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Story by Daniel Seahorn
The Texas staff is on the prowl for tight ends to fit Tom Herman’s offense. Last year Sterlin Gilbert’s offense utilized tight ends more as blockers and very rarely threw the ball their direction. That philosophy will change under Herman's watch, as tight ends will be utilized as both blockers and receivers in the passing game.
That’s where Jenks (OK) tight end Reese Leitao comes in. Leitao was committed to Nebraska, but recently opted to reopen his recruitment after taking an official visit to Austin with his parents. “Me and my family through a lot of talking decided that we wanted to explore all of the options that I have and make sure I do my research on every school that could possibly be my home,†said Leitao. With a decision of this magnitude and new options on the table, you can’t blame Leitao for wanting to do his due diligence. Schools like Arkansas, LSU, Oklahoma, and TCU along with Texas are in the chase for Leitao services, and despite the Longhorns recruiting him to play on offense; others are pitching him on playing defense. “Arkansas and TCU are recruiting me on defense, Texas recruiting me to play offense at tight end, Oklahoma is recruiting me to play defense as well, and LSU is saying I can pick,†said Leitao. As far as preferences go, Leitao says he â€kind of prefers offense,†but he is fine with whichever positions helps the team out or whichever position the coaches decide he could excel at.
As far as Leitao’s visit to Austin, he was already familiar with Tom Herman and his staff from when they were recruiting him at Houston (he visited in the spring) so it wasn’t as much of a feel out session as it was selling him on being a Longhorn rather than a Cougar. From the sound of things, the university and the city sold itself as much as the staff did. “I liked the city of Austin and the university is great academically. I plan on studying engineering and I know they have one of the best engineering schools in the country and probably in the world. It’s good academically and socially and I know me and my parents both enjoyed it a lot,†said Leitao. Not only did the academics grab Leitao’s attention, he also enjoyed taking in the sights of the university and hanging out with some of the current Longhorn players. “Some of the high points would be getting together with the guys on the team and getting their perspectives,†said Leitao. “There were some really good guys that showed me around so that was good. Seeing the stadium was good and seeing the academic meetings was a high point for my parents throughout school, so they wanted to make sure that was taken care of,†Leitao continued.
Leitao is well aware that the tight end position is lacking depth on campus and that he would have a chance to contribute early if he were to pick Texas as his final destination. The staff has made it clear that even though the previous regime didn’t make it a priority to throw the ball to the tight ends that it would be changing with the new offense being installed in 2017. With the thin depth chart and the change in offensive philosophy, Herman has made it clear that Leitao has an opportunity to make an impact early. As far as Leitao’s plans heading into the home stretch, he has a planned visit to LSU the first weekend after the dead period ends on January 13th, but after that he does not have anything planned at this time. Leitao told me he plans on making his final commitment some time before National Signing Day.
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