The "resignation" of Mack Brown in December brought mixed feelings to The 40 Acres, and rightfully so. After all, Mack Brown resurrected football at UT, bringing it back to its deserved prominence. But, with great success there will also be devastating loss. And so the trend continues, after one losing season and two mediocre (mediocre by the standards of The University of Texas, Mack Brown, and fans of Texas), Brown became a product of his own success and expectations.
Before his "resignation", Brown put together the last of his usual recruiting classes, filled with 4 and 5 star recruits who were excited to play for Texas and Brown. The loss of Brown and his entire coaching staff, save one, tight end coach Bruce Chambers, had an impact on the 2014 recruiting class new head coach Charlie Strong inherited. Texas lost 10 recruits from the 2014 class. These things happen when there is a major coaching change at any university. The decommits do not necessarily reflect the loss of Brown or the addition of Strong and a new coaching staff. Perhaps the decommits knew it would take a while for Texas players to adjust to a new coach and staff that are the complete opposite of Mack Brown. Let's be honest, sure you sign with a university, but the coach of that university plays a major part in where athletes sign. I mean, if Charlie Weiss (entering his 3rd year as the head coach of a Kansas team that has been the bottom of the barrel in the Big 12) didn't still have some sort of clout (deserved or not), no athlete would sign with a Kansas team that went 1-11 two years ago, and 3-8 this year. Conversely, Alabama wouldn't be where it is without Head coach Nick Saban. So, yes, the recruiting coach plays a huge role.
When Charlie Strong was hired as the new head coach of The Texas Longhorns, his main goal was keeping this class in tact. I don't think it's necessarily his fault that 10 recruits flipped, he hasn't been tested yet as head coach at Texas. His test will be how he develops the recruits that stayed and how he recruits in the future. As it stands, Texas has the #2 recruiting class in the Big 12, behind Oklahoma, and is ranked 16th nationally.
The Longhorns have a total of 23 total commits, no 5 star recruits but eight 4 star recruits, and 15 3 star or lower. The most exciting prospect is quarterback Jerrod Heard. Hailing from Denton Guyer High School, Heard stands 6'1" and 195 lbs. He recorded 2,136 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns, 2,161 rushing yards, and 22 rushing touchdowns. He ranks #6 in 2014's Lone Star Recruiting Class top 100.
Offensively, Texas looks solid, building on an already strong rushing attack by adding Donald Catalon. Catalon is a four star recruit out of Eisenhower High School, and is 1 of only 2 running backs recruited. Catalon stands 6'0" and 200 lbs. His senior year stats include 765 yards rushing, 7 rushing touchdowns, 311 yards receiving, and 2 receiving touchdowns. He is #27 in 2014's Lone Star Recruiting top 100. Joining Catalon in the backfield is running back Kevin Shorter. Shorter is a 3 star running back out of Newton High School. His senior year stats include 61 carries, 630 yards rushing, 9 rushing touchdowns, 11 receptions, 224 yards receiving, and 4 receiving touchdowns. With these additions, Texas could be unstoppable in its rushing attack. Rounding out the gains on the offensive side are:
Amanti years Foreman- 4 star wide receiver from Texas City High School. Foreman stands 6'0" and 174 lbs and his stats include 750 yards receiving, 9 receiving touchdowns, 390 yards rushing, 4 rushing touchdowns. Ranks #14 in Lone Star Recruiting Top 100.
Lorenzo Joe- 4 star wide receiver from Abilene Cooper High School, ranks #15 in Lone Star Recruiting Top 100.
Alex Anderson- 3 star offensive guard from Landry Walker High School. Stands 6'5", 305 lbs, and was a surprise commitment for Texas.
Roderick Bernard- 3 star wide receiver from Sharpstown High School. He stands 5'10" and 175 lbs and his stats include 594 yards rushing, 4 rushing touchdowns, 364 receiving yards, and 2 receiving touchdowns. #62 in LSR Top 100.
Terrell Cuney- 3 star center from Jasper High School. He stands 6'3" and 260 lbs, is an Army All-American, and ranks 81st in LSR Recruiting Top 100.
Garrett Gray- 3 star wide receiver from Marble Falls High School. He stands 6'5" and 205 lbs. His stats include 75 receptions, 1,191 yards receiving, and 16 receiving touchdowns. Ranks 69th in LSR Top 100.
Dorian Leonard- 3 star wide receiver from Longview High School. Leonard is 6'4" and 200 lbs. His stats include 34 receptions, 643 yards, 10 touchdowns. Ranks 40th in LSR Top 100.
Blake Whiteley-3 star tight end from Arizona Western Community College. His stats include 8 receptions for 67 yards and 2 touchdowns. Texas has under utilized this position in recent years, so hopefully Whiteley can bring some attention to this position.
D'onta Foreman- 2 star athlete from Texas City High School. Foreman is 6'0" and 198 lbs. His stats include 186 carries for 1893 yards, and 28 touchdowns. Could be a great back up for a number of positions.
Elijah Rodriguez- 2 star offensive tackle from Cy-Creek High School. He is one of only 3 OTs in the 2014 class.
Offensively, this is a good class for Strong, staying the course and adding some depth (especially at quarterback, where Texas has recently struggled).
Defensively, Texas took some hits with decommits. Texas lost 3 defensive tackles, 4 star DT Zaycoven Henderson to Texas A&M, 3 star DT Trey Lealaimatafao to LSU, 3 star DT Courtney Garnett to OU, and failed to recruit 5 star defensive end, Soloman Thomas, who signed with Stanford.Texas has struggled the last 3 years defensively, but hit their stride after Manny Diaz was fired and Greg Robinson took over. The defense will now have to adjust to yet another defensive coordinator, Bruce Chambers. However, considering the remarkable turnaround the defense had last season there are signs of great things to come for the Longhorns defensively. Strong did keep some key recruits at crucial positions:
Edwin Freeman- 4 star DB from Arlington Bowie High School .Freeman is 6'1" and 215 lbs. Freeman ranks 21st in LSR Top 100.
Derick Roberson- 4 star DE from Brennan High School. Roberson is 6'3" and 225 lbs. Ranks 9th in LSR Top 100.
Andrew Beck- 3 star LB from Plant High School in Tampa, FL. Beck is 6'3" and 230 lbs.
John Bonney- 3 star DB/safety from Lamar High School. Bonney is 6'1" and 183 lbs. Ranks 42nd in LSR Top 100.
Poona Ford- 3 star DT from Hilton Head High School in South Carolina. Ford is 6'1" and 288 lbs.
Jason Hall- 3 star DB/safety from South Grand Prairie High School. Hall stands at 6'2" and 190 lbs. Was unsure he would stay at Texas after the departure of Duane Akina. #44 in LSR Top 100.
Cameron Hampton- 3 star LB from Dallas Carter High School. Hampton is 6'0" and 201 lbs. #58 in LSR Top 100, and is 1 of only 2 LBs to sign with Texas.
Jake McMillon- 3 star DE from Abilene High School. Stands 6'3" and 240 lbs. Ranked 90th in LSR Top 100.
Chris Nelson- 3 star DT from Victory Christian Academy (Florida). Nelson is 6'2" and 295 lbs. Originally committed to Strong at Louisville, and followed him to Texas.
Jermaine Roberts- 3 star CB/DB from St. Augustine High School in New Orleans, LA. Roberts is 5'9" and 270 lbs. Roberts chose Texas over Ohio State and Oklahoma.
This class is good, not great, What the Whatbut can build a solid foundation. It will all depend on how Strong and his coaching staff develop new players and acclimate the current squad to a totally different coaching style. Only time will tell.
