OTF Premium Ismael Camara is the latest blue-chip big human Texas hopes to develop into an NFL prospect

Even though a lot has changed since Steve Sarkisian and Kyle Flood got to Alabama in 2019 and started evaluating, recruiting and developing offensive linemen in college football together, Ismael Camra will get them back to their roots.

The 6-foot-6-inch, 335-pound Gilmer product’s Fourth of July commitment to Texas is the Longhorns' biggest, most highly-touted member of a five-man offensive line class. Look no further than Sarkisian’s celebratory social media message as confirmation that even though the staff isn’t married to the acquisition philosophy that bigger is always better, they’ll make an exception for a prospect with Camara’s upside.

There are a few approaches Texas could take regarding Camara’s developmental track. Which one might depend on the makeup of the offensive line in 2027, specifically whether right guard Brandon Baker and right tackle Melvin Siani return.

If Baker has the kind of season in which he’d be wise to strike while the iron is hot regarding the NFL draft, Camara could have a clearer path to the field at guard. Likewise, Siani’s departure (along with the expected exit of probable 2027 first-round pick Trevor Goosby), would likely push Camara to tackle (unless Baker were to come back for his senior season and kick back outside to tackle), where he’d compete with the likes of Andre Cojoe, Jordan Coleman, Jonte Newman, John Turntine III and fellow 2027 signee Brian Swanson (along with a potential plug-and-play transfer portal addition) for two open tackle spots.

Regardless, how Sarkisian and Flood brought Evan Neal along under Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa might be the blueprint for how to maximize Camara’s development.

With Jedrick Wills and Alex Leatherwood occupying the tackle spots for the Crimson Tide in 2019, Sarkisian and Flood put Neal into the starting lineup as a true freshman at left guard. When Wills left for the NFL, Neal moved to right tackle for Alabama’s 2020 national championship club, which was spearheaded by Sarkisian’s historic offense.

Neal, who moved to left tackle when Flood followed Sarkisian to Texas, was the seventh overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. While Neal’s outcome is a best-case scenario for Camara, what matters is that there’s proof of concept if the Longhorns want to let Camara adjust to the speed of the game and the physicality at guard before sliding him out to tackle.

There was a time when an offensive lineman choosing Texas meant rolling the dice on their football career. Over 12 recruiting classes (2003-14) and 43 total signees (41 high school prospects and two junior college transfers), the Longhorns failed to develop a single NFL draft pick. Things started to shift ever-so-slightly in the last decade, thanks to Connor Williams (2015) and Samuel Cosmi (2017). Still, the long-awaited developmental boon has come under Sarkisian and Flood, with five recruiting classes (2018-22) in which the signees spent the majority of their time on campus under the current regime have produced five draft picks, including three from the 2022 haul (Kelvin Banks Jr., DJ Campbell and Cameron Williams).

Whether it was how they brought along Neal and the other Crimson Tide players they coached, or what they've done with prospects they've inherited or recruited to Texas on their own, Sarkisian and Flood know what to do to get the most out of Camara. A big human with big-time potential, Camara should feel as though his bright football future is in good hands.