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As the 2021 cycle comes to a close, the Texas Longhorns missed on a talent in the trenches as Tyler Legacy strong-side defensive end Garfield Lawrence committed to the Houston Cougars on Thursday.
After much thought and prayer I’m excited to announce that I will be spending the next 4 years and continuing my academic and football career at the University of Houston ⚪️!! I want to thank coach early and coach Valai and coach Belk and @UHCougarFB staff pic.twitter.com/vUlNQ3JkB9
— Garfield (@garfield151015) January 28, 2021
Ranked as a consensus three-star prospect, Garfield pledged to the Jayhawks in late November over nearly 20 options, including Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas State, SMU, and Tennessee. Lawrence didn’t sign to officially seal his future in Lawrence during the early signing period, which left the door open for Houston and Texas.
Lawrence took a visit to the Forty Acres over the weekend as new head coach Steve Sarkisian’s staff pursued him. The Tyler Legacy product appeared to trend towards the Longhorns at that time, but the Cougars were able to close in the end.
As a senior, the 6’4, 240-pounder recorded 48 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Lawrence is ranked as the nation’s No. 49 strong-side defensive end and as the No. 108 player in Texas, per the 247Sports Composite.
Texas has landed two graduate transfer outside linebackers in recent days with the additions of LSU’s Ray Thornton and Notre Dame’s Ovie Oghoufo.