Texas and Tom Herman signed 19 players yesterday during the first ever early signing period. Only 2 commits chose not to sign, – RB Keaontay Ingram and DT Keondre Coburn. As we have mentioned previously, there is still a possibility that Ingram may sign early following his State Championship game on Friday morning.
With 19 players signed and 2 still committed, the question now is where the Longhorns go from here. During his signing day press conference, Tom Herman said he expects the final number for the 2018 class to be between 27-29 once the second signing period in February is finished. This means that the Longhorns still have plenty of room left in the class to continue pursuing players between now and February 7th. Let’s take a look at those prospects Texas will still be pursuing:
Committed
Keaontay Ingram – RB
As mentioned in the introduction, the top RB in the state of Texas is preparing for a state championship game tomorrow morning. All indications are that he is solid to Texas. Auburn has been pushing to try to get him to make a visit, but he has yet to do so. We fully expect Ingram to sign with Texas.
Keondre Coburn – DT
Coburn tweeted out Tuesday that he was not signing with Texas during the early signing period. TCU and A&M are doing everything they can do try to pull the states top defensive lineman away from the Longhorns. There is a possibility that Coburn takes an official visit or 2, but right now he is still committed to Texas.
Targets
Lawrence Keys III – WR
Rondale Moore decommitted from Texas on Tuesday, and it has forced the Longhorns to look elsewhere for a slot receiver. Late last night an offer went out to Keys, who is from Louisiana. While LSU is a threat and he has an official visit scheduled to Baton Rouge on January 12th, Texas should have a chance here. Keys can absolutely fly and would be an adequate replacement for Moore in the class. Expect Texas to try to get him on campus after the dead period and sell him on being the only slot receiver in the 2018 class.
Joshua Moore – WR
Another WR option for the Longhorns could be recent Nebraska decommit Joshua Moore. Most Longhorn fans are familiar with the Moore twins, with Jordan signing his LOI yesterday to play for Texas A&M. Joshua has offers from all over the country, and was re-offered by the Longhorns following his decommitment. The plan is to try to get him on campus for an official visit in January. At the moment, it seems unlikely that Moore will end up in Austin, with Texas A&M or Florida State as the most likely landing spot.
Jaylen Waddle – WR
Waddle has seen his recruitment take many twist and turns. Texas was seen as the favorite early in the process, then it was Alabama, then it was Florida State and now it may be Texas A&M. Waddle officially visited College Station on December 8th, and the coaching change seems to be benefiting the Aggies since Waddle was already a fan of Jimbo Fisher at Florida State. It was long thought that Waddle wanted to be the only slot receiver in the class he signed with, and that may be realistic now in Austin. Tom Herman used his in-home visit with the talented WR earlier in the month. Waddle has already used all 5 official visits, so any trip back to Austin would be on his own dime. Right now, A&M seems like the logical destination, but the drama is far from over.
Jahmir Johnson – OT
There is strong possibility that the Longhorns may not be done along the offensive line. Tom Herman and Derek Warehime are still in the market for JUCO players who can come in and make an immediate impact. Johnson is a May graduate, so there was no need to rush him in for an official visit before the early signing period. Right now, he has one official visit remaining, and there is a chance he will use it in January to visit Austin. At this point, Missouri and Tennessee are the favorites.
Courtre Alexander – DE
The Longhorns hosted Alexander for an official visited this past weekend and extended an offer to the Oklahoma native. There was some thought that he would commit shortly after, but the 6’4″ defensive end continues to get interest from other schools. Arkansas offered shortly after Texas, and Oklahoma continues to remain in contact. The likelihood now is that this recruitment will stretch all the way to NSD2 in February, with Arkansas likely to get an official visit in the future. The Longhorns were one of the first big schools to discover the under-the-radar prospect, and need to continue to stay on him. This recruitment feels like it may just be getting started.
Vernon Jackson – DE
Jackson is considered an athlete by many, playing all over the field in high school. Texas is recruiting him as a defensive end. The Alabama commit considered signing yesterday with the Crimson Tide, but opted to hold off. Texas and Texas A&M are making a big push for Jackson. He was scheduled to officially visit Texas on December 8th, but pushed the visit back into January. He is scheduled to officially visit Alabama on January 19th. It seems likely that Jackson will continue to listen to the Longhorns and Aggies and possibly take official visits to both schools.
Moro Ojomo – DT
Similar to Alexander, Texas was the first big school to offer Ojomo back on December 6th. He chose to not sign early, and was rewarded with offers from Texas A&M, Oregon and Tennessee yesterday. The talented defensive tackle out of Katy had a stellar senior season, where he was named the the Defensive MVP of District 19-6A. He has yet to use any of his official visits, but will likely take an official visit to Austin at some point in January. Texas A&M is desperate for defensive tackles after losing the commitment of Bobby Brown yesterday, and are a major threat for Ojomo. This is another recruitment that is likely going all the way up to NSD2, with more schools likely to offer in the coming weeks.
Bobby Brown – DT
I feel the need to mention Bobby Brown because of the fact that he holds a Texas offer. Like stated above, he is no longer committed to Texas A&M. Alabama and Oklahoma are the front-runners for his services, with Texas likely sitting third. The Longhorns have visited Brown multiple times, but are still working on trying to get him on campus for a visit. It is unlikely Brown ends up in burnt orange.
DaShaun White – LB
White’s recruitment is seemingly a 3-team race between Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Texas. While he has remained committed to Texas A&M throughout the process, Texas and Oklahoma both received official visits during the season. Tom Herman used his in-home with White last week. Oklahoma has long been perceived as the biggest threat to flip White, but Texas is doing everything they can to remain in the chase.
