4-star S Xavion Alford commits to Texas over Texas A&M

For the second time this week, the Texas Longhorns have landed one of the nation’s premier safety prospects. Only this time around, the win on the recruiting trail came at the expense of the Aggies, as Pearland Shadow Creek product Xavion Alford has announced his commitment to Texas over Texas A&M.

Alford’s recruitment was yet another one that changed courses down the stretch.

As his stock soared throughout the early spring as he collected the bulk of his 43 offers, Alford immediately emerged as a key target at safety for Texas, despite the Longhorns’ long-time pursuit of prospects such as Duncanville’s Chris Thompson Jr. and Houston C.E. King’s Bryson Washington, which have since committed to Auburn and Oklahoma, respectively. Although Texas remained aggressive in recruiting other options at the position, Alford remained a priority and he reciprocated that interest in the form of several visits throughout the spring.

“The relationship I have with Coach Naviar and Coach Herman is great,” Alford told BON earlier this summer. “I’ve been up on multiple occasions and every time they have rolled out the red carpet.”

Shortly after his visit for Texas’ spring game, Alford released a top 10, which of course, included the Longhorns. Though TCU, Auburn, and Michigan were among the teams mentioned, beyond Texas, it was LSU, Texas A&M, and Alabama that separated themselves as the realistic landing spots.

As the summer progressed, Alford’s pledge appeared to be Alabama’s to lose. At the time, though, Alford was aiming to delay his decision until the All-America game while Alabama’s continued to build its class, which re-opened the door for Texas and Texas A&M to garner some traction.

The latter did so first.

Fresh off of a late July trip to College Station for the Aggies’ BBQ recruiting event, Alford appeared to be a lock for Texas A&M as reports surfaced that he was eyeing a decision ahead of his senior season. And that expectation only increased after Alford cut Alabama and LSU from consideration.

With the exception of a pick placed in early April for LSU, Alford’s Crystal Ball sat entirely in favor of the Aggies at the front end of the week. Then, on Tuesday evening, a pick to Texas trickled in, and then another on Wednesday, and then multiple more throughout Thursday before the essential nail in the coffin of a recruitment that is 247Sports Director of Football Recruiting, Steve Wiltfong, placing a projection for Tom Herman’s program on Friday morning.

Those picks have now proven accurate, as Texas prevails in a recruitment that was largely a toss up entering decision day and secures another major recruiting win over the Aggies.

With Alford on board, the Longhorns are now likely done at the safety position this cycle, as he joins Lufkin standout Jerrin Thompson, who pledged to the program earlier this week on Sunday. Alford is the more highly-ranked of the two, currently slotted as the nation’s No. 8 safety and No. 140 player overall, per the 247Sports Composite.

As a junior, the 6’0, 182-pound Alford tallied 61 tackles, 20 pass breakups, and six interceptions en route to first-team all-district honors. His senior season is set to get underway on Saturday, Aug. 31 at 7:00 p.m. CT.

Alford becomes the 16th addition to a Texas class that remains atop the the Big 12 and ranks No. 6 nationally.

• Bijan Robinson — 5-star RB — Tucson (Az.) Salpointe Catholic
• Hudson Card — 4-star QB — Austin Lake Travis
• Ja’Quinden Jackson — 4-star QB — Duncanville
• Vernon Broughton — 4-star DT — Houston Cy Ridge
• Prince Dorbah — 4-star WDE — Dallas Highland Park
• Jaylen Garth — 4-star OT — Port Neches-Groves
• Xavion Alford — 4-star S — Pearland Shadow Creek
• Ethan Pouncey — 4-star CB — Winter Park (Fla.)
• Jake Majors — 4-star C — Prosper
• Kitan Crawford — 4-star CB — Tyler John Tyler
• Jerrin Thompson — 4-star S — Lukfin
• Logan Parr — 4-star OG — Helotes O’Connor
• Princely Umanmielen — 4-star SDE — Manor
• Van Fillinger — 3-star SDE — Draper (Utah) Corner Canyon
• Andrej Karic — 3-star OT — Southlake Carroll
• Jaden Hullaby — 3-star ATH — Dallas Bishop Dunne

This story will be updated.