When Mack Brown was the head coach at Texas he was often called “Coach February†by detractors who mocked his prowess in signing top classes but ultimately came up short on the field. Charlie Strong is making a case to be dubbed “Coach Januaryâ€, due in large part to his work closing recruits down the stretch of the season. While many coaches host big visit weekends during the season centered around big time games, Charlie Strong prefers his targets to hold off and take their official visits after the season. While this has proven to be a frustrating experience for fans, the ideology of creating a big event weeks before signing day can generate a large amount of momentum. It’s a big gamble, but it paid off last season for Texas and could once again this season.
The sprint to National Signing Day is on, and the first of three visit weekends looks to be the biggest as the Texas staff prepares to welcome a who’s who of their blue chips to Austin. If Texas wants to continue to build on last year’s class they must bring their absolute best this weekend. Let’s take a look at what is in store.
Commitments
Not only did the Texas staff gather an impressive collection of uncommitted talent together, they also scheduled a large group of Texas commits to be on campus at the same time. It always helps when your committed players can help sell a program to uncommitted prospects, and Texas will have their best recruiters in Austin this weekend.
Reggie Hemphill – The Manvel receiver stuck with Texas through thick and thin ever since committing over a year ago. Known as “recruiter Reggie†for the work he put in with other prospects on the recruiting trail, Hemphill will be all over the top recruits on campus this weekend.
Shane Buechele – As the quarterback commit, Buechele was looked to as a leader in this class. He did his recruiting off of social media and more behind the scenes. The Arlington Lamar quarterback is actually moving to Austin to begin spring classes this weekend, but he will be on hand to greet his classmates.
Demarco Boyd – The most outspoken Texas commit is joining Buechele on campus this weekend to start his spring semester. The East Texas product remains the liveliest Texas commit on twitter and has a good relationship with many of the top prospects in the state.
Collin Johnson – Johnson also joins Boyd and Buechele as an early enrollee arriving this weekend. The monstrous receiver has been marooned in California, but his ability and personality should make him an easy draw for the other prospects in attendance.
Tope Imade – Imade is making his official visit to Austin, and the Arlington area lineman couldn’t be more excited. Imade mentioned he was excited about the opportunity to help close this class out strong as a part of the official visit weekend.
Jean Delance – The newest Texas commit is in full recruiting mode, and the top national prospect made a lot of friends at the Under Armour All-American game. Delance will join the recruiting effort while also knocking out his official to Texas.
Denzel Okafor – Okafor has been pretty quiet since committing to Texas, but he has a chance to build some chemistry with Imade and Delance who will team with him on the offensive line.
Davion Curtis – Curtis is another quiet commit, but his relationship with Devwah Whaley could prove to be invaluable this weekend.
Andrew Fitzgerald – Fitzgerald had a big week at the Semper Fi all-star game and is all set to sign his LOI to Texas. The big defensive end never wavered after originally committing.
Gerald Wilbon – The Louisiana big man is commonly overlooked by Texas fans, but Wilbon had a big senior season and could help reel in the Louisiana defensive tackles still on the Texas board.
Malcolm Roach – Roach was a shocking commit to Texas during the fall, but the big bodied athlete is also instrumental in the recruitment of the Louisiana prospects still on the board for Texas. Roach could possibly take some other visits but we expect him to stick with Texas.
The Uncommitted
Brandon Jones – The Nacogdoches safety is ranked the top player in the state on the HornSports Top 50, and Texas is pursuing him like he is the top player in the nation. Jones is extremely pragmatic and not prone to rash decisions. He’s handled the recruiting process as maturely as Malik Jefferson did a year ago, and will evaluate his final programs thoroughly. The word is it’s a dead heat between A&M and Texas with each side believing their program holds the slightest of edges. Jeff Traylor has been the workhorse in this recruitment, and Jones is forming a strong relationship with several Texas commits. If Texas kills it this weekend I expect them to open up some distance in the process.
Jeffrey McCulloch – The Shark will be in the building this week, and Texas could go a long way to cement this recruitment. The Aldine Davis Linebacker is down to a top 5 of Texas, Texas A&M, Notre Dame, Stanford, and Alabama, but all signs indicate Texas and Notre Dame standing out at this point. McCulloch was officially accepted to Stanford which could throw a wrench in the plans if he begins to seriously consider the Cardinal again. McCulloch has a bond with several UT commits including Jean Delance who he hung out with at the Under Armour game. McCulloch can play all over the linebacker corps and is expected to be a contributor from the jump. If Texas can sell him on stability for Charlie Strong they have a great shot to get him in the bag.
Erick Fowler – My original read on this situation was that Fowler would be a difficult flip, but after talking to the LSU commit at the Army All-American game I got the sense this was much more of a 50/50 battle. Fowler plays outside linebacker and rushes the passer, but there is some talk Texas would like to play him inside. Fowler’s preference is to stay on the outside, but his relationship with the Texas coaching staff with the family pressure to stay close to home might make this an easier sell. There are still some hurdles to navigate, and LSU has the edge but Texas could absolutely come away with the talented Manor linebacker after this weekend.
Deontay Anderson – Anderson maintains he is open at this point, but behind the scenes the talk is all Ole Miss. Texas has a chance to make some headway but they are fighting a tough uphill battle. Fortunately, Reggie Hemphill is Anderson’s teammate and will be all over him this weekend to see if he can turn the tide. Anderson is also close with Brandon Jones and I’ve heard there’s some interest from both players in attending college together. Anything is possible, but Texas will have to have a perfect visit to put themselves in contention here.
Devwah Whaley – The Beaumont Central running back turned some heads when he committed to Arkansas at the Under Armour All-American game. From what I know it was against the wishes of his family, and Whaley still intended to visit Texas. Whaley has questions about his fit in the offense and the long term future of Texas running back coach Tommie Robinson. If the Longhorns can answer those questions sufficiently and play on the relationships Whaley has on campus (Davion Curtis and PJ Locke) they have a good shot at talking their top running back target out of his pledge to the Razorbacks.
Lil’Jordan Humphrey – Southlake Carroll’s do it all athlete is down to Texas and California with a decision expected on January 30th. Talk behind the scenes is very positive for Texas and they could lock things up after this weekend’s visit. Humphrey is being recruited as a receiver and could prove to be a matchup nightmare on the inside with his size and skillset.
Zach Shackleford – Had Texas offered the central Texas interior player earlier they probably would have this wrapped up. As it stands they will throw the kitchen sink at him in an effort to trigger a last minute switch from Kansas State. Shackleford is an early enrollee who will make his move to whichever college he signs with following the visit this weekend. New offensive line coach Matt Mattox has been all over Shack since arriving in Austin, and though he hasn’t had much time it seems he has made quite an impression. Shackleford does have a very good relationship with the Kansas State staff, but the allure of playing near his home town of Belton might be too much.
Chris Daniels – Yet another prospect that would probably be in the fold had Texas offered him earlier in the process. Daniels committed to Oklahoma but still plans on taking all of his visits over the next few weeks. The Trinity defensive tackle really liked Texas coming into this year, but the lack of attention might be too much for Texas to overcome. We will have a much better idea how things stand after Daniels leaves Austin.
Stephon Taylor – Outside of the big name blue chippers, Taylor may be the most important prospect on campus this weekend. Texas is in desperate need of defensive tackle recruits that can contribute early, and the buzz is that the Longhorns lead for the mammoth Louisiana tackle. Just let Brick Haley keep working that magic, and pitch early playing time until you’re blue in the face.
Mark Jackson – Texas circled back to Jackson when it looked like the A&M program might completely fall apart going into the dead period. Jackson will visit Texas and Oklahoma, while A&M remains in the picture for him. The talk at the Army All-American Game was that Jackson is firming back up to the Aggies, while other sources indicate Texas is behind Oklahoma for his services. Still, I feel like this could be a surprise recruitment flipped by the masterful work of Charlie Strong.
Eric Cuffee – The Waco High corner is contemplating taking an unofficial visit to Austin this weekend and if he does I would say it bodes well for Texas who are out in front in this recruitment. Cuffee was said to be a lock to Texas earlier this month, but there are some reports of indecision on his part out there. If Cuffee makes it to Austin I’d say you have a very good sign on your hands.
As always keep it on HornSports.com for news from this weekend as well as a follow up report after visits conclude.
