Longhorns land 3-star Florida WR Jaden Alexis

In the game of football, speed kills and coaches are always looking to inject more of it into their roster.

Pompano Beach (Fla.) Monarch three-star wide receiver Jaden Alexis has speed, speed, and more speed. The Texas Longhorns have been in pursuit of Alexis since early in the spring and with almost 40 offers on his resume, it goes to show what programs around the country think of him.

Since getting offered, Alexis has held the Longhorns in high regard and planned to make a visit, but due to the pandemic those plans never materialized. Usually when an out of state prospect is unable to make a visit of any kind that usually signals that they are looking elsewhere, but these are not normal circumstances we are operating under.

For awhile the buzz in this recruitment has been that things favored Texas and that Alexis could potentially be the next commitment and now that has finally come to fruition, as the speedy Florida wide out announced his commitment to the Longhorns on Saturday.

The Longhorns were able to beat out Miami and Penn State to earn Alexis’ commitment, and now they are adding some big time speed to their recruiting class. It has been an interesting cycle for wide receiver recruiting with receivers coach Andre Coleman taking over the position group earlier in the offseason, but he certainly deserves some kudos in landing Alexis over the in-state Hurricanes and another formidable program in Penn State.

Alexis is the second wide receiver commit for the Longhorn 2021 recruiting class, as he joins Warren Easton (LA) wide out Casey Cain. He’s ranked as the No. 368 player nationally and the No. 60 wide receiver, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Alexis is the 17th commitment for the Longhorn recruiting class this cycle and they continue to hold steady with the 12th-ranked recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite team rankings.

Analysis:

Looks to possess solid measurables at 5’11, 175 pounds, and has a build that will allow him to fill out more moving forward. Alexis primarily works out of the slot on the offensive side of the ball, but he showed some versatility by also lining up at running back and defensive back. Alexis possesses excellent straight-line speed (verified 4.41 40) and it shows up in his ability to run right past defenders, as well as after the catch when you see him rarely get ran down from behind.

Alexis displays good acceleration off the LOS and in and out of his routes, as he can get up to top speed quickly. He has solid hands and shows the ability to make catches in traffic, as well as the ability to make the contested catches vertically. After the catch, Alexis shows on tape that he can be very elusive with good COD and good start and stop ability. Even in tight spaces with pursuing defenders or situations were guys are coming unblocked he shows the ability to win and make them miss. Alexis’ competitive toughness shows through when accumulating YAC, as he has no issues seeking out contact at times and will try to lower the shoulder on defenders. Alexis also flashes good balance and play strength at times as he is able to shed defenders as a ball carrier. This

Going forward Alexis will have to continue growing as a route runner, as he limited in that aspect at this point in his development. A lot of his tape consisted of various screens mixed in with some slot fades and a few other routes in the short and intermediate area of the field, so he will have to continue building on that. There also needs to be more emphasis on ball security, as he tends to not high and tight the ball and lets it swing. Also, would like to see him switch the ball over to his outside arm more when he hits the sideline so that pursuing defenders do not have a target to aim it in pursuit.