Early Enrollee Spring Football Primer | Defense 2024

Earlier this morning we took a look at the early enrollees on the offense side of the ball two weeks out from the beginning of spring ball.

Now that most of us have taken care of lunch and are cruising towards 5:00 p.m. to come rolling around, spend a few minutes reading about the defense.

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DT Alex January – Duncanville HS (TX)

The lone early enrollee in the interior of the defensive line comes in with big shoes to fill. Luckily, there has been plenty of positive remarks surrounding Alex January surrounding his approach to the winter conditioning program. January has slimmed down about 15 pounds since his arrival to campus. The staff is working on replacing bad weight with good weight and January has been a sponge when it comes to taking in everything he can from the staff so far.

EDGE Zina Umeozulu – Allen HS (TX)

Both edge prospects in this article have received tremendous praise for their body transformations since January 1. Umeozulu has the physical frame of a dream edge prospect and is completely bought into the weights. The key for Umeozulu is to make sure the light stays on when the pads come into play. He has a chance to really impress early on in his career.

EDGE Colin Simmons – Duncanville HS (TX)

Simmons is sitting right around 240 pounds at the moment, a 20-pound increase from where he was in Orlando for the Under Armour All American game. The nutritional side of college has been the biggest change for Simmons, but he deserves his flowers for the work in the weight room. At 240 pounds, you can expect to see Simmons get some run with the two-deep in the spring, any additional weight at this part of his career is icing on the cake.

LB Tyanthony Smith – Jasper HS (TX)

I have heard Tyanthony Smith's several times in regards to early enrollees with the best attitude towards offseason workouts. There has been progress to Smith's frame in the past two months, but there remains plenty of room to grow. He likely won't be physically ready to take extended snaps in the spring, but the will to work is there and by the time fall camp comes around, you can expect a completely different looking prospect.

DB Jordon Johnson-Rubell – IMG Academy (FL)

I am very excited to see JJR in pads for the first time in college. Of anyone in the class, you could make the argument for Johnson-Rubell to be the most intelligent player on the field at any given moment, which is going to be huge with his career starting at nickel. JJR does not have a huge frame, but he does have a good start to his build and will eventually be a player at 5-foot-10. 

DB Xavier Filsaime – McKinney HS (TX)

Similarly to what was said about Ryan Wingo earlier today, Xavier Filsaime has been the defensive MVP of offseason workouts so far. He has enough athleticism to play right away. Filsaime is tremendously smooth in and out of breaks plus has the top end speed Texas has desired at the safety spot. Whether it be drills, throwing sessions or conditioning, Filsaime is pushing the incumbents the most of any EE.

DB Kobe Black – Waco Connally HS (TX)

Get ready to see some big time physical development from Black over the next few months. He was already a plus-athlete, but now that he has received professional training from Torre Becton's staff, expect to see him continue on this developmental trend.

DB Wardell Mack – John Ehret HS (LA)

Mack's name has surfaced a few times early from those close to workouts. Earlier this offseason I reported on the return of swagger coming back to the Texas DB room. Well, Mack has been a good proponent of that movement. He has a great mindset and is ultra competitive which is a key for defensive backs. Mack has impressed early and often since arriving on campus.