Denzel Okafor commits to Texas

[Bevostuntdouble]

The most appealing thing with Okafor are his high, thick hips. Wick seeks out these types a lot as they have so much lower body power. Add in the fact that defenders have a horrible time trying to put their hands on him because of his long arms.

I'll add that Okafor is not underdeveloped by any stretch. The kid's got a pair of pythons already. But he has such a large frame that he'll be able to add more bulk muscle without suffering loss of mobility or quickness.

Okafor's 3-star rating is a joke. He's a stud and should be a mid-4 star. Ratings matter to the fans and are done by "experts" many of whom have never played a down of ball. That's all nice but the rubber meets the road in the realm of who the coach wants to recruit . . . and why.

SHA, Rivals has him listed as a 2*... Im asking this legitimately, how is he as good as you are saying but is only being recognized as a 2* at worst and a 3* at best? I understand that the star system isn't always correct(Swoopes being a 5* at one point), but generally speaking the stars do mean something. It seems like a bit of a stretch to elevate a guy rated as a 2* to a mid ranged 4*. Are we just settling at this point? Again I am not all consumed by the start rating system but we seem to be picking up a bunch 3*'s and some 2*'s and people continue to talk them up. Its not as though Texas HS FB is in a HS market that isn't heavily watched by the recruiting world... Are we just settling for project players that have a much lower potential?

 

[Hiphopopotamos]

SHA, Rivals has him listed as a 2*... Im asking this legitimately, how is he as good as you are saying but is only being recognized as a 2* at worst and a 3* at best? I understand that the star system isn't always correct(Swoopes being a 5* at one point), but generally speaking the stars do mean something. It seems like a bit of a stretch to elevate a guy rated as a 2* to a mid ranged 4*. Are we just settling at this point? Again I am not all consumed by the start rating system but we seem to be picking up a bunch 3*'s and some 2*'s and people continue to talk them up. Its not as though Texas HS FB is in a HS market that isn't heavily watched by the recruiting world... Are we just settling for project players that have a much lower potential?

Connor Williams was a 3 star but had offers from every major program in the country and is one of the best Freshman players in the country.  Outside of the 5 stars (and everybody knows who they are) - high school rankings are pretty worthless.  Of all the recruiting services Rivals is probably the worst - they rarely ever update the ratings once a kid has been rated.  High school recruiting ratings are a joke.  How many games and how many kids do you think these guys have actually watched?

Kids make big jumps - through simple maturity or from working their asses off - between their Junior and Senior years all the time.  Okafor is a great get who had offers from some very quality teams (with a history of successful recruiting).  I don't care what his star rating is.

 

[texbound]

SHA, Rivals has him listed as a 2*... Im asking this legitimately, how is he as good as you are saying but is only being recognized as a 2* at worst and a 3* at best? I understand that the star system isn't always correct(Swoopes being a 5* at one point), but generally speaking the stars do mean something. It seems like a bit of a stretch to elevate a guy rated as a 2* to a mid ranged 4*. Are we just settling at this point? Again I am not all consumed by the start rating system but we seem to be picking up a bunch 3*'s and some 2*'s and people continue to talk them up. Its not as though Texas HS FB is in a HS market that isn't heavily watched by the recruiting world... Are we just settling for project players that have a much lower potential?

It's hard to judge, ESPN has Denzel rated as a 4*.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/football/recruiting/player/_/id/206871/denzel-okafor

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

Connor Williams was a 3 star but had offers from every major program in the country and is one of the best Freshman players in the country.  Outside of the 5 stars (and everybody knows who they are) - high school rankings are pretty worthless.  Of all the recruiting services Rivals is probably the worst - they rarely ever update the ratings once a kid has been rated.  High school recruiting ratings are a joke.  How many games and how many kids do you think these guys have actually watched?

Kids make big jumps - through simple maturity or from working their asses off - between their Junior and Senior years all the time.  Okafor is a great get who had offers from some very quality teams (with a history of successful recruiting).  I don't care what his star rating is.

Fair enough... I get all of that and I agree with all of that. But I also know that generally speaking 5 stars and most 4 stars are more ready to come in and contribute immediately. That said, with as poor as our coaching has been(especially on the O side), we need kids that can come in immediately and use their superior talent to offset what the coaching lacks. Orrr we can keep picking up 3* type talent with upside and the coaches have to get their coaching shit together and develop these kids. 

Thanks.

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

It's hard to judge, ESPN has Denzel rated as a 4*.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/football/recruiting/player/_/id/206871/denzel-okafor

It's amazing the difference between one rating site to the next... You'd think it'd be in their best interest to be as accurate as possible.

Thanks.

 

[texbound]

It's amazing the difference between one rating site to the next... You'd think it'd be in their best interest to be as accurate as possible.

Thanks.

I don't get it either. I find it best to go with which ever site rates your teams commit the highest on the flip side, go with the site that ranks your rival teams commit lower

 

[DMAC]

After watching some of his footage, the kid stays on his block.  The way our OL has been for the past 2 years I for one welcome this kid with open arms.

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

I don't get it either. I find it best to go with which ever site rates your teams commit the highest on the flip side, go with the site that ranks your rival teams commit lower

Solid advice! Seems legit to me!

 

[Sirhornsalot]

SHA, Rivals has him listed as a 2*... Im asking this legitimately, how is he as good as you are saying but is only being recognized as a 2* at worst and a 3* at best? I understand that the star system isn't always correct(Swoopes being a 5* at one point), but generally speaking the stars do mean something. It seems like a bit of a stretch to elevate a guy rated as a 2* to a mid ranged 4*. Are we just settling at this point? Again I am not all consumed by the start rating system but we seem to be picking up a bunch 3*'s and some 2*'s and people continue to talk them up. Its not as though Texas HS FB is in a HS market that isn't heavily watched by the recruiting world... Are we just settling for project players that have a much lower potential?

I think you're referring to the Rivals rating, which in most cases is a popularity contest. Scout (ESPN) ranks Okafor as a 4-star, which I think is accurate.

We are not settling. TCU, the team that blasted us a few weeks ago, was the favorite to land Okafor for most of the summer. 

I know the kid personally so it might seem I am biased, but as honest as I can be I'd say Denzel is one of the top 3 OL in the DFW Metroplex. Additionally, Okafor has been a starter for three straight years at a 6A high school that is in a district with Allen, FM Marcus, the Plano schools and McKinney Boyd. He's a proven commodity.

Outside of ALL OF THAT, I would suggest to you that a UT staff with the likes of Strong, Bedford, etc., are not dependent on Rivals or any other rating service to conduct their recruiting. They know what they see when they see it. It's why so many are left perplexed when we don't go after some 5-star and instead are in pursuit of a 3-star. I honestly trust this staff (and others around the league) much more than I'll ever trust a service that involves the likes of Jabba the Hut to make it's ratings. That guy never touched a football field in his life.

 

[Bear19]

RIVALS is an absolute joke.

 

[NWAHorn]

Jonathan Gray was a 5*. D'Onta Foreman was a 3*. Which is the better RB now? Garrett Gilbert was a 5*, Colt was a 3*. Stars don't mean squat and are based on what? Most of the recruiting experts never see these kids in person, only their Hudl highlights. For OL, it's all about their frame and how hard they are willing to work.

 

[Mike Roach]

Rivals likes to lock in their rankings before seeing senior film. I was underwhelmed by his junior film but thought he grew a lot as a senior

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Agree, and so many of these athletes will put on 20 lbs between their jr and sr years and gain some physical maturity that they didn't have before. If you miss that, then your rankings are just fun and games.

 

[Godz40acres]

Rivals had my wife rated as a 2-star while all the others had her as a 5. This brought her 247 Composite down to a 4 and almost caused me to reconsider marrying her.

She's now a 10+ by all but Rivals which still has her as a 2.

SMH.

 

[Rotty22]

She's now a 10+ by all

SMH.

post a pic and we'll be the judge of that.    :lol:

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

I think you're referring to the Rivals rating, which in most cases is a popularity contest. Scout (ESPN) ranks Okafor as a 4-star, which I think is accurate.

We are not settling. TCU, the team that blasted us a few weeks ago, was the favorite to land Okafor for most of the summer. 

I know the kid personally so it might seem I am biased, but as honest as I can be I'd say Denzel is one of the top 3 OL in the DFW Metroplex. Additionally, Okafor has been a starter for three straight years at a 6A high school that is in a district with Allen, FM Marcus, the Plano schools and McKinney Boyd. He's a proven commodity.

Outside of ALL OF THAT, I would suggest to you that a UT staff with the likes of Strong, Bedford, etc., are not dependent on Rivals or any other rating service to conduct their recruiting. They know what they see when they see it. It's why so many are left perplexed when we don't go after some 5-star and instead are in pursuit of a 3-star. I honestly trust this staff (and others around the league) much more than I'll ever trust a service that involves the likes of Jabba the Hut to make it's ratings. That guy never touched a football field in his life.

Makes sense... I can appreciate all of that. Thanks for your two cents. 

My trust in the coaching staff isn't what it used to be... 

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

Jonathan Gray was a 5*. D'Onta Foreman was a 3*. Which is the better RB now? Garrett Gilbert was a 5*, Colt was a 3*. Stars don't mean squat and are based on what? Most of the recruiting experts never see these kids in person, only their Hudl highlights. For OL, it's all about their frame and how hard they are willing to work.

Well played. 

 

[DMAC]

Its funny how stars dont matter when the recruit is 3 stars or lower but when the recruit is a 5 star then its "5 Star" euphoria.  

Selective rationalization at its best.

 

[MikeV73]

This is an amusing topic. Its funny how stars dont matter when the recruit is 3 stars or lower but when the recruit is a 5 star then its "5 Star" euphoria. Selective judgments at its best.

I suffer from 5 star euphoria, it is resistant to antibiotics and incurable.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Its funny how stars dont matter when the recruit is 3 stars or lower but when the recruit is a 5 star then its "5 Star" euphoria.  

Selective rationalization at its best.

I don't think thats the topic at hand. I merely disagree with Rivals and their rankings. Scout's stars matter more, IMO, because Scout is more accurate.

Not all five stars are accurate. Edorian McCollough anyone? Not all 3-stars will remain that way. See Colt McCoy.

I think your coaching staff has impact on how receptive we are to 3-star recruits. Wickline has made his living on converting 2 and 3 star kids into real players. So a 3-star OL doesn't bother most these days.

I've seen Okafor play many, many times. He's not a 3-star, he's a 4-star, which again brings me into agreement with Scout.