OTF Premium The importance of premium positions, a forgotten great season and Texas' 'fearless' freshman on the diamond

[Jeff Howe]

Published Monday morning, Jordan Scruggs’ first contribution to OTF listed the 10 most wanted recruits left on the board for Texas in the 2027 cycle.

In the transfer portal/NIL era of college football, four of the 10 prospects jumped out as arguably the most important remaining targets for the Longhorns:

— Ismael Camara, OL, Gilmer

— Marcus Fakatou, DL, Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon

— Jabaarrius Garror, EDGE, Mobile (Ala.) Vigor

— Bryan Swanson, OL, Dallas South Oak Cliff

Understanding how championship-caliber rosters are built in college football today highlights the importance of these four prospects, especially when looking at how Steve Sarkisian’s organization constructed the 2026 squad.

While the Longhorns had the resources to get virtually everything they needed during the transfer portal window, high school recruiting taking care of three premium positions (quarterback, offensive tackle and edge rusher), with Arch Manning, Trevor Goosby and Colin Simmons occupying those roles, allowed the staff to focus on other areas of need.

Including defensive linemen, players at four of the five most lucrative positions in the NFL come with a steep price tag in the transfer portal. Texas has the wherewithal that few other programs have to acquire talent. Still, if the Longhorns’ must-have list included a top-tier, premium-position talent other than Cam Coleman, they might not have had the luxury of souping up the running back room with Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers. If Goosby had left for the NFL, it would’ve driven up the price for Melvin Siani (or another tackle on the open market) or, potentially, caused the pool at another position of need to shrink until the tackle need was fulfilled.

There’s no guarantee that the high school pipeline will always be the answer to filling premium positions. Nevertheless, if Texas uses high school recruiting to prioritize quarterbacks and players on both sides of the line of scrimmage who disrupt and protect the most important position on the field at an elite level, Sarkisian’s program has a good chance to remain a step ahead of the pack when future portal windows open.

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DeShon Elliott's name probably wouldn't jump to the top of the list of all-time great Longhorns worthy of induction into the College Football Hall of Fame when his time comes to enter the pool of candidates, even though he meets the criteria (an NCAA-recognized first-team All-American honor).

With that said, Elliott’s 2017 season is in the record books as arguably the best season by a Longhorn defensive back routinely omitted from the discussion for such an honor.

Only six Texas defenders have intercepted more passes in a single season than the six Elliott snagged in 12 games (he was one of several players who opted out of the Texas Bowl against Missouri, which was a win at the end of Tom Herman’s first season as coach). A Jim Thorpe Award finalist, Elliott is in an exclusive group of Texas defensive backs to be named a unanimous All-American, joining Johnnie Johnson (1978 and 1979), Jerry Gray (1984), Quentin Jammer (2001) and Michael Huff (2005).

Whether Elliott joins what's likely three-fourths of DBU's Mount Rushmore in the Hall of Fame down the road or not, the fact that he has a chance to be an active NFL player when he’s 10 seasons removed from the end of his collegiate career (the other requirement for a player to be considered for induction) is an accomplishment in and of itself.

Elliott was offered early by Charlie Strong’s staff, one of two tremendous early evaluations on defense in the 2015 cycle (the other was Charles Omenihu, who, like Elliott, is still an active NFL player). At the time, it wasn't certain if Elliott would stay at safety or eventually spin down from safety to linebacker, but he made plays on the back end when he was healthy enough to see the field.

After battling through injuries in two seasons under Strong, Elliott blossomed in his lone season as a safety in Todd Orlando’s defense. I’ve enjoyed Elliott’s career arc immensely after getting myself into hot water at 247Sports for circumventing the chain of command to ensure he finished the 2015 cycle as a four-star recruit. I believed in Elliott as a prospect enough to stick my neck out (which, in hindsight, was a reckless move) and, after departing the Forty Acres with a bang, he’s become a quality NFL player as he enters the last season of a $12.5 million extension he signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers last summer.

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Anthony Pack Jr. was named SEC Freshman of the Year on Monday, a well-deserved honor for what’s on pace to go down in the record books as one of the best freshman seasons for a position player in the history of the Longhorn baseball program.

Texas has had four players named Baseball America’s National Freshman of the Year (Greg Swindell in 1984, Kirk Dressendorfer in 1988, Brooks Kieschnick in 1991 and Dylan Volantis in 2025), all of whom were full-time or part-time pitchers. The only thing Pack has done on the mound is torment whoever has toed the rubber for the opposition, entering the SEC Tournament leading the Longhorns in batting average (.360), doubles (16) and stolen bases (20).

He’s on pace to be the first freshman to lead the Longhorns in batting average since Erich Weiss hit .348 in 2011. Pack is also in the running to be the first Texas freshman to hit .360 or better (minimum two plate appearances per game) in a season since Omar Quintanilla hit .367 in 2001.

He’s six doubles shy of Quintanilla’s freshman school record (22). Eight stolen bases ahead of Adrian Rodriguez for the team lead, Pack is likely to be the first freshman to lead the Longhorns in stolen bases with 20 or more since Drew Stubbs swiped 28 bags in 2004.

“Fearless” is the word Jim Schlossnagle has most used to describe how Pack has approached his first season of college baseball. It’s appropriate, considering Pack’s steady ascent throughout the season, which saw him be consistent enough to lead all SEC hitters in batting average (.400) and on-base percentage (.511) during conference play.

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[Jeff Howe]

I'll continue to emphasize the importance of Texas having homegrown prospects at quarterback, left tackle and EDGE. It's a positive factor in building the 2026 roster that isn't discussed enough.

You can think of recruiting now as NFL teams that hit on draft picks. Yes, you have to pay for elite players. But an established relationship is more conducive to negotiating a deal all sides deem fair (and that's before getting to the uniqueness of Arch's situation, relative to other quarterbacks of his ilk).

It would've cut way deeper into the allocated funds in January if Texas had to go on the open market to get anything close to what it has in Arch, Goosby and Simmons.

[Alex Butler]

Elliot is a stud and wish we wouldn’t had a healthier version of him during his entire career here! Pack is a beast, love seeing Omar Quintanilla and Drew Stubbs mentions!! 

[Jeff Howe]

5 minutes ago, Jeff Howe said:

I’ve enjoyed Elliott’s career arc immensely after getting myself into hot water at 247Sports for circumventing the chain of command to ensure he finished the 2015 cycle as a four-star recruit. I believed in Elliott as a prospect enough to stick my neck out (which, in hindsight, was a reckless move) and, after departing the Forty Acres with a bang, he’s become a quality NFL player as he enters the last season of a $12.5 million extension he signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers last summer.

 

I enjoyed working with Barton Simmons (now Vanderbilt's GM) at 247Sports. But man, when I had Brian Perroni go back in and change Elliott's ranking to a four-star after the Top247 was finalized, I was rightfully ripped a new one (and, FWIW, I told Perroni to blame me if he got any flak for changing the ranking).