/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/48666525/eric_cuffee_ua.0.0.jpg)
After weeks of build up, Texas Longhorns cornerback target Eric Cuffee announced his decision date and time on Twitter Wednesday evening:
Everyone tune into ESPNU tomorrow at 5-6pm CT to see where I'll be taking my talents to for the next 3-4 years❕❗️❕❗️ pic.twitter.com/M71LQIycku
— CUFFEE (@JaeRican27) January 28, 2016
The news comes after the 2016 Under Armour All-American was ready to decide in Orlando several weeks ago, but was unable to secure a commitment slot.
Last weekend, Cuffee took an official visit to Arkansas, which ultimately resulted in rumors that he was recruiting for Texas and was sent home. Though there hasn't been any major substantiation to that story, Rivals no longer reports an offer from the Razorbacks for the Waco product.
Another official visit had been in the works to Texas A&M this weekend, but it seems unlikely that Cuffee will make that now.
Here's what Cuffee said he's looking for in his recruitment:
"Just the family-type environment. Just getting along with the players and talking to them, and seeing how the coaches really are there at the school and that they treat their players the way they should be treated," Cuffee said. "You come across some schools that say they're going to do something for you, and at the end it's different. I really try to get to that school and see who's real and who's fake. That's major key in my recruiting process that I look at."
Based on head coach Charlie Strong's track record of fostering that type of environment and communicating with recruits and players in a sincere manner, the Horns should be able to achieve those objectives after hosting Cuffee on numerous visits through the spring and summer and then an official visit in December.
That journey to Austin may have come at a crucial time, as it helped arrest momentum generated by a host of trips to College Station during the fall that seemingly helped Texas A&M take the lead for some time. Just as the Aggies were suffering from such notable instability, Texas capitalized.
Now it's not even clear if there is any significant competition for the Longhorns with Cuffee:
Cuffee is a consensus four-star prospect who is ranked as the No. 280 player nationally, the No. 28 cornerback, and the No. 43 player in Texas, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Throughout his recruitment, 35 schools have offered scholarships to the 6'0, 188-pounder. If he does commit to Texas on Thursday, he would become the only cornerback pledge in the class following the decommitment of Southlake Carroll's Obi Eboh last Saturday.