2011 Texas Big Board: The Athletes

by Wescott Eberts (GoBR) on Feb 12, 2010 6:44 PM CST in Texas Longhorns Recruiting

Athletes on 2011 roster -- DeMarco Cobbs (2013/14)

Needs -- Two or three

Targets --

Name (School)	JD invite?	Offer?	Commitment odds	Favorites	Quick take
Hakeem Flowers (Greenville (SC))	Feb. 27	No-brainer	10%	Offers from everyone Seriously, everyone	Most likely projects as a receiver at the next level -- it's unclear why Rivals lists him as an athlete. Long, lean, and fast as hell, Flowers shows off his excellent feet on jet sweeps and is clearly a big-time deep threat. Could be an impact player in the return game. Has had little or no personal contact with the Texas coaching staff. Can't-miss prospect who will fly into Austin with his father for the second Junior Day.
Ladarius Brown (Waxahachie)	Will attend, date unconfirmed	Likely	85%	Texas TCU Baylor Oklahoma Alabama	As a receiver, Brown has the ball skills and body control that would translate well to the safety position, but his pure speed is something of a question mark -- he doesn't look to have elite speed on film, but his height (6-2) could make him deceptive in that respect. Needs to work on tackling form. Hard to say how exactly Brown feels about the Longhorns, as he is apparently hard to get into contact with and has done few interviews.
Desmond Roland (Dallas Lake Highlands)	Will attend, date unconfirmed	Possible	25%	Oklahoma Texas	Much like DeMarco Cobbs, Roland projects as a guy who could play receiver or running back or a combination of the two in college. Has the feet, vision, and balance to play running back. Excellent athlete, but the Longhorns don't have a particular need for him and he's thought to be an Oklahoma lean.
Mykkele Thompson (San Antonio Stevens)	Will attend, date unconfirmed	Likely	80%	Texas TCU Texas A&M Baylor Oklahoma	All-around athlete who played quarterback and wide receiver for Stevens as a junior. One of the best long-jumpers in the state. Only recently surfaced on the Texas radar.
Quandre Diggs (Angleton)	Feb. 27	Likely	90%	Texas Oklahoma LSU	Well-built kid, but undersized at 5-8 or 5-9 -- probably too small to play cornerback for Muschamp. A better comparison might be a thicker, stronger DJ Monroe and he could fit into the Texas offense in a similar way. Could also be an excellent safety, but it would be difficult to make the decision to take the ball out of his hands, which would solve the problem of his size as well. Says he wants to play defensive back. Brother of Quentin Jammer -- has known the Texas coaching staff for most of his life. Texas fell out of contact for some time and it's not clear whether they stopped recruiting him or just thought that they didn't need to keep up with him as much because he was a virtual lock to accept an offer.

Other names to know -- Quincy Aldridge (Whitehouse), Everett Pleasant (Humble Atascocita), Jermichael Selders (Houston Cy Creek), Stephen Williams (Round Rock Stony Point)

Overview -- This is the position where the Longhorns could end taking an athlete who could play safety or end up on the offensive side of the ball at wide receiver. Besides the obvious take in Flowers, the most likely candidates for offers are both guys who would probably get a look at safety first -- Thompson, a kid rising quickly up the charts from San Antonio, so he's a guy Akina has recruited personally and Ladarius Brown, who plays receiver at Waxahachie

In terms of all the position groups, there is less certainty about which players will receive offers in this group than any other -- there is little information available as to where these players rank on the Texas board. This is the group of players who could supplement Shipley and likely Onyegbule at receiver or provide depth at safety and could influence whether or not a guy like Franklin Shannon gets an offer.

Wish list --

Hakeem Flowers
Mykkele Thompson or Ladarius Brown
Quandre Diggs

Flowers is obviously the major national target and a guy the Longhorns will have to wait for, but his upcoming trip to Austin speaks highly of his interest. The staff will have to sell him hard, particularly on his ability to play quickly and how they would plan on using him, presumably offensively. It's necessary to sell him hard because he has had so little contact with the coaching staff -- for him to vault the Longhorns near the top of his impressive list, Mack Brown and company will have to make him feel at home, show him that Texas is a school apart from all the others. A tough task, but one that Brown does exceptionally well.

As for the rest, Texas will probably want to take one of Brown and Thompson, as both are guys who project well to the safety position -- it may come down to which one is willing to make a switch to that side of the ball, though either one could get a look on offense for Texas. Diggs is a bit of a tough read at this point, as he didn't appreciate the staff losing touch with him -- it will be interesting to see if Texas gives him an offer and if he decides to take more time. His decision may come down to where the Longhorns see him playing in college, though they would obviously give him a chance at whatever position he desires were he to commit.

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Comments

Flowers

Saw a film of him on a BC link and I wasn’t blown away with his speed, hips, or moves. Seems no faster than Metoyer, slower than Onyegbule, and about the same size as both as well as less juke-capable. Am I missing something here or what, GoBR? Do you have a different film of him that you could post, because from what I saw I’m fucking shocked the guy is rated this highly.

by GoHornsGo90 on Feb 12, 2010 10:10 PM CST reply actions

I see where you are coming from

I think Flowers is faster than Metoyer, perhaps not quite as fast as Darius White, who is of similar size. Flowers has good feet, but he doesn’t seem to catch as many short passes or be as active in the screen game as a guy like Metoyer or John Harris was his junior season, so it’s hard to get a great look at his ability to make defenders miss. Definitely understand why you aren’t blown away though.

by Wescott Eberts (GoBR) on Feb 13, 2010 9:54 AM CST up reply actions

flowers

do you think boom might be looking at him as a strong safety.

by tcuhorns on Feb 13, 2010 9:58 AM CST reply actions

Possible

But I think he has so many offers that if he wants to play offense, then he’s going to have more than a few options to do that in college — I think it would be a tough sell to get him to play safety, but I haven’t gone through and read everything available to see if there is any talk in that direction. There must be some at least because otherwise why would he be listed as an athlete?

by Wescott Eberts (GoBR) on Feb 13, 2010 10:19 AM CST up reply actions

re: Diggs

Does he not have the fluidity to play corner? The Horns have had some midgets at corner recently (Brandon Foster, anyone?). Sure we wish every DB were AJ Williams, but being 5’8" doesn’t exclude you.
And Diggs is an elite athlete by all accounts. I think it would be a mistake to pass on him.
I have read that grades may keep L Brown from getting an offer.

by llogg on Feb 13, 2010 10:22 AM CST reply actions

My feeling has been that Muschamp wants bigger corners

and guys like Brandon Foster and Ryan Palmer are part of the reason why. I think Diggs has the ability to play corner and he will be an interesting test case for my theory of Muschamp wanting bigger guys at the position. Agree that Diggs is talented enough that he would be hard to pass up, especially considering that he’s Quentin Jammer’s brother.

Were did you see that about Brown?

by Wescott Eberts (GoBR) on Feb 13, 2010 11:04 AM CST up reply actions