Honestly, he held on longer than we thought he would… At least that is what most Texas fans are saying about Daniel Gresham’s commitment to play football at The University of Texas. The 3-star prospect from All Saints Episcopal High School (Fort Worth) has decommitted, according to a tweet from Hookem.com’s Jeff Howe.
Got a text msg from 4-star RB Daniel Gresham this morning. He has officially de-committed from #UT @bobbyburton247 first reported Thursday
— Jeff Howe (@JeffHowe247) May 11, 2013
Gresham maintained his verbal commitment even after friend and All Saints teammate Demetrious Knox pulled out of his pledge to play for the Longhorns on April 22nd. Once thought to be a “package deal,” the duo of prospects has turned into “no deal.”
Both Gresham and Know took a visit to Ohio State in March, despite Mack Brown’s newly instituted “no visit” policy for recruits. Then the conundrum was in place. What do you do with two recruits, one of which is a 4-star top 100 nationally ranked prospect, who blatantly ignore the rules (fair or not)? Texas did nothing. And the two still decommitted.
Gresham is a talented player but he is a fullback, not a running back. He’s a package guy that won’t pull 30 carries a game and Texas might have saved themselves an opportunity here with his decommitment. Not to devalue Gresham’s athleticism or skillset but there are now two scholarships open for running backs in the 2014 class. Duke Catalon stands as the lone RB recruit in class and he will have company soon. In fact Newton High School’s Kevin Shorter was on campus yesterday for a visit.
Newton #Top247 ATH Kevin Shorter visited #Horns yesterday. He told @horns247 that he does NOT have an offer from Texas at this point
— Brian Perroni (@Perroni247) May 11, 2013
And for those who so passionately argued for or against Shorter’s “offer status” as it pertains to the Longhorns, Brian Perroni has your answer in the above tweet. The good news is Mack and Larry Porter are grinding to find studs for the backfield. Shorter is definitely in that category.
As for Gresham’s interest in schools right now, Ole Miss seems to be high on his list. He also holds offers from Alabama, Florida State, Ohio State, Miami, Louisville and several others.
Finally, questions to ponder. Did Mack’s no visit rule doom him in the end with Gresham and Knox? Should he have yanked the offers after the two took the trip to Ohio State? I think I would have respected Mack more if he did.