LB Kenneth Murray of Fort Bend Elkins discusses his unofficial visit to UT on Saturday (24/7):
“My visit went really well,” Murray said. “Some of my favorite parts were just sitting down with the coaches and joking around with them. It was really cool and my family really liked what they had to say."
“I think Texas is heading in the right direction as far as being great again. I don’t care about wins this season. I just want to see some overall improvement.”
“He actually told me not worry about them or recruiting,” Murray said. “He told me that I would always have a scholarship with the Texas Longhorns and to go out and focus on being the best player for my team. I liked that. I respect him and so does my family.”
“The visits were about the same except A&M had some good barbecue,” Murray said with a laugh. “But I talked to Coach (Kevin) Sumlin the same amount of time as I did with Coach Strong. Both had a great family environment. Texas just has a different atmosphere. I don’t know how to explain it.”
Per Higs regarding Duvernay:
"Trip went great for DD -- I think he wants to play for the Longhorns. However, its not that simple. His brother has yet to be released and who knows if he will. His parents want the pair to enroll together so unless they change their stance it will be a while. Texas will take both players if they want to come. TCU is working the negative recruiting angle in a major way and I think that is having a bit of an impact for the family overall....."
TCU is an awesome negative recruiter.
Inside Texas reporting the annual "Under the Lights" camp will be held on July 16th.
WACO -- A source confirmed to KCEN Monday that plans were in place to suspend Baylor Head Football Coach Art Briles for the 2016 season but bring him back for the 2017 season.
A source told KCEN-HD's Nikki Laurenzo, players were told there are plans to "suspend Briles."
The Baylor Board of Regents announced last month that Briles was suspended with the intent to terminate related to the University's and Athletic Department's handling of sexual assault cases.
However, Chip Brown with HornsDigest.com reported that the regents would vote Monday night on whether to bring Briles back in 2017.
A source told KCEN-HD Sports Reporter Jessica Morrey, there's "an unbelievable amount of pressure on the board," right now.
The Board of Regents fired Ken Starr as the University's President. He later resigned as chancellor but will remain at the school as a law professor.
Athletic Director, Ian McCaw, also resigned in the wake of the scandal.
OrangeBloods on JUCO TE Devonaire Clarington and his visit to UT this weekend:
"Showed up unannounced and left. Coaches didn't even see him. Texas is not recruiting him."
Strong excited as Texas holds satellite camps this week (24/7):
http://texas.247sports.com/Bolt/Stro...-week-45782841
Devin Duvernay per ESPN (insider):
Gerry was able to interview him and wrote this story
It's an insider piece, so I won't paste the whole article. To summarize, Strong is putting the hard sell on him, obviously, and a lot of current players are in his ear trying to get him here. But the tidbit at the end has him as likely ending up at UT or TCU, Ok seems to be a distant third and he hasn't bothered completing an application to them. Not earth shattering, as I believe the mods have said roughly the same - that it will come down to TCU or UT. But it was insinuated by Devin himself to be the case.
Sounds like Strong made a good sell, so now we wait.
Tidbit- "After going through the Texas spring game extensively with the Longhorns offensive staff, highlighted by every throw of freshman quarterback Shane Buechele"
Watching the OL/DL clips and man Chuck Filiaga and Walker Little are some bad men. Whichever teams can gain their commitments will be very lucky.
OrangeBloods reporting TE/DE Dayo Odeyingbo did not show for camp on Sunday, but he'll be at the Dallas satellite camp this week.
http://247sports.com/Player/Dayo-Odeyingbo-81070
May mean something, may not.
WR Devin Duvernay now following Strong, Coach Gilbert, Coach Williams, Coach Traylor and Ehlinger on Twitter.
24/7 reporting the Baylor BOR will NOT vote on Briles today.
No word if it will even happen at all.
The USATODAY Podcast was excellent Floss
From the Football Brainiacs:
– Patrick Hudson: After some reports from the Baylor side, there have been some questions about whether Hudson is still pursuing a release from his NLI. I checked in with a family member of Hudson’s and a person close to the family. Both confirmed that Hudson is still seeking a release and right now it’s just a waiting game.
The plan, I am told, remains for Hudson to enroll elsewhere once he receives his release.
Additionally, you may have seen some reports/rumors regarding the possibility of Briles returning. I believe I’ve tracked down where those are coming from. A source close to one of the players seeking release told me that one of the members of the Baylor coaching staff told the player (after he filed for release) that Baylor is “working on getting Briles job back”. The source said the player and his family do not believe the claims. – (Super K)
– Devin Duvernay: Former Baylor WR signee Devin Durvernay was Texas’ biggest visitor over the weekend, and according to a source close to Duvernay, his visit went very well. As you all know Devin is free to enroll anywhere anytime however he is waiting on his brother who will require a NLI release. How soon that release comes will determine when Devin is able to arrive and will likely impact whether he’s ready to see the field this year.
During the Texas first pass at recruiting Devin, Texas was not prepared to take his brother, Donovan. However, after talking with some people on the Texas side of things, it sounds like the Longhorns will take both Devin and Donovan if they choose to come to Texas. Having to wait for Donovan’s release is going to give other schools, specifically TCU, time to help sway the decision on where these two end up. – (Andrew)
– Devonaire Clarington: I know some of you likely saw some tweets from 2015 Texas TE signee Devonaire Clarington yesterday of pictures of him on Texas’ campus. I just wanted to let everyone know that he was just up there with some friends, not on a visit to Texas. Clarington recently enrolled at Blinn College in Texas after not attending school last year. He’s not currently on Texas’ radar. – (Andrew)
Tyrell Shavers committed to Bama.
Didn't see that coming.
HORNSPORTS:
We’ll start as we have the last few weeks with the latest about what we know concerning the 2016 signees awaiting an LOI release from Baylor.
Devin Duvernay – We’ll start with the one player not bound by a letter of intent. Duvernay was in Austin this weekend visiting Texas, and our sources tell us things went extremely well for Texas. Our sources have said from the beginning that Texas would be extremely favorable for the Sachse speedster, and they voiced excitement over the visit this weekend. We were told that Texas pitched Duvernay on a role in the offense no one else can fill. Texas will also rely on the relationships Duvernay has with several players in the program. The most notable relationship is with quarterback Shane Buechele who tried to recruit Duvernay to Austin last year. TCU is going to be tough compe ion, but our sources in Austin believe Texas will land Duvernay, and our sources near him have said the same thing from the beginning. The biggest question will concern Devin’s brother Donovan and his pending release from Baylor. As we’ve told you from the beginning, Devin will not do anything until there is clarity on his brother’s situation.
Patrick Hudson – Sources are all over the map here as they were during his recruitment, and we’ve got a few storylines we are chasing for the big man. Reports from the Baylor 247 site indicate that Hudson is listening to the sales pitch of the new staff and is considering enrolling in Waco for the second summer session. We checked with some folks, and heard some similar things. One person told us that there are some scare tactics are in place possibly pushing Hudson in that direction. Other sources indicated that Hudson still has a connection with the existing staff, and he really sees Waco as a good fit coming from a small town. There were a couple of people that told us Hudson is still evaluating his options, and pushing for a release is still a very real option. At the end of the day we think if Hudson pushes for and is released from his LOI he will end up in Austin.
Parrish Cobb – There’s not much new information to report here. It’s a two team race at this point between Oklahoma and Texas, and sources are starting to feel more optimistic about the chances he lands in Austin.
+++++
I talked to some sources on two five star players Texas is after in this class.
Jeff Okudah – We were told that while Texas is hanging on in this recruitment, they have quite a hill to climb. “I’m not sure if Texas would make a top 5 if Jeff released it today”. Most people believe Ohio State is in the drivers seat here, and everyone we spoke with agreed with that assessment. One person told us that Stanford might be a strong compe or in this race due to the relationship Okudah has with Stanford defensive back coach Duane Akina. Most Texas fans are aware of Akina’s recruiting prowess, and the educational opportunities available in Palo Alto make that situation hard to beat. “Jeff didn’t grow up in Texas, so he didn’t grow up like most kids enamored with the Longhorns. The fact that the last few years have been a struggle is one thing, but they don’t have the proven horses recruiting like Mack’s staff had. Don’t get me wrong, Charlie’s staff has done some unbelievable things, but Akina is a machine, and he’s the reason Stanford is getting back into Texas with such frequency”. As we’ve seen, Charlie will continue to push for the five star defender, but Texas has a ton of work to do.
Baron Browning – We also spoke to sources regarding Browning, and while we were told that Texas is still very high on his list, Ohio State is making a big impression. Browning enjoyed his time in Columbus, and he’s going back with his parents to visit again. While I normally wouldn’t worry about out of state options at this point, I was told Okudah and Browning have strongly discussed playing together at the next level. We were told if Browning stayed in state it would likely be Texas, but UCLA and Ohio State will be a thorn in this recruitment.
+++++
Memphis (TN) Harding Academy offensive lineman Will Lawrence is one of the top players in the country for 2018. The offensive lineman holds offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Oklahoma, Florida State, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Texas, Texas A&M, and USC among many others. He made the trip to Austin to compete at the Texas minicamp this past weekend and Will Baizer caught up with him to get the scoop on the visit.
Lawrence is the cousin of former Texas kicker Hunter Lawrence, and that seems to have Texas in the picture for one of the most heavily recruited players in his class. It sounds like the visit went really well for Lawrence and he enjoyed his time on campus. “It was really good, but I didn’t feel like it was my best day”. Lawrence spent some time talking with the coaching staff, and he told us they discussed the opportunities at Texas and technique as it relates to the offensive scheme. Lawrence told us he connected well with Matt Mattox, and was excited to meet him for the first time. “I really liked him. I thought he was a cool dude”, said Lawrence. “He’s just super laid back, and he says I can play tackle which means a lot to me”.
Lawrence told us that he really enjoyed the facilities and meeting with the coaching staff, and he’s still mulling over his offers. He hopes to make a decision by the end of this year, but he told us that no teams are really standing out to him at the moment. When decision time comes, we expect Texas to be in the thick of the race to win his commitment. Lawrence also told us he wants to try to visit again this summer. We will be on top of the story as it unfolds, so stay tuned for more on the Tennessee lineman.
+++++
Elkins linebacker Kenneth Murray is experiencing a whirlwind right now. In the last few months he went from a player on the verge of exploding to a player picking up big time offers from powerhouse programs. Murray was on campus Saturday for a visit before jetting down to College Station for their recruiting barbecue. We caught up with the versatile defender to get the latest on his recruitment. “It was great”, Murray told us. “I really enjoyed myself”. Murray told us he would rate both visits “about the same”, but he detailed the Texas visit and what he talked about with the coaching staff. “We talked about a lot of stuff. Mostly just life in general. I really enjoyed it, and I really enjoyed hanging out with Malik (Jefferson) and some of the guys. I just chilled with the coaches, and we laughed and joked around about things with them and my parents”.Murray said he spent an hour with Charlie Strong, and his parents enjoyed their time in Austin. We asked Murray if his parents were leaning one way or another in his recruitment and he told us they see everyone as equal right now. Murray should be back later in the summer for Under the Lights, and our sources tell us Texas is in a strong position to land him.
+++++
Lancaster (TX) wide receiver Omar Manning finally made it to Austin after re-scheduling visits during the spring. While we haven’t been able to connect with Manning, we did talk to some sources close to his recruitment. It was once thought that TCU was running away with this recruitment, but Texas has closed the gap in a hurry from what we were told. Sources there indicated the new coaching staff at Texas has some built in advantages in Lancaster. New defensive backs coach Clay Jennings has experience recruiting in south Dallas, and Sterlin Gilbert is close with members of the Lancaster staff. Texas is slowly emerging as a potential leader in the recruitment of Manning, and they are poised to go toe to toe with TCU during the fall.
+++++
A week after Yoakum (TX) defensive back Jordan Moore earned an offer he returned to Austin to take part in another minicamp. This time he worked out on the offensive side of the ball at wide receiver. Daniel Seahorn was on campus after the camp speaking with recruits, and he spent some time with Moore.
“It was a blessing to come down here and do great again”, Moore told us. While he plays both ways at his high school, we had Moore pegged as a defensive back all the way. The Texas staff sees Moore as an athlete with potential to play on both sides of the ball. “I plan on coming back and doing a visit. I’m going to let my body rest and then come back again in late July”. Moore spent some time with the coaching staff, but the majority of his time was spent with Charlie Strong. “I talked with Coach Strong, and the DB coach. Mainly Coach Strong, the DB coach was talking with the group. They like me a lot, and they told me not to test today because I put up good numbers last week”.
Moore hung out with Texas quarterback commit Sam Ehlinger, and he told us that Austin gives him a good feeling. “It just feels like home”, said Moore. It’s no secret that Texas is at the top of the list for the Yoakum twins, and Jordan told us his mom (who graduated from Texas) prefers her boys to be at her alma mater. Moore has a visit set up with LSU this Thursday, and he tells us he’ll take it day by day from there.
+++++
Huffman (TX) Hargrave offensive lineman Dennis Bardwell was a standout at the Texas camp on Sunday. We caught up with the offensive lineman following the camp to find out how everything went for him.
Bardwell spoke with Matt Mattox at the camp, and he described that conversation to us. “It was good”, Bardwell said. “It was mostly small talk about the trip and whatnot, and a little bit about football”. Bardwell told us that Mattox made it known to him an offer could be coming down the road. “He said they are checking out one guy, and if that doesn’t happen I’ll probably be the next one up”.
Bardwell also gave us his thoughts on the visit and his time on campus. “I loved the campus, and my sister comes here so that’s a bonus”. Bardwell told us that he feels Texas and Texas A&M were close to offering him, and that Houston was standing out among schools that offered him. Bardwell committed to Houston earlier today, but it certainly seems that Texas could get into this race if they choose to. While Texas isn’t pursuing a ton of linemen in this class, Bardwell could be one to watch down the stretch.
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