The first high school commitment of the Tom Herman era is in, and it comes at a position of incredible need. Houston (TX) Langham Creek running back Toneil Carter was a long time Georgia commit, but complications with his plans to enroll early led to a parting of ways between Carter and the Dawgs. The Under Armour All-American picked Texas over offers from the aforementioned Georgia, Alabama, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Texas A&M among many others.
Carter was offered early in the Charlie Strong era, but he never showed much interest in Texas. The New Orleans native moved to the Houston area following Hurricane Katrina, and the previous Texas staff never really pushed for him. Carter took part in The Opening last summer in Oregon, where he timed well in most of the testing on site. Carter will enroll early at Texas, and take part in spring practice with the Longhorns. The Longhorns will still target a second running back in this class, and all signs point to Wylie East star Eno Benjamin.
Film Analysis:
Carter has good size at 5’11, 200 lbs., with a lanky frame that could add more weight. His film shows a classic one-cut runner with explosive ability through the hole and into the open field. Carter doesn’t show a ton of wiggle, but his open field speed is on the high end, and his 2nd gear is elite. Carter shows a strong stiff arm, with a decent ability to break tackles. He could work on dropping his pads just a bit to make himself less of a target. Carter shows the ability to catch the ball out of the back field, and his skills after the catch can translate to big plays in space. His position versatility allows him to be deployed in a number of ways including work in the slot on screens and jet sweeps. He shows good lateral quickness with stop/start ability, but he will need to work a bit on his vision to hone his natural running instincts.
Final Verdict:
What a big time win for Tom Herman to kick things off. Texas was in need of a home run hitter at the position, and Carter’s skillset is a rarity on the Texas roster. The consensus 4-star back has a high athletic ceiling that will allow him to play early in Austin. If he reaches his ceiling he could be an All-American candidate and NFL runner once his career is over.
