Needs -- Two or three
| Name | School | JD invite? | Offer? |
Commitment/ odds |
Favorites |
Quick take |
|
Mario Edwards |
Denton Ryan |
Feb. 13 (will not attend) |
Might have offer, otherwise no-brainer |
5% |
|
Possibly the best player in the state, the 6-5, 260-pound Edwards is an elite athlete at his position and solid technically for his age. Video. Only planned visit this spring is to Florida State, his current leader and his father's alma mater. |
| Hassan Ridgeway |
Mansfield |
Feb. 13 |
Possible (as DE) |
85% |
|
Also on the TE Big Board, but mostly as filler there. Young for his class and his coach believes he has some physical upside left. Good athlete. Video. Plans on committing soon. |
|
Caleb Bluiett |
Beaumont West Brook |
Feb. 26 |
Possible |
? |
? |
Well, Scout says he's quick. And Rivals says he's 6-3, 235. So there ya go. |
|
Michael Richardson |
DeSoto |
Feb. 26 |
Unlikely | 15% |
|
Explosive athlete who can change direction well, but undersized at 6-2, 230. Video. Projects better as a Buck end like Dravannti Johnson than as a pure 4-3 DE. Reportedly an excellent student. |
|
Eric Davis |
Tyler John Tyler |
No |
N/A | N/A |
|
As quick as Richardson, but with better size at 6-3, 240. Seems like a take based on his combination of size and athleticism, so it's strange he doesn't have Junior Day invite. |
Names to know -- Victor Irokansi (Pflugerville Hendrickson), Devonte Fields (Arlington Martin), Kyndahl Hill (Humble)
Overview -- Defensive end is one of the more difficult positions to predict in the class, partly because there isn't a ton of fantastic talent out there and partly because the top player on the board, Mario Edwards, looks like a heavy Florida State lean at this point. If there's any good news with him, it's that he's planning on making his announcement at whichever post-season All-Star game he attends. So at least the Longhorns may have some time to make up ground with him. The key is getting him to campus for the spring game, a summer camp, or in the fall for a game and/or official visit. At that point, Texas might have a shot.
After Edwards, it's not even clear that there's an obvious offer here. Bruce Chambers has been in on Ridgeway for some time now and he could be a pretty easy to get to commit. And other than Ridgeway, the only guy with a clear invite is Richardson, with Bluiett unconfirmed at this point.
Like defensive tackle, offensive line, and tight end, defensive end might be another position where the Longhorns have to wait and further evaluate some players and decide who they really want in the class. It doesn't seem to be worth taking a defensive end at one of the Junior Days just to have a commitment at the position, does it?
Wish list --
- Mario Edwards
- Eric Davis
- Unknown late-rising star
This is a difficult wish list to put together right now, particularly because there's barely anything to know about Puiett except that he may be attending the second Junior Day and Texas might not even be interested in the second player on this list.
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