal into Bolivia.

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9 minutes ago, Ricky's one-hitter said:

I haven't seen Roach's notes, but nobody is really talking about it because I don't think anyone has new information.

Feels like a bigger deal. Ewers RTs feel like a big deal. #shocktheworld wouldn't mean fOSU (I know kids are hyperbolic, fuck off), and his timeline was previously longer. What triggered a commit now? Feels more promising than it's being made out to be by the 9.95ers

Dasan also tweeted at a WR out of Oregon with no Texas offer calling him a future teammate. QE liked it. QE might just be an active tweeter.

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2 minutes ago, Ryno said:

Dasan also tweeted at a WR out of Oregon with no Texas offer calling him a future teammate. QE liked it. QE might just be an active tweeter.

Go look at his twitter history. He is not active at all.

He might be now that he's committed, especially if he feels some pressure to recruit, but he's not historically a twitter guy. 

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Lol... maybe 1 out of 10 recruits actually shock the world when they try to hype up their commitments.  Ewers is probably just helping his friend out by retweeting to get him some more likes.  If he comes to Texas, great.  I think a realistic WR haul would be Stewart, Wilson, Winfield, and probably one more.  I really hope we get Burton, but I feel like he's probably heading out of state.

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Also, I have this sick feeling about 2022 OL.  I hope the Ewers commitment can change the recent trend of Texas and blue chip OL prospects.

-  Devon Campbell-  We need to lock him up soon.  Get a good early start with the top in-state player.  He's a guard however and we need some tackles.

-  Kelvin Banks-  He's a big time aggy lean right now.  

-  Kam Dewberry-  He's a perfect fit for Texas.  You'd think Sam Cosmi being a 1st round pick and our progress on the OL along with Hand recruiting for a while would make this a slam dunk.  Somehow, aggy's shitty OL and terrible OL hires and boring offense have put them in the lead here.  I hope he picks Texas but not banking on it.  I think we're going to see a similar recruitment to Kenyon Green's.  There's going to be outside influences and perhaps some promises he will fall for like Green did.  

-  Jaylen Early-  Since Samples has left, we've had a hard time recruiting Duncanville.  We whiffed on Chris Thompson, Byrd hates Texas now, Rakestraw passed on us.  Blackshire has no interest in us, but not sure we even recruited him much.  Whatever pipeline we had going for us is no longer there.  I hope we lock him up but recent trends show that school not exactly favoring Texas recently.  

-Cameron Wiliams-  Are we even recruiting him?

 

Need to get Carrington on these guys asap.  Hand completely whiffed in 2021 and not sure I'd let him handle these recruitments on his own.  

Edited by victory88
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2 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

I thought when Kelvin Banks decommitted from Okie Lite we looked good for him? When the fuck and what the shit happened to make him a heavy aggie lean so quickly? Don't misunderstand me, I'm not questioning it, I've seen it reported elsewhere. But I'm definitely scratching my fucking head there. 

A couple of recruits were laughing and poking fun at having Banks in the dream 2022 class edit.    

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8 minutes ago, victory88 said:

-Cameron Wiliams-  Are we even recruiting him?

Hamilton went out to see him, so I suspect we're about to find out

 

9 minutes ago, victory88 said:

-  Devon Campbell-  We need to lock him up soon.  Get a good early start with the top in-state player.  He's a guard however and we need some tackles.

Co-sign

9 minutes ago, victory88 said:

-  Kelvin Banks-  He's a big time aggy lean right now.  

I also have a hard time actually believing this. Feels very aggy wishcasty to me. He may be leaning, but I doubt it's anything significant. He's at Summer Creek, so it's not out of the question, but we have time on our side. He may take it to the end after decommitting. Hopefully aggy tries to sell him some 3 hour zoom calls.

I have a feeling we will be doing OL nationally again. I think you're right about Early and PJ Williams doesn't actually play football really well. Time to rip off some OOS offers.

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Herman is going to have to hire a fucking full time recruiter for Hand just like he did for Drayton. Long term he’s probably not the guy, honestly. 
 

Hand’s panic offers/interest from the 2021 class have been illuminating. Illuminating in the way that Hand clearly isn’t the guy identifying the talent in previous classes. Let him work in grad transfers and “positional fit discussions” and let some young Turk do the heavy lifting (see 2021 RB recruiting). 

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4 minutes ago, golfclap said:

Herman is going to have to hire a fucking full time recruiter for Hand just like he did for Drayton. Long term he’s probably not the guy, honestly. 
 

Hand’s panic offers/interest from the 2021 class have been illuminating. Illuminating in the way that Hand clearly isn’t the guy identifying the talent in previous classes. Let him work in grad transfers and “positional fit discussions” and let some young Turk do the heavy lifting (see 2021 RB recruiting). 

I agree.  I was big on Hand his first 2 years.  I think he's done a great job getting our OL to where it's at.  With that said, we need to take one more step to get to where we want to be and he's getting his ass handed to him.  I also think that 11 sack game against simple stunts against a pure shit ou DL has put a big shit stain on his resume.  How the fuck can you allow that to happen in a big time game.  That's on the same level as Strong having 3 FGs and PATs blocked in the same game.  It's poor fucking coaching.  

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1 minute ago, Fud said:

It's too early for me to start worrying about 2022 OL recruiting. Let's see how the season goes for the OL, offense, and team, and where Cosmi gets drafted

Most of these players will be committed well before the NFL draft.  I think the criticism is warranted considering how 2021 has turned out and how 2022 is shaping up.  With that said, lets see how Ewers and Carrington can change things.  

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1 minute ago, victory88 said:

Most of these players will be committed well before the NFL draft.  I think the criticism is warranted considering how 2021 has turned out and how 2022 is shaping up.  With that said, lets see how Ewers and Carrington can change things.  

Maybe they will be, maybe they won't. Signing day will still be about eight months after the draft, and there is a full football season between those two events. Flips will happen. More prospects will materialize. Some won't be committed. Etc. 

I never said not to offer criticism. I just think it's too premature to write most of these guys off. They're just now starting their junior seasons, and there are a lot of variables that can make a difference between now and then. 

But you're free to worry about it, don't let me stop you. I just think it's premature. 

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19 minutes ago, victory88 said:

Most of these players will be committed well before the NFL draft.  I think the criticism is warranted considering how 2021 has turned out and how 2022 is shaping up.  With that said, lets see how Ewers and Carrington can change things.  

It's August, nearly 4 months after the draft, and 5 of the top 10 OT's in the 2021 class are not committed.  The Brockermeyers just committed a couple of weeks ago (3+ months after the draft).

 

 

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19 minutes ago, victory88 said:

I agree.  I was big on Hand his first 2 years.  I think he's done a great job getting our OL to where it's at.  With that said, we need to take one more step to get to where we want to be and he's getting his ass handed to him.  I also think that 11 sack game against simple stunts against a pure shit ou DL has put a big shit stain on his resume.  How the fuck can you allow that to happen in a big time game.  That's on the same level as Strong having 3 FGs and PATs blocked in the same game.  It's poor fucking coaching.  

Anyone know why Hand was retained? 

If it was to pitch the Brocks positional continuity, I think we're good to move on. 

Herb is getting worked. His stops in the SEC didn't require pitching against the SEC for elite talent and to this point, he has been unable to do that. At least Drayton has coaching skins on the wall. Herb, as you said, gave up 11 sacks to the archrival with a simple gameplan. 

I'd like to see us land a Will Friend type, but would also be interested in a rehab job for Justin Frye when Kelly gets fired. 

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2 minutes ago, Ricky's one-hitter said:

Anyone know why Hand was retained? 

If it was to pitch the Brocks positional continuity, I think we're good to move on. 

Herb is getting worked. His stops in the SEC didn't require pitching against the SEC for elite talent and to this point, he has been unable to do that. At least Drayton has coaching skins on the wall. Herb, as you said, gave up 11 sacks to the archrival with a simple gameplan. 

I'd like to see us land a Will Friend type, but would also be interested in a rehab job for Justin Frye when Kelly gets fired. 

Sheesh, the guy made our line better and recruited really well in 2020. I'm not saying he's OL coach Jesus, but he didn't have a fireable year, especially if they wanted to try and maintain some staff continuity.

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1 hour ago, gordogg24p said:

The most shocked I've ever been when a recruit has said something about "shocking the world" was when Javonne Shepherd didn't flip away on signing day. Then he didn't shock me when he elected to portal into Bolivia.

Even when he signed with Texas it bugged the shit of me. A total waste of time and talent. 

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1 minute ago, texifornia said:

Sheesh, the guy made our line better and recruited really well in 2020. I'm not saying he's OL coach Jesus, but he didn't have a fireable year, especially if they wanted to try and maintain some staff continuity.

Better than it was doesn't mean good. Just better. 

If half of your job is recruiting and half of your job is coaching, I would say that the 2019 season combined with this offseason feels fireable to me. 

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48 minutes ago, victory88 said:

I agree.  I was big on Hand his first 2 years.  I think he's done a great job getting our OL to where it's at.  With that said, we need to take one more step to get to where we want to be and he's getting his ass handed to him.  I also think that 11 sack game against simple stunts against a pure shit ou DL has put a big shit stain on his resume.  How the fuck can you allow that to happen in a big time game.  That's on the same level as Strong having 3 FGs and PATs blocked in the same game.  It's poor fucking coaching.  

Not disagreeing with your premise & nearly all of what is stated, but didn’t one of the “pure shit DL” get drafted pretty high? 

3rd round #82.  Edit

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13 minutes ago, Fud said:

FWIW, Hand was on the shortlist for the Georgia job in the offseason. Not sure if he would have taken it though

Also, if we're dreaming about potential replacements, I'd go after Harry Hiestand 

Hiestand came back to Chicago to get the years needed for his NFL pension.  He's retired now - I don't think he has any interest in returning.

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Rivals 2022 top 250, in-state

3) Denver Harris
6) Quinn Ewers
10) Kam Dewberry
15) Bear Alexander
24) Devon Campbell
29) Caleb Burton
37) Bryce Anderson
53) Jaydon Blue
58) Brenen Thompson
65) Kelvin Banks
79) Evan Stewart
83) Malick Sylla
95) Armani Winfield
103) Bryan Allen Jr
109) Chace Biddle
127) Harold Perkins
133) Phaizon Wilson
155) Kobie McKinzie
157) Cameron Williams
159) Donovan Green
178) Jaylon Guilbeau
184) Jordan Hudson
189) Julian Humphrey
190) Conner Weigman
193) Emeka Megwa
198) Jadarian Price
200) Bobby Taylor
203) Omari Abor
210) Christian Driver
225) Cole Hutson
233) Tavorus Jones
234) Demetrius Hunter
236) Ernest Cooper

https://n.rivals.com/prospect_rankings/rivals250/2022

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Horns 247 / Mike Roach / Crystal Ballin: Updating predictions for the 2022 class

Roach balls.

Spoiler

Crystal Ballin: Updating predictions for the 2022 class

MikeRoach
 

Buzz is beginning to pick up in the 2022 class.

Following the commitments of Phaizon Wilson and Quinn Ewers, chatter is going around from a group of 2022 prospects. With that in mind, it’s time for another round of Crystal Ballin’ to update a round of 247Sports Crystal Balls for the 2022 class.

New picks


Last night I entered a prediction for Lewisville wide receiver Armani Winfield after hearing some intel on him, but he isn’t the only prospect I’ve heard of generating positive buzz with the Longhorns.

I’ve also entered a new pick for a 2022 star defender. Even before Ewers committed, I started to hear strong feedback on Denver Harris. The five-star North Shore cornerback has been a big target of Texas cornerbacks coach Jay Valai, and the Longhorns are right at the top of the list. I don’t believe Harris is as close to a decision as others may be, so I’ve entered him with a confidence score of 6 for now.

Rising confidence


I already had a pick in for Jaydon Blue with a confidence score of 6, but I’ve elevated that score to an 8. Blue was high on Texas initially as the Longhorns were one of the first schools to offer the top back in the state for 2022, and I’m told that Blue has been in contact with the Texas staff and commits quite a bit recently. I worried about LSU initially in this recruitment, but I think Texas is standing out right now.

I also took the Crystal Ball confidence score up from a 6 to an 8 for Arlington Bowie offensive lineman Devon Campbell. The five-star guard has been high on Texas since the beginning, but the Longhorns continue to grow bigger in his eyes.

I’ve also pushed the confidence score from a 6 to an 8 for Port Arthur Memorial cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau. Guilbeau was one of the first 2022 Crystal Ball picks I entered, and I haven’t lost confidence in Texas there. Jay Valai has been pushing hard in this recruitment, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Texas push for a commitment with a loaded field at cornerback.

Close to entering a pick


I mentioned it in The Stampede, but I’m close to entering a 247Sports Crystal Ball pick for five-star Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy safety Kamari Wilson. In this week’s edition of The Stampede, I wrote about how things were pretty real with Wilson before Ewers committed, and the press for the top safety in the country hasn’t stopped since the 2022 class took off. My hesitation is that Wilson has yet to visit and he has some other big time programs after him. That said, I believe Texas is for real in that race.

One player I heard quite a bit about after Ewers committed was Fort Worth Nolan Catholic athlete Emeka Megwa. I have yet to connect with Megwa or those around him, but I was told by several people that he had a very strong reaction to Ewers making his commitment. Texas has always been in a sneaky good position for Megwa, but the Longhorns could be moving into a commanding position.

I checked in with sources near Frisco Liberty wide receiver Evan Stewart to see if there was any reason for movement with the 2022 speedster. While I like the early job the Longhorns have done in his recruitment, I was told he probably isn’t quite ready. Stewart didn’t enter the year a major recruit and he’s still getting to know the bigger schools still recruiting him. I think Texas remains at the top of the group but he’s not quite ready to shut things down.

On the rise


While I don’t think Texas has moved into the lead for the following prospects, I believe stock is on the rise. I’d need to see more to enter a Crystal Ball, but the early information is encouraging so far.

Jay Valai is also working hard on Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei cornerback Domani Jackson. While Texas is in the mix at the top, there is still some congestion with Clemson and Michigan looming large in this recruitment. Still, I think this is a race Texas can realistically win for an elite out of state prospect.

I once thought Oklahoma would be tough to overcome for 2022 Duncanville DE Omari Abor. I think Texas is closing that gap quickly. Not only have the Longhorns been able to pitch him on fit in the defense, but they’ve also talked to the two-sport star about an opportunity to play basketball at the next level. The Longhorns keep moving forward with the monster athlete and could continue to rise with some momentum in this class.

A month ago, I thought Texas was fading hard with Atascocita offensive lineman Kam Dewberry, but Texas might be on the upswing once again. The staff will still have to overcome programs like Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, but the staff and commits are giving Texas a chance to climb back into it. It’s really up to Herb Hand to take this by the proverbial horns and finish the job.

 

 

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