CJ Vogel

ESPN's NFL Draft expert Matt Miller fielded questions from media members today following the release of his latest two-round NFL Mock Draft. Of course, with Texas sending 11 players to the NFL Combine, there were plenty of Longhorns that were mentioned during the availability and I wanted to share notable quotes and tidbits Miller shared in regards to Texas' Draft hopefuls. *** Where the Longhorns fell in Miller's latest Mock Draft: 16) DL Byron Murphy (SEA) 32) WR Xavier Worthy (KC) 38) WR Adonai Mitchell (TEN) 49) TE Ja'Tavion Sanders (CIN) 54) DL T'Vondre Sweat (CLE) 58) RB Jonathon Brooks (GB) *** Longhorn With Most to Gain at Combine A: Byron Murphy + Xavier Worthy "I think a lot of people aren't aware of (Byron Murphy), just because we did not see him in an All Star game and what Texas asked him to do – he was asked him to do, he played head-up on an offensive tackle in a 3-3-5 defense. So he was not asked to pin his ears back and rush the quarterback which is what he actually does very well. "He is not the biggest guy, he is 6-1, we will see but 300-310 pounds. But his quickness and his raw strength are just jaw-droppingly good. "I was a little surprised when he declared (for the Draft) because I had not originally heard a lot of buzz. But when guys declare, it is like, 'okay, now I need to watch them.' And as soon as I started watching him closely, it was like 'Okay, he is going to be in my top-40.' Then you watch more and now he is going to be in my top-30, then wait, now top-20 and sure enough he is now in my top-15. "I think some of that is just getting caught up. When we watch so many games throughout the year, you are not always focused on individual players or trying to take a holistic view. Obviously you watch the quarterbacks because those guys are asked about a lot. ... "I will throw one more name out there – Xavier Worthy. I don't know if it just because how much Texas Football I have watched, but I think he has been slept on just a little bit nationally when I see mock drafts or rankings from colleagues. I am always surprised with how low he is ranked. I think he has a great opportunity next week to come in and show, No. 1 just how fast he is. He is going to burn up the track with that vertical speed. But also to answer questions I think a lot of people labeled him as someone with drop issues because of the 2022 tape. A lot of the drop issues really went away in 2023." *** WR AD Mitchell Mentioned being in the WR group of Roman Wilson, Keon Coleman, Ladd McConkey right around the end of round one and getting into round two. *** RB Jonathon Brooks Miller has Brooks as his first RB taken in the 2024 NFL Draft. Added that there will be some movement following the Combine and wants to see how Brooks interviews and updates in his recovery. In this year's draft, will be two categories of running backs: the bully, downhill runners and the out-of-the backfield guys. Brooks falls into a bit of both. High praise heading Brooks' direction even while recovering from the ACL injury. Interestingly, Miller added it is a strong running back class in this Draft, despite the potential of a back not being taken in the first 50 picks. *** TE Perspective + Bijan Robinson "Every time that I do a mock draft exercise, (Brock Bowers) is coming off of the board at 13, 14 or 15 because those teams in the top ten have so many needs and they are going to go most likely big positional value - QB, LT, WR or CB. Those are the top ten picks this year it feels like. "So for a guy like Bowers, despite the fact that he might be one of the five most talented players in the draft, because he is a tight end he tends to slip a little bit in mock drafts. Honestly it is a lot like Bijan Robinson last year. "Where it was like, we knew how talented he was as a player. But it was really hard to find a natural fit for him. The Falcons were obviously okay with taking a running back very early and they got a great player." *** On Thinner Draft Crop in 2024 "I mean (the draft has) changed tremendously just off of that number alone. I think this will be one of the shallowest draft pools that I've ever covered because so many players are going back to school. We have to remember this, there's the COVID year, I think this is the final year where players are potentially benefiting from that 2020 season. "But NIL is is huge and I personally think is a good thing for players. Instead of having to make a financial decision and going to the NFL early and maybe being a late round pick, you don't have the opportunity to go back to school you support yourself, maybe support your family if you are taking care of them and improve your draft stock. LSU QB Jayden Daniels is a fantastic example of that. Had he left college last year, he would have been a day-three pick, probably a middle of day three pick because that was a pretty good quarterback last year. He was able to go back to school thanks to NIL and now he's in line to be top three overall pick. So there are a lot of success stories – Bo Nix being another one. "From the GM side of things, I don't want to say it's a weak draft or bad draft, but just the actual pool of players compared to last year which was probably the deepest draft ever, this will be a pretty shallow one. It is something that kind of goes in waves. Last year was incredibly deep, next year will probably be incredibly deep. I think smart general managers are always looking at least a year ahead at each position group and at the draft as a whole." View full news

Happy Tuesday! Wanted to drop off a few recruiting notes before hitting the trail this morning. I will be hitting some more Austin area schools through the rest of the week. But for now, I am feeling like Jokic the way I am coming with the Nuggets. *** I traded messages earlier with 2026 five-star DL Jahkeem Stewart out of New Orleans (LA) about his communication levels with Texas. Stewart has been on campus multiple times since popping up on the recruiting scene as an eighth grader back in San Antonio during the All American Bowl combine. Stewart said that his communication with Texas is up in the air at the moment. Texas did stop by in January when Brandon Harris was asked to assume a coaching role while Sarkisian was filling the DL spot. I have heard from the Texas side of things here that communication is expected to ramp up as spring ball nears. The 6-foot-6 lineman also mentioned Texas as school he was hoping to visit during the spring practice season. Stewart is currently ranked as the No. 3 player in the country for the 2026 class. One thing that could be helping the Horns a bit here is Stewart's relationship with Barryn Sorrell, the two train together in the New Orleans area. *** Texas extended an offer to 2025 Cedar Hill OL Devin Coleman. There were some questions yesterday in regards to which position this offer was extended for as Coleman has also earned plenty of interest on the defensive side of the ball. Coleman told me last night Coach Kyle Flood extended the offer on the offensive line and added Coach Flood is pitching an interior spot at the next level – most likely guard. Plans to visit Austin have yet to be finalized, but Coleman does expect to make it down to Austin at some point near spring football. *** Texas added a few pieces to their Player Personnel department last night. The first being Jackson Gleeson, who I have heard has a great mind for identifying talent at early stages. Eager to see what kind of impact he has inside of Moncrief now, but there was some really positive early returns here. The other being Jordan Mitchell, a former graduate of The University of Texas who is beginning to take the next steps behind the scenes. I have a couple of messages out to learn more about him and will update further when I do. *** Riley Pettijohn, LB, McKinney (Texas) High Texas continues to be one of the top schools for Pettijohn according to a source close to the recruitment. The Longhorns and Florida State were the first two mentioned around Christmas time with USC third and Auburn making tremendous effort. That list has now changed with Texas A&M, Ohio State and Georgia now in the top group and Auburn fading a little. Texas A&M's Jay Bateman has been impactful for the Aggies having been recruiting Pettijohn for a year while on staff at Florida. Texas is said to be ahead of at least three of the top 6 headed into spring visits. Jeff Banks and Johnny Nansen are both working this recruitment for Texas, along with Steve Sarkisian. - Gerry Hamilton View full news

Rod and I joined up together this afternoon to discuss the best Quarterback-Wide receiver tandems in the country following an article from 247Sports that had Quinn Ewers and Isaiah Bond as the best duo in the country. Plus, which NFL Departure will the Longhorns miss the most in 2024. View full news

Texas A&M has made a splash in the 2025 cycle with a commitment from Desoto’s Tiger Riden. Riden was expected to visit Austin during the January 20 junior day, however did not make it in. On that same day, Texas extended an offer to 2025 Chapel Hill RB Rickey Stewart and has been trending for the talented running back ever since. Texas is still in a great spot in the RB room, but this does mark another RB off the board in the state of Texas.

I was told offensive line. Flood extended the offer.

Coleman’s Hudl: https://www.hudl.com/video/3/18151729/6525957bd21c9b11f8ca6a50

The Texas staff has extended an offer to 2025 Cedar Hill offensive lineman Devin Coleman. The 6-foot-5 and 315-pound offensive lineman has four offers so far in his recruitment; Texas Tech, SMU, Duke and Colorado. Devin is the twin brother of 2025 OL Jordan Coleman who the Longhorns offered back in November of 2023. View full news

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It is very hard for anyone in the country to dispute RBU right now with the way Texas has things going + the rich tradition of stars at the position.

He is doing well. First spring ball session coming up will be big for him, but he is coming around physically.

That’s the mentality you need to have in the secondary. Texas didn’t have that in 2023

It does Texas no good to play a team like Texas Tech in the future, but man with the way this program is headed it would be fun to watch another 50-point bludgeoning at some point again.

Lot of freshmen getting looks this past weekend. Will see big improvements across the lineup as the season progresses. for now, a good start.

We are 29 days away from the beginning of spring practice. As we continue to inch closer and closer to the highly anticipated start of the next era of Texas Football in the SEC, there remains a number of high priority boxes that remain unchecked at the moment. Over the next four weeks, I will be taking a look at some of the biggest team needs going into spring ball based off conversations I have had with folks around the program. Today, we begin in the secondary. *** It was seven weeks ago when Michael Penix threw for 430 yards in the College Football Playoff against the Texas defense. A night where it felt like he could do no wrong, Penix torched a Texas secondary who had been suspect seemingly all season long. Texas has seen some attrition from the secondary room in those past seven weeks, and while the nucleus of the rotation remains the same, an influx of talent with fresh faces arriving this semester was needed. I had a conversation with someone close to the program last week who mentioned there was not enough swagger in the Texas secondary last year. It is a topic that Rod and I have explored on Longhorn Livestreams over the past month, however, now I am hearing it from the inside. There is a lot of confidence with this unit and it has been showing thus far in organized throwing sessions and offseason workouts. I don't think anyone will find it surprising that defensive backs like to talk. It is part of the position to have that confidence and approach to the game that results in jawing a bit during practice. That conversation about the DB room left me with the impression the on-field play will be much improved in large part because of the mindset in the room now. The return of Terrance Brooks and Malik Muhammad starts this conversation. I would be remiss if I did not include Gavin Holmes here in this conversation as well. I have also heard that adding Andrew Mukuba to the room has also brought an extra gear out of Jahdae Barron. I expect to see a different and unrestrained Derek Williams. Despite a great freshman campaign, no spring ball kept Williams from really playing as loose and free as he would have with an extra 15 practices under his belt. This room is confident. There is more chirping from their side of the ball and an aura to return to the illustrious Defensive Back U title to the Texas defense which has seemingly been tossed to the wayside over the last decade. As we head closer to spring ball, expect to hear about this topic as a goal for the secondary in future updates. View full news

I went to the bullpen for this conversation about the return of the College Football 25 video game which dropped its first trailer earlier this week. I was joined by Bengal, one of the largest YouTube creators in the Madden and NFL communities for this video. We broke down memories from the old game as well as some predictions for ratings of Texas players for the upcoming game! View full news

Gerry and I got together this morning to dive into the details of Steve Sarkisian's contract extension with Texas. View full news

I am very high on Liona Lefau this spring. Perhaps too high. But I think he could etch his way into the rotation with a strong spring and potentially end up starting by the middle of the season.