While the Longhorns satisfied a huge need when they signed Belton tight end Durham Smythe last week, the team is almost certainly going to sign another tight end in the 2013 class. Mack Brown has had his fair share of injuries to tight ends over the last 3 or 4 years (Blaine Irby, D.J. Grant, Ian Harris, et al) and wants to take extra precaution to ensure the position is well taken care of for years to come. With the commitment of Smythe, there are a handful of possibilities to become the second scholarship offer for the tight end position. The more likely two are Prestonwood Christian’s Academy’s Christian Morgan and Mansfield tight end Trent Gow, neither of which have received an offer from Texas yet.  Morgan is 6’4†and 250 lbs. and has a lot to offer any school that recruits him, but it doesn’t look like Texas has a ton of interest (Morgan was not invited to either of the Texas Junior Days).   He has garnered a lot of interest and offers from a variety of schools, but Arkansas seems to be a likely place for him to end up although it is too early to tell.
Enter Mansfield tight end Trent Gow. Gow is impressive, even though his receiving numbers aren’t overpowering. He plays in a bruising, blue collar power-I offensive scheme that is run first, run again and pass later, if necessary. This leaves Gow’s duties primarily to blocking, which he is darn good at. “Trent takes a lot of pride in his blocking abilities and works on his footwork every day†Gow’s father Brian explains.  Anyone who looks at film on Gow knows this is true. He is a tight end often mistaken for an offensive lineman, but that isn’t necessarily a negative. Blocking is his definite strength, but Trent also has an above average pass catching ability and runs a decent route.  He is a dual sport athlete and has increased his weight from 230 to 242 now that the basketball season is over. The Texas coaches think Gow’s frame can easily hold 260 lbs. without him losing efficacy.
Gow was first team all-district in both his sophomore and junior years and he was named to the 5A all-Texas sophmore team in 2010. He was named to the all-Texas junior team in 2011.
He has a connection to the Texas program, as he is great friends with former Mansfield teammate and current Longhorn defensive end Hassan Ridgeway. Gow faced Ridgeway 1-on-1 every day at practice last year at Mansfield. He attended the second Junior Day at Texas and while he didn’t receive an offer, the door to the Longhorn Program seems to remain somewhat open for Gow. Having already received Durham Smythe’s commitment, Texas is undoubtedly over-scrutinizing the remaining tight end possibilities. Coach Chambers and the Texas staff have to like what they see in Gow, who has the potential to be a multi-purpose tight end and nice compliment to the Texas offense.  We like the “willing to do what it takes†attitude Gow displays and know whichever team receives the Mansfield star’s services will be very lucky. His athleticism is underrated and his work ethic is second-to-none.
