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Even with 2017 recruits headed to campus, the Texas Longhorns coaching staff was out on the road on Friday, resulting in an offer to 2018 Cypress Spring safety Leon O’Neal Jr.:
More Than Blessed To Receive An Offer From University Of Texas #Hookem #WakeEmUp pic.twitter.com/Q0EaPg3HH7
— LeonNumbaNine#9 (@WakeEmUp9) January 13, 2017
The news came not long after safeties coach/special teams coordinator Craig Naivar left the school:
Really appreciate @coachrohan & Cy Springs HS for the hospitality today, gotta love some H-Town recruiting #GetSome pic.twitter.com/datzA2g7Wg
— Craig Naivar (@Coach_Naivar) January 13, 2017
Because the Texas staff — save Stan Drayton — worked so hard to establish relationships in the Houston area, including by hiring Houston Westfield head coach Corby Meekins, there should be strong relationships built already with the coaches at Cypress Springs.
As for O’Neal Jr., the 6’2, 190-pounder is already a hot commodity on the recruiting trail — he doesn’t hold a jaw-dropping number of offers, but many of the ones that he does hold are of high quality, including Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas A&M, and UCLA.
During the fall, O’Neal Jr. took trips to College Station and Tuscaloosa.
A consensus four-star prospect, the Cypress Springs product is the No. 223 player nationally, the No. 18 safety, and the No. 28 player in Texas, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
On his Hudl page, his 40-yard dash is listed at 4.57 seconds, his shuttle as 4.23 seconds, and his vertical as 33 inches, which are not verifiable, but match up with how he plays in pads.