When Malik Jefferson and Deandre McNeal committed to the Longhorns a title wave of momentum began around the state’s top recruits. The momentum was carried over when Texas received commitments from two more high school teammates who just happen to be brothers. 2016 Gilmer (TX) linebacker Demarco Boyd and his brother 2015 defensive back Kris Boyd pledged to the Longhorns days after their Buckeyes completed a thrilling comeback win in the Texas State Championship Game. The Boyd brothers are cousins of former Longhorn defensive back Curtis Brown.
Kris has been a hot prospect on the recruiting radar since sometime last year and has been all over the map on what schools he preferred. The Army All American chose Texas over offers from Florida State, Texas A&M, Oregon, Alabama, Oklahoma, and LSU. While Texas has been up and down in Boyd’s rankings they really became a serious contender when they were the first school to offer his younger brother, Demarco. The younger Boyd also held an offer from Florida State but made it clear early on that Texas was his leader. The desperately needed recruiting momentum seems to be just starting, but this is two huge pickups at need positions for the next two classes.
Kris Boyd
Film Analysis:
Boyd is a big corner at 6’ 180 lbs. He plays the game very physically preferring to jam receivers at the line with his quick hands and physical strength. Kris has good straight line speed that he shows up when he plays running back at Gilmer. Boyd is a very fluid athlete with quick change of direction skills and smooth hips.
Against the run Boyd is able to fight through blockers and stop plays on the boundaries. He plays disciplined, with outside leverage on run plays that don’t wash him inside to allow big gains. Kris plays with a ton of confidence on the field and it shows on film. At times he can be a little too wide in his base when playing man coverage which causes him to get beat, but that is a technique issue that can be coached.
Boyd is a good tackler who plays with good leverage and technique but will sometimes try to body players to bring them down. He plays with good eye discipline in the secondary and sticks to his assignments instead of freelancing to make more plays. His full set of skills allow him to play any position in the secondary, but he appears to be the type of big physical corner that Charlie Strong covets.
Final Verdict:
This fills a huge recruiting need – Texas was looking to acquire more corners with the departures of their two starting seniors. Boyd is one of the top ten players in the state and his combination of physical play, size, and speed reveal a ceiling of a multiple year starter and early draft pick. This win is almost as big as that of Malik Jefferson.
Demarco Boyd
Film Analysis:
The younger Boyd is a thickly built kid at 6’ 223 lbs. with potential to really fill out. There isn’t a lot of film out on him but Demarco looks like a prototype middle ‘backer. His size and speed allow him to shoot through gaps in a plug and scrape scheme, but his versatile athleticism (he also plays running back) makes him an asset in coverage.
Boyd is a good tackler and physical hitter that can play sideline to sideline. Most of the film out on him is from his sophomore season so it’s very difficult to project much from that. We will update a report on him when more film becomes available.
Final Verdict:
While some say this offer was made just to get the older brother, it’s clear that Demarco has a valuable skillset of his own. He’s the rare type of big bodied inside linebacker that is also athletic enough to stay on the field in passing situations. At this time in the evaluation I don’t have enough on him to project a ceiling, but this is a nice pickup for the 2016 class that already has two big time prospects.
