CJ Vogel
Posted 32 minutes ago
Biggest Takeaways from June 20th Official Visit Weekend
Surprise, Surprise!
You never quite know what recruiting can bring you on a day to day in 2025. That could not be emphasized more by the commitment of Sierra Canyon EDGE Richard Wesley who just wrapped up his official visit this afternoon.
The lows of last weekend feel like a distance vision in the rear view mirror at the moment and that's just the beauty of the world of recruiting.
Richard Wesley's commitment was not one of the outstanding "Hi's" and it was a surprising to me, at least, that a decision came as quickly as it did. The only other official visit that was scheduled by Wesley was to Ohio State on August 30 for week one's matchup against Texas. Now, the Longhorns land one of the top edge rushers in the country.
Oh, I should add – even after the reclassification from 2026 to 2027, Wesley remains a top 15 player in the country. That is a special talent.
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Defensive Front Seven Haul
With Wesley's decision to commit to Texas, the Longhorns add another blue-chip out of stater to the 2026 class. On paper, there probably is not a better class in the country when it comes to the defensive front seven forecast.
Texas has commitments from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and California on the front seven and could add prospects from Florida, Georgia and New Jersey as well. The Longhorns are recruiting SEC-level talent from SEC territories.
Fort Myers DL Kendall Geurvil told me this afternoon that Texas remained his No. 1 school in his recruitment after his official visit.
Miami Northwestern DL James Johnson bumped Syracuse for Texas this weekend and called Texas "DLU" following his trip. Johnson said he should announce in the next day or two his decision date.
Add in Damari Simeon out of New Jersey and the quality of prospect Texas is pursuing currently is as high as I have ever seen it.
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On the Topic of Linebacker
We have seen some questions in the chat of livestreams and here on the board about the future of Tyler Atkinson and Xavier Griffin at the next level and where they would play.
Xavier Griffin told OTF last week the pitch from Texas included playing off of the edge to begin his college career before eventually moving to off ball linebacker as his body continues to develop.
As for Tyler Atkinson, Texas is recruiting him in the middle of the field. Atkinson said Texas wants him to be the "quarterback of the defense" at the next level, calling the defense and roaming the middle. Atkinson has been training in the Austin area with Longhorn legend Derrick Johnson over the past few weeks, an arrangement that was set up by current linebacker Anthony Hill Jr.
The linebacker position continues to have work needed to be down, but the picture is becoming clearer as the Longhorn look to add 3-4 backers in the class this cycle.
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At Tight End
There were rumors floating around that Coronado (Calif.) TE Keawe Browne was going to make a decision in favor of the Longhorns this morning. Well, the morning has come and gone and we have yet to see a decision come from Browne.
Instead, Browne told OTF this morning he was going to wait a week or two before making any sort of decision. Texas hosted Heze Kent for an official visit last week and Bowdon (Ga.) TE Kaiden Prothro was on campus this weekend as well.
I caught up with Prothro this afternoon, who kept things relatively close to the vest, but did share how the Longhorns planned to use him in the offense –
"Really just me as a split out guy and being a mismatch nightmare for the defense and just get me the ball and playmake."
A decision for Prothro will come in the next month, with the contenders including Auburn, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Texas "measured up well" according to Prothro after his trip.
Emaree Winston was the lead host on the trip for the Georgia native.