Gerry Hamilton

Can't tell you guys and gals how much I like the tape of Matai Tonga'i ... http://www.hudl.com/video/3/16256142/65552d5b0660d304081f65a6

Five recruitments with intrigue The most fun aspect about recruiting for Texas fans in the Steve Sarkisian era is the national recruiting approach. That national approach bring quite a bit of intrigue in a recruiting cycle, even for those that cover the Longhorns recruiting. That's because Texas is placing boots on the ground in new areas of the country, seemingly in every cycle. That's makes for fun and intrigue with the move to the SEC just months away. This morning, I take a look at five recruitments that provide intrigue headed into spring unofficial visits and June official visits. Let me say this, Dakorien Moore is not on this list. He's the prospect Texas fans are salivating about. The potential flip from LSU for a 5-star receiver from Duncanville High could certainly be on the list. He's in a category all his own for the Texas fan base in this cycle. Jaime Ffrench, WR, Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin The Longhorns continue to expand the Sunshine State recruiting footprint. In the 2025 cycle, Texas is all in on one of the top receivers in the country out of Jacksonville. This is not an area Texas has worked much, but absolutely should moving forward as long as the Florida Gators are underachieving. Can Texas beat out Ohio State, Florida State and Miami for Ffrench? Is that truly realistic? The fact that Texas has two visits scheduled says Sarkisian and Chris Jackson absolutely believe they have a real shot. Ffench will be in Austin for the two biggest recruiting weekends in the 2025 cycle - April 6 and June 21-23. LSU is another school in the mix, and especially now after Ffrench made a visit last weekend. Dorian Brew, CB, Conroe (Texas) High There aren't many recruitments in the state of Texas with both parents of a prospect being Hall of Fame/Honor level athletes at two different out of state universities. That is the case with Dorian Brew. His father starred at LSU (Klein Forest High) before taking home Olympic silver and bronze medals, while his mother is in the Ohio State Hall of Fame for track as well. That alone makes for a recruitment of intrigue, especially with the fact that Ohio State came very close to receiving a public commitment January 24 before Brew backed off that timeline. Ohio State remains very much in the mix, and has the June 21-23 official visit date locked in. LSU is very much in the mix as well with Corey Raymond all in. Steve Sarkisian, Terry Joseph, Blake Gideon and the entire defensive staff have left zero doubt with Brew and family how much he is coveted by Texas. The Longhorns are expected to receive an official visit (likely June 14-16). And a spring game visit April 20 is also on the table. Josh Petty, OT, Roswell (Ga.) Fellowship Christian School Steve Sarkisian, Tashard Choice and Kyle Flood have all had multiple conversations with the Peach State athletic tackle and family members. That alone provides intrigue with a OnTexasFootball 4-star prospect that hasn't been talked about much among the Horns fanbase. Texas is scheduled to get the 6-5, 275 pound tackle on campus March 22 with his California Power 7v7 team/program teammates. Texas is one of several spring unofficial visits for Petty. He's at Georgia Tech and Georgia this weekend, and was at Clemson earlier in the week. He will be at Auburn March 19 and Florida State March 29. Tennessee is also very much in the mix. His older sister could also decide to attend FSU, Georgia, Tennessee or Clemson. The intrigue with Petty's recruitment is within in the family circle. The academics at Texas have the attention of Petty's parents, and both were very excited when Texas offered and visited the school in January. Petty's father spent a number of summers at Big Lake and around San Angelo. He still has family in both places. Josiah Sharma, DL, Folsom (Calif.) High When Johnny Nansen made a trip to Folsom High in January and offered Sharma, he was still a largely unknown prospect nationally. The one-time Washington verbal has since made a visit to Alabama to reconnect with Kalen Deboer and staff. In speaking with a source close to the Folsom High program, Texas has continued to be in contact with the 6-5, 300 pound athletic and powerful OnTexasFootball 4-star prospect. The intrigue is when will Sharma first make it to campus? And how much of a role could Sharma and his mother having lived in the Arlington area and still having family in Texas help the cause of the Longhorns? Matai Tagoa'i, LB, San Clemente (Calif.) High A top out of state linebacker target for Johnny Nansen in the 2025 cycle, and another chance to continue to expand the Southern California footprint. The hire of Nansen combined with Steve Sarkisian and Chris Jackson provide a lot of history in Southern California for the Texas staff. Nansen offered the 6-4, 195 pound instinctive and quick reacting linebacker in December of 2022. Texas offered Tagoi'a May 11, 2023. Now the two have combined to give the Longhorns a real shot at the OnTexasFootball 4-star with an official visit scheduled for June 21-23. Tagoa'i has official visits scheduled to Washington May 31-June 2, Utah June 14-16 (Same weekend as Josiah Sharma) and Texas June 21-23. View full news

We agree on that. I'm an interested observer on who Texas makes the big push for on the OL and at WR.

Getting in the tournament never a bad thing for sure. Miami and Arkansas are done for the year after a FF and S16 in 2023. Year one has been okay. Year two for RT will be the really big one in his tenure IMO

100% agree. And who Texas really pushes for when the dust settles

Haha! I need to do the show on a treadmill!

Texas is getting a lot of calls, but it NCAA Tournament focused until the season is over. I expect the key names in the portal will hit once the seasons are officially over.

Would be a combination of both, right now!

I really think Texas needs to move on from both. I like Dillon Mitchell as a down the line quality role player as a pro ... But Texas needs college wings (Devon Pryor a key next year), and more stretch bigs at PF. Problem with Mitchell returning is it would be more about wing development than anything, and that's just not his fit in the college game IMO. And that will limit what Texas can be offensively with Tre Johnson, Cam Scott and Devon Pryor.

For sure! shot a combined 0-21 against Kansas State (N), Iowa State (at home) and At Marquette… truly amazing

Bart Torvik rankings ... https://barttorvik.com/#

Bracketmatrix still has Texas a No. 8 seed... http://www.bracketmatrix.com/

KenPom rankings ... https://kenpom.com/

Jerry Palm latest Bracketology ... No. 9 seed in No. 1 Purdue's region (Midwest Region) https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/bracketology/

ESPN latest Bracketology ... No. 9 seed in UConn (East Region) https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/page/bracketology/ncaa-bracketology-2024-march-madness-men-field-predictions

lol I'm not sure the staff has made enough final decisions on guys to even go there!!!

Big 12 Tournament has been crazy to this point ... Kansas loses to Cincinnati 72-52. TCU fired a lot of bricks today ... 17-73 (2-20 from three) in the loss to Houston, but had 55 rebounds (25 offensive).

Texas exited the Big 12 Tournament with a 78-74 loss to Kansas State in the 2nd round, the first game for the Longhorns. Now comes the question of where will Texas be seeded on Selection Sunday at 6 p.m. eastern time. With the loss, falling to a No. 10 seed would likely be the best case scenario for Texas (20-12, 9-9). Getting off the 8/9 seed line and not being tasked with taking on UConn (again), Tennessee or Purdue would be welcomed as all three teams are not ideal matchups for the Longhorns. Texas NCAA Tournament seeding scenarios The Longhorns are going to be a No. 8, No. 9 or No. 10 seed in the tournament. Moving toward a No. 9 or 10 with the upset loss to Kansas State Wednesday. Joe Lunardi has Texas a No. 9 seed following the loss last night. One projection (Jerry Palm), has Texas a No. 9 seed - same as before the loss. NCAA Men’s Basketball NET Rankings (March 1) Texas fell from No. 25 to No. 28 in NCAA NET after the Big 12 Tournament loss. The Longhorns are 5-9 in Quad 1 games, 3-2vs. Quad 2, 5-1 vs. Quad 3 and 7-0 vs. Quad 4. Kansas State is No. 70 in NCAA NET, and would be a fourth Quad 2 win for the Horns. Should the Horns advance to Thursday, Iowa State would be a Quad 1 win opportunity on a neutral court. Iowa State is No. 9 in NCAA NET. T-Rank Texas fell from No. 19 to No. 20 in Bart Torvik’s rankings after Wednesday night. 2024 Ken Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings Texas checks in at No. 25 after being No. 23 prior to the Kansas State loss. View full news

TCU just shot 17 of 73 vs. Houston. But had 55 rebounds ... wild numbers!

The main guys we have heard about are the California Power 7v7 guys, and Nightrydas 7v7 out of the Houston area. We will be double checking with some guys this weekend/early next week.

He's there now. I didn't include commits in this one.

If Signing Day were today This is a OnTexasFootball first article with this headline. While the December 4th signing day is over 200 days away, the majority of prospects on this list will make decisions prior to senior seasons. Steve Sarkisian and staff are currently in the lead, top two or in a position to battle on more than two dozen prospects in the 2025 cycle. OTF takes a look at 25 prospects of note with the categories being - Yes, Maybe and Work to be done. Yes is Texas leads, or would lead with a strong push. Maybe is Texas is right there, and work to be done is the obvious. This list will be fluid on a number of prospects as the spring plays out, and then through the summer official visits. Yes Rickey Stewart, RB, Tyler (Texas) Chapel Hill OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas the clear favorite over Baylor, SMU and a couple of others. Kelshaun Johnson, WR, Hitchcock (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas has serious competition from USC, Texas Tech and Texas A&M. It would surprise a few if the Longhorns weren't the winner, should Sarkisian make the final June push. Marcus Harris, WR, Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas has been the favorite at times in this recruitment. Oregon and Tennessee are key players. John Mills, IOL, San Francisco (Calif.) St. Ignatius OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Washington is real competition due to family ties. Texas has made a very strong impression with each visit. The Huskies new staff is going to have two cracks at winning out this spring. Jordan Coleman, OT, Cedar Hill (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star The Texas offer was very impactful. The Horns are the favorite with a closing push in June. Devin Coleman, IOL, Cedar Hill (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star The offer by Kyle Flood truly registered. Texas sits in the favorable position entering spring and official visits. Chace Sims, DL, Richmond (Texas) Randle OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star The Texas offer was a big one. Close to home matters in this one with Texas A&M, TCU and LSU the key players. Floyd Guidry, DL, Spring (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star A recruitment Texas would be expected to win, if Sarkisian and Kenny Baker make a push. Elijah Barnes, LB, Dallas (Texas) Skyline OnTexasFootball ranking: 4–star OTF considers Texas the team to beat headed into the spring, and visits. Kade Phillips, DB, Missouri City (Texas) Hightower OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas headed into spring visits is in a good spot over LSU, with Texas A&M also in it. Maybe Jordon Davidson, RB, Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas has been the favorite are at various times throughout the recruitment. Tashard Choice is a feather in the cap for Texas, to be clear. Ohio State, Alabama and Oregon provide true comeptition. Kaliq Lockett, WR, Sachse (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Some chatter in the DFW area Texas is the team to beat. With that said, this recruitment has a number of national players a visits on the schedule. Dakorien Moore, WR, Duncanville (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 5-star The LSU pledge will be a battle with Texas to the wire. Texas will get the explosive playmaker on campus at least once in the three months. Ohio State and Oregon are looking to make it a true three and four team race. Nick Townsend, TE, Dekaney (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star This is another one that could move to yes with a late spring and June Jeff Banks push. Kiotti Armstrong, TE, Jasper (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas A&M has the "follow the visits" lead headed into the spring. The spring will include two more trip to College Station, and one to Texas. Michael Fasusi, OT, Lewisville (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 5-star Both Texas and Oklahoma have confidence. Someone will not by the end of June. Texas A&M looking to play spoiler. Oregon and Missouri looking to bump A&M for the spoiler role. Jonte Newman, OT, Cypress (Texas) Bridgeland OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas has some competition here in Texas A&M and Oklahoma. An Alabama push would make this recruitment interesting for Newman, who is originally from Lexington, Miss. Jackson Christian, IOL, Port Neches (Texas) Port Neches-Groves OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star A big Texas push in June would ascend this one. Long standing relationships in play. Texas A&M needs to win some of these in-state battles on the offensive line in 2025. Tyler Thomas, IOL, Dickinson (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 3-star Both Texas and Texas A&M feel like they have a legit shot. Brad Davis is working to play spoiler for LSU. Zion Williams, DL, Lufkin (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4–star LSU was 1A and Texas 1B entering the spring, Texas A&M and TCU both in the hunt. This recruitment has the East Texas battle between LSU (Bo Davis) and Texas with Texas A&M going to fight, and Jamarkus McFarland playing a role for TCU. Hayden Lowe, EDGE, Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas scheduled for an April 6 unofficial visit, and June 14-16 official visit has the Longhorns firmly in the maybe category. Johnny Nansen and Pete Kwiatkowski are working this one for the Horns. Smith Orogbo, EDGE, Alief (Texas) Hastings OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star The April 6 visit will be the first key here, and if an official visit is scheduled things will get interesting. Orogbo has the SEC twitch and wingspan with physicality. Riley Pettijohn, LB, McKinney (Texas) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Texas is in a quality spot here. Maybe not quite to the level Elijah Barnes. Texas has serious competition with USC, Ohio State, FSU and Georgia. Matai Tagoa'i, LB, San Clemente (Calif.) High OnTexasFootball ranking: 4–star This is one that could easily change to yes after the spring. Johnny Nansen has Texas in position. Washington, Utah and others in the hunt. Cobey Sellers, CB, Pearland (Texas) Shadow Creek OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Oklahoma has had the most confidence for months. Texas, however, is not lacking some level of confidence either. Texas A&M is giving chase. Work to be done Jaime Ffrench, WR, Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star While Texas has two scheduled visits, Ohio State and Florida State are considered to be the favorites. The April 6 visit success with the staff prior to the June 21-23 official visit will be paramount. Damien Shanklin, EDGE, Indianapolis (In.) Warren Central OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Notre Dame is considered the favorite headed into the spring. Tennessee and Texas looking to play spoiler. Jonah Williams, S, Galveston (Texas) Ball OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Oklahoma has been enjoying a lot of confidence with Williams since January. Texas is getting the Houston area two-sport star on campus April 6, and again for an official visit. View full news