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Texas Recruiting Notes 2022 - Idiotic Slapfights Unrelated To 2022 Recruiting


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31 minutes ago, Thiefery said:

Yeah I thought the word from the $9.95ers was that he wanted to commit early so he could help recruit other elite kids to the class.  Which is why he wasn't steady with Texas since he only got a few who committed after he did.  Word was  no one wanted to come join him, including Burton who was in his ear about tosu the whole time.  We all know what happened next.. but as of today, only Texas kid that has committed to tosu besides Ewers, is Burton.

With the reaction of the Wilson surprise commit yesterday, I bet Quinn knows it's a much bigger deal if he stayed in Texas and be the head of an important class that started the loyal to the soil mantra.  No more excuses about not being developed when Sark is one of the top offensive minds in CFB.

All that to say is, I think CTJ is correct, the flip will happen soon. 

No inside info here,  but I'll take the contrarian view on this.  

Why wouldn't he wait and see what we do next season under Sark?  It's not like he's going to end up without a scholarship.

 

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If Ewers really was raised a hardcore Longhorn like we’ve been told, I see little reason for him not to flip to us. At least outside of any bag issues that shouldn’t come into play for Southlake kid. 
 

The bonds he’s built over the last 4 months with OSU commits? Please 

Better NFL prep? With Sark now, I’d say that’s a no at least at the QB position. 
 

Better team prospects? Obviously the one big point for OSU, but Sark and his offense has a lot of momentum. A top QB has to think in that offense that they can play with anybody. 
 

He’s coming. 

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7 minutes ago, Laga4 said:

No inside info here,  but I'll take the contrarian view on this.  

Why wouldn't he wait and see what we do next season under Sark?  It's not like he's going to end up without a scholarship.

 

At some point we would move on. QBs commit early, you can’t wait around on one forever, especially one who is already committed to another school. There are plenty of great QBs that are interested in playing for Sark.

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1 minute ago, GRHorn said:

If Ewers really was raised a hardcore Longhorn like we’ve been told, I see little reason for him not to flip to us. At least outside of any bag issues that shouldn’t come into play for Southlake kid. 
 

The bonds he’s built over the last 4 months with OSU commits? Please 

Better NFL prep? With Sark now, I’d say that’s a no at least at the QB position. 
 

Better team prospects? Obviously the one big point for OSU, but Sark and his offense has a lot of momentum. A top QB has to think in that offense that they can play with anybody. 
 

He’s coming. 

You're really not counting a teenage kid's ego and pride as a factor?

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Just saying there's a lot of time between now and NSD 1. 

Quin has the hammer on this deal. 

I think it's at least 50/50 he ends up at Texas.

He can commit after we beat OU and still bring errbody with him. 

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22 minutes ago, TommyGufano said:

Depends if he ran it conventionally or attempted it in backpedal for some reason. It was almost 2 years ago. Maybe his athleticism has improved.

Two years ago for him is like 14 yrs old, pretty safe bet he’s improved.

None of these official times are up to date because of COVID, and unless they’re already super good, probably aren’t  worth paying attention to.

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1 hour ago, golfclap said:

4.59 shuttle? Oof. 
 

Ran in March of his freshman year.  Covid has screwed up the evaluation process. For kids his size, I would expect a three-tenths of a second improvement, if not more, in the forty from frosh to senior. In the shuttle? I'm not as sure.  Repetition makes a big difference in the shuttle. If he gets it down to say 4.2, wouldn't you say that's serviceable for a safety?

Just speculating.

Hopefully we see times this spring, otherwise evaluation is going to be really tough.

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7 hours ago, Spider2YBanana said:

I wouldn't even be surprised if Ewers has already let Sark know eventually he'll come, but he doesn't want to make the same mistake and just flip back immediately. Give the kid some time and he'll come around. Loyal to the soil. 

should '22 be a two QB class?

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The Athletic: Four things Steve Sarkisian has to get right to turn Texas around his way
 

Quote

 

2. Recruiting

Newly hired Texas coach says the program must keep the best in-state players home: Check!

Like all of his predecessors, Sarkisian said all the right things about locking down the state and opening his doors to Texas high school coaches. The objective is obvious, just as it was after the last coaching change. There were 52 four- or five-star recruits in Texas in the class of 2021. Only six have signed with the Longhorns. Seven are going to Alabama. So he knows exactly what he’s up against.

There’s little he can do to change the dynamic in that 2021 cycle beyond working with Drayton to try to win the battle against Texas A&M for LJ Johnson, the No. 3 running back out of Houston who must decide soon as an early enrollee. The new staff will have to size up the roster needs and should contend for players in the transfer portal this offseason, but that’s about it for reinforcements coming to this No. 17 ranked transition class.

Time to get rolling on 2022. Those efforts began in surprising fashion on Tuesday with a verbal commitment from receiver Armani Winfield, a top-100 recruit in his class from Lewisville, Texas. Winfield was perceived to be an Ohio State lean going into the week. After watching the first half of the national title game, he called Coleman to say he was ready to commit. Sarkisian touted that new pledge at his presser as proof of the excitement about Texas football right now.

Texas’ former QB commit Quinn Ewers says he’s trying to build the best recruiting class ever for Ohio State. Who knows if Sark has a shot at winning over Ewers and convincing the No. 1 overall recruit to rejoin Texas’ class, but he has to go out and find recruits like Winfield who will embrace that same class-building mission. The first full recruiting cycles for Herman (No. 3) and Charlie Strong (No. 10) at Texas were loaded. The opportunity here is massive, even with the fierce competition coming from Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ohio State, LSU and all the other usual foes.

Sarkisian’s first full recruiting class at USC ranked No. 2 nationally — just barely behind Alabama in 247Sports’ rankings — and yielded Sam Darnold, Ronald Jones II, five more draft picks and a total of 10 players who made NFL rosters in 2020. That 2015 class also finished No. 5 in our recruiting re-rank four years later. That’s a good sign. Though Sarkisian only got to coach those players for five games, clearly he and his coaches identified the right guys and built consensus within their region (with 19 in-state signees) that USC was the place to be.

The big, unknowable question ahead: When can Texas’ new staff start getting these players to campus for visits? The NCAA recruiting dead period was extended through April 15, and there’s no telling when it’ll be safe enough to lift that restriction. In the meantime, they’ll have to get creative about how they forge these relationships and generate more momentum.

“Now it’s our job to capitalize on it and continue to build on that excitement so that flame doesn’t fizzle out,” he said. “We need that flame to continue to burn with excitement about Longhorn football.”

 


Article:

Spoiler

 

Four things Steve Sarkisian has to get right to turn Texas around his way
By Max Olson Jan 13, 2021 19

All gas, no brakes. That’s been the promise from Steve Sarkisian as he takes over Texas.

Sarkisian arrived in Austin about 12 hours after winning a national championship at Alabama, and the buzz from that title game domination grants him some serious starting momentum as he gets to work on building up the Longhorns as fast as he possibly can.

“I don’t think it’s gonna take us as long as many might think,” Sarkisian said Tuesday. “We’ve got a talented young roster. I think we’re gonna hire a tremendous coaching staff and we’re gonna continue to recruit the best players in the state of Texas. I think as we start to look back, they’re gonna see our brand of football, they see the type of team we have, the close-knit camaraderie our team’s gonna have, the way our team works and then what we put on the field.

“People will want to join this, I promise you that. People are gonna want to be part of this program.”

Where must he start in trying to help a top-20 team pull off the big leap into Big 12 title and College Football Playoff contention? Here are four things Sarkisian addressed in his first day on campus that he’ll need to get right in order to get Texas rolling.
 

1. Staff construction

Sarkisian offered no hints on Tuesday about who’s coming with him or when those hires will get wrapped up. But he and athletic director Chris Del Conte have talked a big game about the group of coaches the new head man is assembling. On the day of the coaching change, Del Conte teased that Sarkisian is working on a “super exciting” and “incredible” staff. He’s gotten quite a bit accomplished on that front since Jan. 2.

“We’ll hire a staff that is smart, that is bright, that has great personalities but yet has a tremendous work ethic so that we can achieve the greatness that we’re all striving for,” Sarkisian said.

Texas hasn’t announced any hires, but Sarkisian reportedly has Alabama colleagues A.J. Milwee and Kyle Flood on board for his offensive staff. Running backs coach Stan Drayton is being retained, and Sarkisian told the Austin American-Stateman that receivers coach Andre Coleman is staying on as well.

Bo Davis, Terry Joseph and Blake Gideon are reportedly on board for Texas’ defensive staff, though titles and responsibilities seem to still be a work in progress. The real mystery here, though, is what Sarkisian intends to do about his defensive coordinator hire.

Mississippi State’s Zach Arnett could end up being the pick. He’s not going to be the new defensive coordinator at LSU, as The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman reported, but Arnett is in the mix for Oregon’s vacancy. His 3-3-5 defense at San Diego State ranked No. 2 nationally in scoring (12.7 points per game allowed) in 2019. In his first season in Starkville, Mississippi State finished with a top-25 defense in takeaways and against the run. Arnett did ink an extension in mid-December, so swiping him likely requires paying a buyout. Alabama’s Pete Golding could be a contender, too, though you’d think such a hire would pretty much require Nick Saban’s blessing. And it’s possible Chris Ash, the man Texas is already paying $800,000 a year to be their defensive coordinator, should not be counted out.

Whoever the choice is, Sarkisian needs a defensive coordinator and two more assistant coaches. He’s also reportedly planning to bring in Cal strength coach Torre Becton and move on from Yancy McKnight. What the new head coach builds beyond those 11 roles matters a great deal, too. He knows the immense value of the deep support staff at Alabama, because that’s how he got back into coaching. So it’ll be interesting to see who he lures for analyst positions to boost the on-field staff.
 

2. Recruiting

Newly hired Texas coach says the program must keep the best in-state players home: Check!

Like all of his predecessors, Sarkisian said all the right things about locking down the state and opening his doors to Texas high school coaches. The objective is obvious, just as it was after the last coaching change. There were 52 four- or five-star recruits in Texas in the class of 2021. Only six have signed with the Longhorns. Seven are going to Alabama. So he knows exactly what he’s up against.

There’s little he can do to change the dynamic in that 2021 cycle beyond working with Drayton to try to win the battle against Texas A&M for LJ Johnson, the No. 3 running back out of Houston who must decide soon as an early enrollee. The new staff will have to size up the roster needs and should contend for players in the transfer portal this offseason, but that’s about it for reinforcements coming to this No. 17 ranked transition class.

Time to get rolling on 2022. Those efforts began in surprising fashion on Tuesday with a verbal commitment from receiver Armani Winfield, a top-100 recruit in his class from Lewisville, Texas. Winfield was perceived to be an Ohio State lean going into the week. After watching the first half of the national title game, he called Coleman to say he was ready to commit. Sarkisian touted that new pledge at his presser as proof of the excitement about Texas football right now.

Texas’ former QB commit Quinn Ewers says he’s trying to build the best recruiting class ever for Ohio State. Who knows if Sark has a shot at winning over Ewers and convincing the No. 1 overall recruit to rejoin Texas’ class, but he has to go out and find recruits like Winfield who will embrace that same class-building mission. The first full recruiting cycles for Herman (No. 3) and Charlie Strong (No. 10) at Texas were loaded. The opportunity here is massive, even with the fierce competition coming from Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ohio State, LSU and all the other usual foes.

Sarkisian’s first full recruiting class at USC ranked No. 2 nationally — just barely behind Alabama in 247Sports’ rankings — and yielded Sam Darnold, Ronald Jones II, five more draft picks and a total of 10 players who made NFL rosters in 2020. That 2015 class also finished No. 5 in our recruiting re-rank four years later. That’s a good sign. Though Sarkisian only got to coach those players for five games, clearly he and his coaches identified the right guys and built consensus within their region (with 19 in-state signees) that USC was the place to be.

The big, unknowable question ahead: When can Texas’ new staff start getting these players to campus for visits? The NCAA recruiting dead period was extended through April 15, and there’s no telling when it’ll be safe enough to lift that restriction. In the meantime, they’ll have to get creative about how they forge these relationships and generate more momentum.

“Now it’s our job to capitalize on it and continue to build on that excitement so that flame doesn’t fizzle out,” he said. “We need that flame to continue to burn with excitement about Longhorn football.”


3. Player relationships

This topic goes without saying but is important to reinforce in the context of Texas’ coaching change. Any newly hired coach is going to espouse the usual lines about culture and family and all that good stuff in their introduction. But Sarkisian’s specific message on Tuesday should be quite encouraging to hear for Longhorn players before they return to campus next week.

“Everything we’re going to do in this program is gonna be centered around what is best for our players,” he said. “Our goal is to put our players in the best position to be successful, whether that’s in life, whether that’s on the football field or in the classroom. They will be the priority of our program and we’ll make sure we’ll have everything in place surrounding them to put them in the best position to do that.

“And I think that starts with building authentic relationships with them. I think it’s getting to know them, and that’ll be one of the key components here as I’m getting now on campus here of getting to know our football team, getting to know our players individually. Because I think it’s critically important to have that relationship for them to be able to open up to me and for me to be able to open up to them.”

Let’s hope he means it and makes good on that aim over the course of this offseason. Because this tweet from now-former Texas receiver Brennan Eagles, who’s going pro after three years in the program, is worth acknowledging.

    Build genuine relationships, that’s all i ask. 🤘🏾 @CoachSark

    — 🦅 (@_BrennanEagles_) January 12, 2021

Eagles doesn’t speak for everyone on his team. But when the big change went down on Jan. 2, you saw a lot of current Texas players tweeting about which assistant coaches they hoped would stay in Austin. You did not see many of them thanking Herman or mourning his downfall like you do at other programs going through these tough transitions. How many players were genuinely upset about the change and how many quietly welcomed it? It’s hard to know for sure and unfair to guess.

But put it this way: Look at the two programs that played for a Big 12 championship in 2020. When you ask Oklahoma and Iowa State players about the culture in their program, they rave about the authenticity of their head coach, the true family atmosphere inside their building and how their love for their coaches motivates them to play their hardest. It’s really hard to build a consistently successful program in this sport if the coach-player relationships are transactional instead of genuine.

Sarkisian needs to strike the right tone from Day 1 and earn this team’s respect. These players just went through a staff overhaul at the end of the 2019 season. Now it’s happening all over again. And if a one-time transfer exception eventually gets passed this year, it’s going to become even more convenient for players to bail if they get a bad vibe from this new staff.

4. ‘The Eyes of Texas’

Sarkisian got asked this question: Have you followed the debate over “The Eyes of Texas” and what are your thoughts? He responded with an answer that his new bosses no doubt prepped him for.

“I know this much, ‘The Eyes of Texas’ is our school song,” he said. “We support that song, we’re gonna sing that song and we’re gonna sing it proudly.”

That stance is going to please lots of Texas stakeholders, but how will it go over with his team? Again, it’s probably unfair to guess how that’s received in his locker room and whether this was a misstep on his part, since we don’t know the current state of Texas players’ feelings on the matter. The team captains who addressed this topic during the season — Sam Ehlinger and Ta’Quon Graham — have moved on.

It’s also hard to know whether Sarkisian thought it over and arrived at that conclusion, was repeating the company line he was told or doesn’t know enough about the matter. That third possibility would be understandable. But if he and his reps followed Texas’ issues during the 2020 season at all, surely this topic was raised before he accepted the job.

It’s probably fair to point out: Well, what was he supposed to say? If you shrug, say you’re the new guy here and you don’t know, you’re just going to keep getting asked about this in the months ahead. If you say you wish to talk it out with your team and see what they think, now you’ve created a problem with the people who just hired you. Maybe, among those bad options, this was the way to go for now.

So Sarkisian took the stance that he supports the alma mater while adding that it’s important he and his players have a dialogue about any issues that arise.

“We can’t put our head in the sand and act like things aren’t happening,” he said. “We have to really have those discussions with them and educate our players to make sure that we’re all on the same page and understanding that. I think sometimes there are tough discussions that need to happen. Without speaking too candidly, we’re living in a country right now where there’s some turmoil going on. But as long as we can have those discussions and be on the same page, we can do that.

“As it pertains to ‘The Eyes of Texas,’ that’s our song and we’re fired up to sing it.”

Hopefully, he’s aware of what he’s getting into here and knows to tread lightly. It’s important to not lose sight of the fact this is still ultimately an administration problem. It’s on president Jay Hartzell and Del Conte to fully settle this matter, not the football coach who just landed in town 24 hours ago or the team of 18- to 22-year-olds he hasn’t even met. This is and will continue to be an uncomfortable, complicated issue. But it’s one of the many challenges that come with being the head coach at a place like Texas.

Max Olson covers national college football for The Athletic. He previously covered the Big 12 and recruiting for ESPN.com. Follow Max on Twitter @max_olson.

 

 

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31 minutes ago, Doc Sam Beckett said:

Look bros, Armani is a stud. Flip Ewers and Burton, then grab Williams. 3 WR is good enough right? Leave Thompson for Clemson please and thank you 

Thompson, Stewart, and Marshall, imo, and leave a spot for Burton if he wants in late 

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I think others had mentioned it but I remember reading previously that Burton wants to get out of Texas and really has no interest staying home for college.  

Plenty of elite WRs in Texas for 2022.  Sark just needs to show these players they can be developed and utilized here.  We can circle back to Burton later if we show a great offense and if Ewers joins the fold.  That will be hard to pass up.

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2 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

 

Disclaimer- I’ve not seen either play.  I’m definitely no a QB whisperer. 
However, re: Klubnik v Ewers- Would you guys not be elated with either?

per this (thx @LTtxfan) “Tale of the Tape”- Klubnik’s played nearly twice the games and thrown 60% more yards, 36% more TD’s, ran for four times as many TD’s (which I’ll take as an offset to only 60% more yards thrown) and has the same amount of INT’s.  What’s not to like? 
basically what am I not seeing?

 

 

Edited by NTVTXN
Mean to add/ I do find it odd they don’t list rushing yards.
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12 minutes ago, NTVTXN said:

Disclaimer- I’ve not seen either play.  I’m definitely no a QB whisperer. 
However, re: Klubnik v Ewers- Would you guys not be elated with either?

per this (thx @LTtxfan) “Tale of the Tape”- Klubnik’s played nearly twice the games and thrown 60% more yards, 36% more TD’s, ran for four times as many TD’s (which I’ll take as an offset to only 60% more yards thrown) and has the same amount of INT’s.  What’s not to like? 
basically what am I not seeing?

 

 

Both would be great, and there's a lot of great QB options in this class. Absolutely stacked year. But Ewers is regarded as a generational talent a la Trevor Lawrence. 

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17 minutes ago, NTVTXN said:

Disclaimer- I’ve not seen either play.  I’m definitely no a QB whisperer. 
However, re: Klubnik v Ewers- Would you guys not be elated with either?

per this (thx @LTtxfan) “Tale of the Tape”- Klubnik’s played nearly twice the games and thrown 60% more yards, 36% more TD’s, ran for four times as many TD’s (which I’ll take as an offset to only 60% more yards thrown) and has the same amount of INT’s.  What’s not to like? 
basically what am I not seeing?

 

 

 

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18 hours ago, Lonestar88 said:

At some point we would move on. QBs commit early, you can’t wait around on one forever, especially one who is already committed to another school. There are plenty of great QBs that are interested in playing for Sark.

 

18 hours ago, Laga4 said:

Just saying there's a lot of time between now and NSD 1. 

Quin has the hammer on this deal. 

I think it's at least 50/50 he ends up at Texas.

He can commit after we beat OU and still bring errbody with him. 

Lonestar88's take is correct and the reason I stated upthread that if a flip happens, it will likely be ahead of summer. That's what the $9.95ers believe too.

1 hour ago, NTVTXN said:

Disclaimer- I’ve not seen either play.  I’m definitely no a QB whisperer. 
However, re: Klubnik v Ewers- Would you guys not be elated with either?

per this (thx @LTtxfan) “Tale of the Tape”- Klubnik’s played nearly twice the games and thrown 60% more yards, 36% more TD’s, ran for four times as many TD’s (which I’ll take as an offset to only 60% more yards thrown) and has the same amount of INT’s.  What’s not to like? 
basically what am I not seeing?

 

 

Irrespective of what we think about the Ewers/Klubnik comparison, one has been immediately given the slowplay and the other is being showered with love in pursuit of a flip back to Texas, and it's evident that Sarkisian knows his shit with QB evaluations.

Ewers has a quick trigger and lightning quick reads and instincts for defenses, plus all of the measurables. He's not the #1 recruit in the country because of his HS stats, sorry.

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  • closetojumping changed the title to Texas Recruiting Notes 2022 - All Gas No Brakes
1 hour ago, NTVTXN said:

Disclaimer- I’ve not seen either play.  I’m definitely no a QB whisperer. 
However, re: Klubnik v Ewers- Would you guys not be elated with either?

per this (thx @LTtxfan) “Tale of the Tape”- Klubnik’s played nearly twice the games and thrown 60% more yards, 36% more TD’s, ran for four times as many TD’s (which I’ll take as an offset to only 60% more yards thrown) and has the same amount of INT’s.  What’s not to like? 
basically what am I not seeing?

 

 

A lot. Comparing stats is not how you evaluate prospects. 

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5 minutes ago, Machinator said:

I liked "All Bags, No Brakes" a little better, but that works too.

Change your 2023 to one of the better ones we've tossed out there, sir. If this fucking recruiting season starts raining bags, I'll happily change the title again. Let's consider the 2022 thread title a tone setter/temperature check for the class overall.

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Just now, closetojumping said:

Change your 2023 to one of the better ones we've tossed out there, sir. If this fucking recruiting season starts raining bags, I'll happily change the title again. Let's consider the 2022 thread title a tone setter/temperature check for the class overall.

Already done.

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Gerry on Jeff Banks:

Spoiler

Jeff Banks Rainmaker Recruiter

If anyone is interested in wondering how big the hire of Jeff Banks is for Texas, just simply take a look at the number and talent of prospects inside the state lines Banks was in charge of recruiting at Alabama.

For those wondering, if Steve Sarkisian just hired a “rainmaker” in recruiting, jut take a peek at this list …

2022’s Jeff Banks was recruiting for Alabama:

Omari Abor, DE Duncanville High

Bear Alexander, DT, Denton Ryan

Kelvin Banks, OT, Summer Creek

Chace Biddle, S, Garland High

Caleb Burton, WR, Del Valle (Ohio State commit)

Devon Campbell, OG, Arlington Bowie

Ernest Cooper, DE, Arlington Martin

Kam, Dewberry, OT/G, Atascocita

Jayden Early, OT/G, Duncanville

Jordan Hudson, WR, Garland High (Oklahoma commit)

Cole Hutson, OG, Frisco High

Harold Perkins, OLB, Cy-Park

Evan Stewart, WR, Frisco Liberty

Malick Sylla, DE, Katy High

Bobby Taylor, CB, Katy High

Brenen Thompson, WR/ATH, Spearman

Neto Umeozulu, OT, Allen High

 

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  • closetojumping changed the title to Texas Recruiting Notes 2022 - Idiotic Slapfights Unrelated To 2022 Recruiting

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