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How to follow Texas Early Signing Day news

The biggest recruiting fireworks have come over the last several days, but the Longhorns could make some more important additions during the early signing period that starts on Wednesday.

By Wescott Eberts Updated
NCAA Football: Kansas State at Texas Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

First-year Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian takes his first big recruiting step in reshaping the program in his image on Wednesday as the 23 commits in the 2022 recruiting class are expected to ink their National Letters of Intent and a handful of targets make their decisions on Early Signing Day.

After a monster recruiting weekend that included the commitment of Ohio State quarterback transfer Quinn Ewers, who won’t sign another NLI, the long-term outlook of the offensive line changed the most with three monster pledges. Two of them, offensive tackles Kelvin Banks and Cam Williams, were former Oregon commits, while the third, offensive guard Neto Umeozulu, marked a rare recruiting win for the Horns at Texas high school football powerhouse Allen.

As the day begins, the group ranks No. 6 nationally and No. 1 in the Big 12, according to the 247Sports Composite team rankings, despite a handful of decommitments in recent weeks, including the exceedingly brief pledge of Lubbock-Cooper linebacker Kobie McKinzie, who flipped back to Oklahoma on Monday.

So even with those losses and the six-game losing streak that contributed to Sarkisian’s 5-7 season, the Longhorns enter Early Signing Day with a remarkable amount of recruiting momentum and only a few available spots — the Texas head coach plans on taking as many as 33 players from the high school ranks and the NCAA transfer portal, but can only sign 26 until more players depart the program in the coming weeks.

In fact, for several prospects left on the board — and perhaps even a couple of commits — the biggest question for them may not be whether they want to sign with the Horns, but whether Texas has enough room for them, creating a delicate balancing act for the coaching staff.

Wednesday’s top decisions to watch include Arlington Seguin athlete Xavion Brice, an Oklahoma commit who is also considering Texas and Tech, Little Elm cornerback Terrance Brooks, a longtime Ohio State pledge, Grand Prairie wide receiver Savion Red, and Federal Way (Wash.) Todd Beamer offensive tackle Malik Agbo.

Early enrollees

Signees

Unsigned commits

  • Henderson (Nev.) Liberty ATH Anthony Jones
  • New Orleans (La.) Warren Easton CB Ronald Lewis

Wednesday announcements

Arlington Seguin athlete Xavion Brice — The 6’1, 175-pounder is capable of playing on both sides of the ball, so he could fill need positions like wide receiver or safety. Brice committed to Oklahoma back in July, but after Lincoln Riley left for USC, he took official visits to Texas Tech and Texas while remaining pledged to the Sooners.

7:40 a.m. Central — Brice flips to the Longhorns in the first big decision on Early Signing Day for Texas.

Little Elm cornerback Terrance Brooks — Texas has continued to recruit Brooks, who took an official visit to Austin before committing to Ohio State in late June.

9:00 a.m. Central — Brooks flips from Ohio State to Texas.

Grand Prairie wide receiver Savion Red — A late target for Texas, Red committed to SMU in September, but reopened his recruitment when Sonny Dykes left for TCU and then picked up his offer from Texas at the end of November. He was an official visitor on the Forty Acres over the weekend and the Longhorns are considered the favorite with four 247Sports Crystal Ball predictions.

2:15 p.m. Central — Red commits to Texas.

Federal Way (Wash.) Todd Beamer offensive tackle Malik Agbo — Officially down to Auburn, Miami, Oklahoma, and Texas, the big offensive tackle has seen his recruitment shaken up by coaching changes in recent weeks as Oklahoma and Miami both hired new head coaches. And Auburn hasn’t exactly been the picture of stability under first-year head coach Bryan Harsin with quarterback Bo Nix and running back Tank Bigsby both entering the transfer portal in recent days. Texas holds all five Crystal Ball predictions made recently and seems like the leader heading into Early Signing Day, but it’s possible that Omeozulu’s commitment could impact whether Agbo has a spot in the class as Texas waits for Arlington Bowie offensive guard Devon Campbell to make his decision in February. Agbo plans on announcing his decision at 4 p.m. Central on CBS Sports HQ.

Mission Hills (Calif.) Bishop Alemany safety Larry Turner-Gooden — The former Arizona State commit took an official visit to Texas in October and is also considering Colorado, Maryland, Penn State, and USC, but it’s not clear if he’s going to make a decision on Wednesday. As of late Tuesday evening, there wasn’t an announcement time set for Turner-Gooden, so it’s possible that he pushes his decision back.

Barring a major surprise, Texas is unlikely to flip Frisco Liberty wide receiver Evan Stewart from Texas A&M, receive a recommitment from Lewisville wide receiver Armani Winfield, or land prospects like St. James (La.) wide receiver Shazz Preston, Humble Atascosita offensive guard Kam Dewberry, Cy Park linebacker Harold Perkins, or Galena Park North Shore cornerback Denver Harris. But any signing day does always possess the possibility for a surprise or two, with Harris ranking as the most likely of those prospects to choose Texas.

9:24 a.m. Central — Winfield’s recruitment took another big turn on Wednesday morning. After it looked like he was going to end up at Michigan State, Baylor trended on Tuesday before Texas received five Crystal Ball predictions, including three from writers who cover the Spartans. So watch out for his decision at 4 p.m. Central.

4:22 p.m Central — Winfield commits to Baylor.

11:05 a.m. Central — Harris will not announce on Wednesday.

Late Tuesday evening, a potential surprise emerged with buzz surrounding Texas and Austin Westlake edge Ethan Bruce, who committed to Michigan two weeks ago.

Another Longhorns target who could decide on Wednesday is Winter Park (Fla.) running back Terrance Gibbs, a former Gators commit who took an official visit to Austin last weekend. However, it’s not clear whether he’ll decide during the early signing period or make his decision in January or February so he can take more visits.

There will also be plenty of coverage in other places. The @TexasFootball Twitter account will announce the new signees as the National Letters of Intent roll in and Longhorn Network also typically has coverage in the morning and early evening. And Sarkisian is set to meet with the media during the afternoon to discuss the class.

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