So Muschamp’s body of work is out there now, and recruits have responded.
This is the best defensive class we've signed since 2002 and the best front seven we've signed maybe ever. The offensive class was very good, but it wasn't up to the level of the defense.
We had a lot of good stuff go our way this year. Pete Carroll jumped to the NFL with its higher paychecks for both coaches and players, and Urban Meyer briefly decided that he cared about his family. So that helped with Jeffcoat and Hicks. Les Miles continues to be an albatross at LSU, and Bob Stoops and OU were paid back this year for at least some of their many past transgressions. Didn't hurt that we've gone 25-2 the last two seasons.
In state we have no competition except ourselves. We'll still occasionally fuck some things up with lazy evaluations and poor work ethic, but we're set to own this great state for the foreseeable future.
Out of state recruiting is about numbers and effort. If you go after two guys, don’t pack it in if they don’t commit. Instead go after more guys. Mack Brown has built up our in state recruiting so well that we rarely hear ‘no’ from a player, but we also set it up to where we pretty much only offer guys who will say ‘yes.’ You can’t be afraid of rejection in recruiting. And don’t start recruiting guys in September. Get on them early like the rest of the football powers do. That’s what Muschamp and Applewhite bring to the table. Neither of them would be considered closers per se, but they like recruiting and work hard at it.
Here are their official bios from TexasSports.
Aaron Benson LB Cedar Hill
You know we recruited well when this guy is only considered the third best linebacker in the class. He’s smaller than both Hicks and Jackson, and he’ll probably need to put on a little weight before he’s ready to contribute. Or not. He’s played at the highest level of Texas high school football for one of the premier programs so it’s not like he’s coming from Claude. The spread has made DFW high school football pretty faggoty, but Benson is a throwback.
Taylor Bible DT Denton Guyer
Bible looked as good as any defensive tackle in the nation as a junior and reminded me of Damione Lewis and Cedric Woodward at that level. He could play sideline to sideline and also rush the quarterback. Great quickness and explosion. Then he put on too much weight over the offseason and looked like a different player. When he loses the weight, he will be great again. And I have no doubts that he will lose the weight. Muschamp doesn’t seem to me like a coach who makes requests. He makes demands. Like SailorRipley.
Carrington Byndom DB Lufkin
First guy from Lufkin to be offered by Stanford since McKinner Dixon. He broke his thumb as a senior, and I think he had a lingering injury as a junior as well. Texas offered him early so his offer sheet isn't as good as some others. The corners in this class need to be hits because we lose both Browns and possibly Aaron Williams after this season.
DeMarco Cobbs Ath Tulsa (OK) Central
Tried to commit to Texas in the spring, but the coaches wouldn’t accept it until he visited. Later committed to Tennessee and dropped off the Texas radar. Publicly. Got back to talking with the coaches and switched (back) to Texas. Probably saved him a later trip to USC. He played quarterback in high school, but Texas will give him a shot first at safety. When it was reported that he ran a 4.76 40, stupid Texas fans freaked out. ‘OMG! He’s two sloe!’ There was a similar freakout a few years ago when it was mistakenly reported that Earl Thomas ran an 11.4 100m Trust your eyes, people. Cobbs is fast, and he was offered by everyone.
DeAires Cotton DT Alief Taylor
An honest to goodness two technique. And you thought the position had gone the way of the dinosaurs and our running game. Cotton is a big, strong guy who will control a gap for you on defense, spill a lot of stuff to the outside but will probably not give you too much as far as a pass rush. He’s not going to put up big numbers, but our linebackers will love him. His film doesn’t wow you, but OU and Nebraska both offered. That’s three ‘buts’ so we’ll probably need to keep him away from candy and nuts.
Greg Daniels DE Houston St. Pius X
No one knew who this guy was when he committed at one of the Texas junior days. Then Gerry Hamilton actually went to a spring practice at Pius X. Turns out the guy had put on about 30 pounds over the offseason, is a leader both on and off the field and has his picture in the dictionary under the word ‘upside.’ (I looked at Urban Dictionary and couldn’t find it.) He also has a size 28 shoe, and his dad is 8’10”. Not really. But he’s a big and raw athlete (similar to Tevin Mims last year) who might eventually grow into a defensive tackle. I’ve not seen enough of him to tell if he can get after the QB from the edge in a 4-3, but he’s another versatile guy who can play as a 3-4 end.
Mike Davis WR Dallas Skyline
We tried to screw this one up. Davis came in for a junior day but left without an offer. Instead we decided to accept the commitment from a Mormon whom everyone knew would jump to BYU at some point. Which he did about three months later. Davis proceeds to pistol whip opponents his senior season, but Texas still doesn’t pay him any interest. Finally word is passed to the Texas coaches that maybe they should give Davis a call. They do, fences are mended and he commits. Recruiting is hard, imo. Davis is a pretty complete receiver at this point. He has great hands and body control, and he runs good routes. He’s not a burner, but what would that get him in our offense anyway? Oh, and he blocks. He’ll be in the mix at receiver next year.
Ashton Dorsey DT Tyler John Tyler
Great first step, and he can rush the passer from the tackle spot. Has two older brothers who played college ball at Tulane and A&M so he has the bloodlines. A pretty good comparison would be to Lamarr Houston. He may be a bit undersized, but he makes up for it with quickness and motor.
Dominic Espinosa OL Cedar Park
Rivals lists him as 6’4”, but he’s closer to 6’2”. Played tackle as a junior before moving to center as a senior. He’ll either be a center or guard at Texas. Originally from California so he probably prefers Chipotle to Taco Cabana. Really aggressive player, but we'll fix that shit quick with a combined program of estrogen injections and sensitivity training. Crapshoot with the offensive line at this point.
John Harris WR Garland Naaman Forest
A dude named ‘John’ from the Metroplex who played QB his senior season but will play receiver for Texas? Sign. Him. Up. Bobby Kennedy likes big receivers from the Metroplex who don’t actually play receiver. Some work out, some don’t. Like most things in recruiting. Harris had a solid offer list so we’ll see what he can do after he redshirts.
Jordan Hicks LB West Chester (OH) Lakota West
This is the best linebacker Texas has signed since Derrick Johnson, and he’s as good as anyone in the country. Dude threw a sweatervest and a pair of jorts on a burning couch by signing with Texas. No matter. His family is making the move with him to Austin. We got on him early and stayed on him. We didn't give him some stupid fucking timetable either.
Trey Hopkins OL Galena Park North Shore
Cerebral. Cerebral enough to question what we’re doing on the oline? Maybe. Also athletic. Athletic enough to make up for what we’re doing on the oline? Maybe. Played tackle in high school but will move inside at Texas. Oscar Giles sometimes has trouble finding his assigned high schools in the Hourston area or getting actual film, but we got our shit together and offered. Very good athlete who needs to get bigger and stronger, and that's why God invented redshirts.
Bryant Jackson DB Sulphur Springs
Despite his height and frame, Gerry Hamilton says he has the hips to play corner. Tall and thin, but he has a nose for the ball. Had a combined 10 interceptions his sophomore and junior years. Also played receiver and returned kicks so you’re looking at a tall athlete who can play either safety or corner. Let’s call him a poor man’s Gary Baxter.
Tevin Jackson LB Garland
Maybe the most underrated guy in the class. Was listed as around 200 pounds after his junior year, but when the spring evaluation period rolled around it was found that he was actually closer to 230. Great at blitzing and pressing. Big dude with a great frame who can run. And he’s an inside guy. His coach moved him outside for a playoff game his junior year, and he struggled. I’m not saying he can’t play outside, but we’re looking at a Mike who will be 6’3” 250 in a couple of years without sacrificing speed. Plays downhill like a rolling ball of butcher knives. Obviously he needs to get better in pass coverage, but we no longer use that as an excuse to keep future NFL players off the field.
Jackson Jeffcoat DE Plano West
When you’re that good, people start looking for warts. There are none. His dad played for Arizona State and the Cowboys and isn’t named Shante Carver. He uses his hands better than a grifter. Great hands allow him to keep bigger offensive linemen off him so he’ll still play early despite being a little light right now. The dude’s never even gone through an offseason program before because of basketball. It’s ridiculous how he’s going to fill out. And he was able to dominate in a read and react defense in high school. Texas sold him on playing the Buck position so we’ll see how well he plays in space. Wart!
Chris Jones WR Dangerfield
He reminds me of a smaller Reggie McNeal. Now when I said this on Orangebloods, I was met with a chorus of ‘Ur an Aggie! I h8 u!’ And that was just from Trips Right, imo. So let me expound. McNeal would be in the NFL today if he had played safety or receiver in college instead of QB. He was a fantastic prospect. He just had no wiggle, and neither does Jones. Jones is plenty fast though, but he played 2A ball so he’s probably never run a proper route in his life.
Case McCoy QB Graham
His brother roomed with Jordan Shipley in college, his dad roomed with Jordan Shipley’s dad in college and one day he will room with Jordan Shipley’s brother in college. Jordan Shipley was also in ‘Animal House’ with Kevin Bacon. Probably even lighter than Colt was as a freshman. I was a bit surprised that Texas offered, but I was more surprised that he accepted. It’s one thing to follow your brother, but the same position? Already enrolled so he'll battle with Connor Wood to see who will transfer first back up Gilbert.
Adrian Phillips Ath Garland
Started at quarterback and cornerback as a junior and wide receiver and safety as a senior. So yeah, he’s an athlete. He was district MVP his senior year as an athlete. Will be a defensive back at Texas, and I’m guessing safety because he’s already around 200 pounds. Solidly built and a big hitter. I like the idea of having two former quarterbacks (Phillips and Cobbs) at safety.
William Russ K Shreveport (LA) Evangel Christian
Our kicking problems are solved! Or not. We’ve had approximately 74 kickers under Brown, and I can’t really remember any of them kicking the ball in the endzone on kickoffs. So that leads me to believe that we are coaching them not to. I was never coached not to end a sentence in a preposition. So take it with a grain of salt. Or are you still holding out hope that Trevor Gerland is going to change our punt game because he’s such a great athlete?
Traylon Shead RB Cayuga
Ran for more yards than any Texas high school player other than Kenneth Hall, who occasionally posts on this site as SLXpress. He’s a big back, and that’s two years in a row we’ve taken a guy who will fail in our current system. Most guys will fail in our current system so maybe there is something to the noise about putting Gilbert under center more. Shead is big, strong and has excellent body lean. His coach compares him to Adrian Peterson (whom he coached), but I think Cedric Benson might be a better comparison because he doesn’t have the off the charts athleticism.
Darius Terrell WR DeSoto
Stay away from Aggie equestrians, Darius. Oh, and you’re going to play flex tight end for us. He's about 6'2" 220 and runs probably a 4.7 or so. But he's strong, has great hands, will block and has the testicular fortitude to meet the challenge.
Adrian White DB DeSoto
Practices like Tarzan, plays like Jane. Maybe that’s a bit unfair. But in two games against Skyline Mike Davis caught 39 passes for 900 yards and 15 tds. Or something. They weren’t all against White, but some of them were. And they’re the ones writing it off. He had offers from Florida, North Carolina, TCU and Nebraska (that once again means something). Those schools know defense, often times in the Biblical sense. He’s already enrolled so he gets to battle with Eryon Barnett to replace the Browns at one of the corner spots in 2011.
Darius White WR Fort Worth Dunbar
Runs like a cross between good Roy Williams and an American Saddlebred. There was supposedly a name tag fiasco at one of the junior days that caused him to sour on Texas, and it didn’t help that his stepdad was pushing OU. But his girlfriend will be attending Texas, and pussy trumps fake dad. White wrecked shit as a junior, but he had a tough senior season because Dunbar didn't have anyone who could get him the ball. He should play as a freshman unless we decide to start John Chiles and Philip Payne because they're seniors.
Reggie Wilson DE Haltom City
T.I.A. Hooray. Committed so early that he’s almost a forgotten man at this point. TCU made some noise about hiring his high school’s S&C coach, but it wasn’t enough to sway him. Finished his high school career with about 60 tfls. Dedfischer says he has a big ass. I call that a solid base. Relentless player with explosion and strength. Ridiculous upside. Has no peers against the run at his position.
Connor Wood QB Houston Second Baptist
He’s a very good athlete who can dunk a basketball. What? ChrisApplewhite can’t. Played for a private school where he was probably bigger than his offensive linemen while throwing to skill position players named Zander. Throws well on the run and can probably give us something in the run game.