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Texas Recruiting Notes 2020


Reese Bennett

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5 minutes ago, lemonandaturd said:

In the last couple of days, Carrington tweeted "scheming"  and "everything doesn't need to be signaled."  I hope those are Robinson related.  

"Everything doesn't need to be signaled" was clearly referring to the run of un-sshed commitments. Scheming could be anything I suppose.

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2 minutes ago, texifornia said:

"Everything doesn't need to be signaled" was clearly referring to the run of un-sshed commitments. Scheming could be anything I suppose.

Yeah, wasn’t there a 9.95er that sent out the bat signal right before a commitment? I think it was Juan Davis.That’s probably what Carrington was referring to. 

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5 minutes ago, Hiphopopotamos said:

This seems like it might be a development. 995’ers may want to start investigating. 

If Wiltfong is speculating it's a sure bet a number of them are already aware.  If there's anything to it we should start seeing the CBs changing over the next 24 hrs.

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Just now, Newy25 said:

If he really is going to commit next week, and it isn’t OSU, we are the only logical choice. If he picks Arizona despite not even taking an official there over Texas I will send a strongly worded letter to Drayton. 

The Gunnell Effect? The Rum Runner sails again?

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1 hour ago, Tony Two K said:

And here's to you, Mr. Robinson 
Texas loves you more than you will know 
Wo wo wo 
God bless you, please, Mr. Robinson 

 

56 minutes ago, RGBIII said:

Maybe Mama is winning this recruitment again? I want to believe

Back to the original version

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5 minutes ago, Newy25 said:

If he really is going to commit next week, and it isn’t OSU, we are the only logical choice. If he picks Arizona despite not even taking an official there over Texas I will send a strongly worded letter to Drayton. 

So, if it isn't us, it is breakdown time.

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSL0COijEp6Cb4iRBsLQe_

 

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I meant to link to the non-paywalled article:

https://247sports.com/college/texas/Article/Inside-Salpointe-Catholic-standout-Bijan-Robinson-rise-to-five-star-recruit-Ohio-State-Texas-USC-133720608/

Inside Bijan Robinson's rise to five-star recruit
 

Quote

The first football games five-star running back Bijan Robinson played in were inside his grandparents house. Sometimes he was suited up in a Denver Broncos uniform, or the New Orleans Saints and naturally the two in-state college programs Arizona and Arizona State.

“It’s kind of weird,” Robinson started in. “I would throw the ball to myself and make the sound effects and it was a real football game. I would play and sometimes my mom would try and play with me. I would play and visualize the other team trying to tackle me and I’d tackle myself.

“It was crazy.”

And along the way Robinson naturally broke a television inside the house. Vases didn’t stand a chance, there were broken plants and broken pictures too. Never a rule about playing ball inside though.

“I’m laughing because from the age of two or three Bijan always wanted a football, he was throwing a football around the house and breaking stuff,” his grandfather Cleo Robinson said. “I remember my wife saying you need to go pro so you can pay me back for the stuff you broke around the house.”

Now a five-star recruit according to the 247Sports Composite Player Rankings, perhaps the Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe Catholic standout will be wearing a real Broncos or Saints jersey four or five years down the road. On Aug. 2 he’ll announce which college jersey he plans to wear, deciding between the likes of Ohio State, Texas, USC along with the Sun Devils and Wildcats. The Buckeyes are the 247Sports Crystal Ball favorite.

For Robinson there is certainly some destiny in this. A picture of him getting his first haircut there’s a football prominent in his hands.

“It’s a sport I’ve always meant to play in the long run,” he said.

There’s a lot of long runs on the 6-foot, 200-pound Robinson’s film. Currently ranked as the No. 4 running back in the Top247 Player Rankings, he went for 2,400 yards and 35 touchdowns as a junior, a year after churning out 2,023 and 26 scores in his sophomore campaign. 247Sports National Analyst Blair Angulo compares Robinson’s game to that of Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson and projects him as a first round draft pick down the road.

“Stout, lean frame,” Angulo wrote in his 247Sports evaluation. “Well-proportioned weight. Looks strong at 200 pounds. Terrific vision and patience behind the line of scrimmage. Has burst to hit the second level and reach another gear. Short strides, but effectively changes pace and turns the corner. Elusive in the open field. Threat to score from anywhere on the field. Serviceable pass-catcher with good hands. Potential to contribute immediately in college and garner All-American buzz.”

Robinson’s grandfather Cleo ran track at Northern Arizona and played defensive back there his last year. He went on to become a Pac 12 official and currently works in the instant replay booth for the conference. He’s seen some terrific running backs in his day up close and personal, none better in his opiniton than USC great Reggie Bush. Robinson was on the field in South Bend when the Trojans beat the Irish in the “Bush push” game. He’s seen the former Heisman Trophy winner do incredible things.

“He would just go all out,” Robinson said. “His thing was give it 100 percent all the time. His skill level, cutting real quick, the quickness, going from zero to 40 in three steps, that’s something Bijan can do too. He can be coming somewhere and those first three or four steps he’s yards down the field. When he makes his cut he can pick up speed real quick.”

Cleo said that is natural for Bijan. When he signed him up for flag football Robinson had an innate ability for making defenders miss, even if his first two career carries he ultimately ran the wrong way in awarding two points to the other team.

“He got the ball, ran away from people, spun around and I guess he thought ‘I need to go somewhere’ and ran away the wrong way,” Cleo laughed.

“I wouldn’t let him play tackle for awhile. Around eight or nine I let him play. I remember walking on the field for his first scrimmage, Bijan was running a sweep and three or four people had cut him off and Bijan slowed down and moved toward the inside and when they slowed down Bijan turned it up and went outside and I was like where did he learn that from? I saw he had that natural ability and vision. From there in youth football, Bijan almost scored every time he wanted to.”

With that, Bijan’s grandparents and mother just stayed on him about being humble regarding his talents. When Rich Rodriguez, the then head coach at Arizona offered a scholarship after freshman season, they celebrated for a second, “I was like whoa,” Robinson said, but then it was time to be modest.

“My wife and I often see all the publicity he’s getting now, to look at him and watch him practice I think Bijan rates with some of the best,” Cleo said. “I really love his attitude towards the game. He’s working on skills all the time. How to block, footwork, at practice now sometimes he wants to go with the linemen blocking. That’s how much he’s trying to better his skills.

“My favorite thing about Bijan is his character. He’s got that character. People see him play and come up to me and say he’s a great kid, he’s a great kid. I tell him his athletic ability is going to leave him one day but his character is something he’s going to have to live with for the rest of his life.”

Robinson asked Arizona State coach Herm Edwards for advice on how he and his wife should conduct their part, what their role should be in the recruiting process regarding their grandson.

“He said nothing,” Cleo rehashed. “He said if the kid wants to go someplace and we tell him to go somewhere else he might leave after getting there. If he selects the place he’s going to, he’ll stay. What we do is give support and give him alternatives. I paid for a couple unofficial visits just so he can experience that school and make the decision that he thought was best for him. We gave him the support, we discussed things with him, the good and bad at schools, but the final decision we’re leaving entirely up to him.”

Robinson’s mind seems made up now and he’ll announce those plans in a couple weeks. He had a lot of fun along the way. The official visits especially, beginning with Ohio State on June 14.

“That’s a national brand for football,” the younger Robinson said. “They have talent everywhere. How they are as people. The mindset they have to become great every day. For me the running back situation, they have JK Dobbins (possibly) leaving so they have a need for running back. I’d fit right in as the guy. I’d have to work for it. They have a really good setup for life after football. Their branding skills, it makes a difference.”

“The head coach was very impressive,” Cleo said of Ryan Day. “We went to his house and spent quality time and the way he talks about how the program is. Coach (Tony) Alford was very involved and Coach Alford I think with him he was a little more persistent than the other coaches but bottom line he was impressive. The facilities were nice and the fact this is Ohio State football and Bijan liked the fact the stadium held 110,000 people. Bijan liked that a lot. Some of the names that went through there, and he got to hang with JK Dobbins for a couple nights and they really got along really well. I think that influenced his thoughts too.”

From there, Robinson went to USC.

“USC my auntie lives there,” Robinson said, adding he idolized Reggie Bush growing up. “That’s a big reason why. The program and what they’re trying to do and how they’re trying to come up is a good look for them. I know they haven’t been in the playoffs yet or a bowl game last year but how they’re coming up as a team, it was pretty big for me to look at that.”

“I think USC, the thing stood out No. 1 he liked Coach Clay Helton,” Cleo added. “He liked the running backs coach. The biggest thing was his aunt lives in LA. Bijan and his aunt grew up together in our house like sister and brother. He liked the academic part of it. Je just liked the location and all that.”

Texas got the last official visit the weekend of June 21.

“Of course the city of Austin is amazing,” Bijan said. He also sees opportunity on the depth chart to be instant impact. “They have this coach, he’s like a preacher coach, he teaches you about a lot of different things about God, about how to use yourself in the world with other people. That was pretty awesome. How the players are around each other, it was cool to see how they gel with each other. That’s huge for me to see what kind of players are at that program.”

“He really liked when he met with Matthew McConaughey,” Cleo started laughing again. “They had about a 15 to 20 minute conversation. Bijan at the time didn’t know who he was and started walking away and heard the crowd started yelling ‘alright, alright alright.’ Austin was very impressive. We liked it a lot. Coach (Tom) Herman was very, very impressive. Herman and my wife got into this thing about the quote of the day. My wife is very religious, we all are, and they were exchanging about that. The facility was very nice and they’re going to add to it. The whole attitude towards Texas football around the community and against the coaches and Herman himself picked us up at the airport. That was one of those things that was very impressive to us. The way they treated Bijan while he was there.”

 

Edited by Machinator
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Super K update on Bijan:

With Bijan Robinson, expected to announce later this week, it seemed all be sealed up for Ohio State.

But reports began emerging this morning that Robinson may be rethinking things.

I am told that this is indeed true. I’m told that Ohio State no longer feels confident and their staff is unaware of the reasons. I am told however that it was related to the “family”.

This leads me back to the conversation I had with Bijan’s mother immediately after his official visit to Texas. As I mentioned, it seemed very clear that she had a preference for Texas and USC.

Here’s a quote from a report I posted on July 10th…

“Based on the conversation I had with Bijan’s mother, if he does choose Ohio State, I’ll take it as a sign that Bijan was adamant that Ohio State was the right spot for him. As, I didn’t get the sense that Ohio State would be mom’s first or even second choice.”

I think it’s probably time I go ahead and transcribe some of the quotes from that conversation but needless to say, if the family has indeed intervened (and I am told they have), then this is potentially huge.

Robinson is the best RB in the country IMO and I’ve seen all the big ones.

I will note that Robinson has an aunt who lives near USC. I say that to remind you all that reporting Ohio State is back down the list, doesn’t necessarily mean Texas is the winner. But again, if it goes mom’s way…I think Texas is a tough out.

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“Of course the city of Austin is amazing,” Bijan said. He also sees opportunity on the depth chart to be instant impact. “They have this coach, he’s like a preacher coach, he teaches you about a lot of different things about God, about how to use yourself in the world with other people. That was pretty awesome. How the players are around each other, it was cool to see how they gel with each other. That’s huge for me to see what kind of players are at that program.”

That would be Kevin Washington I assume: https://twitter.com/kevwash630?lang=en

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Just now, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

Let’s take a ride on the way back machine and head back to 3 weeks ago when you idiots wanted to rebuild a staff coming off back to back top 3 recruiting classes and a Sugar Bowl win.

The staff still has issues, you dumbfuck. Even if Drayton lands Bijan, a RB coach Landing two guys at his position in three years and not helping out with other positions doesn’t justify his performance and we’re still wasting 3 spots on WR and TE. 

 

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Just now, Burt Macklin said:

The staff still has issues, you dumbfuck. Even if Drayton lands Bijan, a RB coach Landing two guys at his position in three years and not helping out with other positions doesn’t justify his performance and we’re still wasting 3 spots on WR and TE. 

 

You bet.

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