As the spring evaluation period continues, the Texas Longhorns coaches in football and basketball remain active evaluating prospects and extending offers.
Here's the latest:
-- Texas will get a visit from Baylor running back commit Kam Martin this weekend while he's in town for the state track meet. Martin has ties to the Longhorns because he's the cousin of former star running back Jamaal Charles, but the staff waiting so long to offer him resulted in his commitment to the Bears last summer and decreased interest in the program he followed growing up.
There's only been one flip prediction for Martin since Texas offered in mid-February, but the visit should be helpful in reminding Martin why he was so high on the Longhorns early in the process.
-- Defensive coordinator Vance Bedford made an important stop in Waco to check in on star cornerback Eric Cuffee:
Thanks to @TexasSports @CoachBedfordUT 4 stopping by to see @JaeRican27 @ThePrideofWaco #lionpride #HookEm pic.twitter.com/FU5s0uDSv3
— Waco High Athletics (@ThePrideofWaco) May 13, 2015
The 5'11.5, 188-pounder earned an invitation to The Opening back in March and is a key target for the Longhorns. It wasn't the first visit from Texas this spring, either, as area recruiter Shawn Watson stopped by about two weeks ago. Cuffee has also been a frequent visitor in Austin this spring, making the drive down I-35 for the Junior Day, an early April visit, and for the Orange-White game.
There's also some increasing in-state competition besides Baylor and TCU, as Texas A&M extended an offer on Tuesday.
-- A member of the Texas staff also went by Godley to check in on jumbo athlete Blake Hickey. The 6'3.5, 247-pounder is ranked as an offensive guard, but he also holds offers as a defensive end and tight end. The Longhorns are recruiting him as a tight end, so he's a prospect to watch at a need position. Ten schools have offered Hickey, including California, Duke, Illinois, Kansas, and Northwestern.
-- Another jumbo athlete to watch is Ryan Becker of Marble Falls. Checking in at 6'6 and 224 pounds, Becker now holds offers from Nebraska and Texas Tech and will likely receive further evaluation from the Texas staff into the fall if the school fails to land the two prospects if needs by then.
-- On Tuesday, a staff member stopped by Kountze to see Baylor cornerback commit Grayland Arnold, a player who has been on the Texas recruiting radar for some time, but hasn't yet picked up an offer. He's a mid three-star prospect who also holds offers from Mississippi State, Nebraska, and Oklahoma State.
-- Shaka Smart stayed active on the basketball recruiting trail by offering 2016 shooting guard Rawle Alkins, a consensus four-star prospect from Middle Village (N.Y.) Christ the King Regional. Alkins is a big, bruising guard at 6'5 and 210 pounds who is thought to be high on Villanova and Kansas, as well as Indiana.