Guys, Steve Sarkisian has made recruiting pretty easy on all of you.
In quickly assembling a roster that ranks behind only Georgia and Ohio State in consensus super blue chip players (rated as 5 stars or high 4 stars by multiple services) on its roster, the Longhorns are sitting at the important people table at Thanksgiving, while so many of their historical peers are eating at a card table with 7-year olds.
This is what the elite of the elite rosters in the sport look like going into this season:
There’s not a lot of difference between the three. All three collect stud defensive backs for sport. In fact, 13 of Ohio State’s 22 super blue chips are either receivers or corners. Eighteen of Ohio State’s 22 play in 7-on-7 workouts. The Longhorns and Dawgs trade those three extra receivers for more big guys, as both programs nearly double up the Buckeyes in combined OL/DL super blue chips (7 vs. 4).
Meanwhile, when you look at the Longhorns, it’s pretty easy to see where an injection of talent is probably most needed … tight end (zero consensus super blue chips), offensive tackle (only one), defensive tackle (only one) and linebacker (only one). There’s not a place on the field where it feels like desperation needs to exist or anything close to it, but those positions … forever along with quarterback and edge (JUST BECAUSE!) … feel like the areas where the biggest talent boosts could most/best occur.
Other than noting those “needs” for the record, the roster is at a point where I care less what positions the impact difference maker commitments in this class come from as long as they come. Just keep collecting bodies. Anything you don’t hit hard in one class, hit hard in the next class.
In the last three recruiting classes, the Longhorns have signed the following consensus super blue chips per class: 2023 (7), 2024 (5) and 2025 (6). The math on that is pretty simple … 18/3 = 6. If the Longhorns keep averaging six of those bad boys each year, they’ll have one of the most talented rosters in the sport.
Full stop.
That is all that matters, barring some massive pile of players in one area of the field that leaves the roster totally empty in a key area (think Tom Herman-era level of big man recruiting). If you’re stacked with super blue chips, you can take it to the bank that the rest of the roster is full of the normal 4-star types that the mere mortals depend on for talent. You just have a bunch more of the types that get drafted on day one or day two at an obscene higher rate.
Texas currently has two prospects on the commitment list that rank as consensus super blue chips … quarterback Dia Bell and defensive end Richard Wesley. That’s two. They need four more … this is for the old heads out there … war daddies. Four more and your class is hovering in the top 3-5 of the national team recruiting rankings at a minimum.
Again, Texas has two. It needs four more (at a minimum). If it can get them at tight end, offensive tackle, defensive tackle and linebacker … sweet.
Well, as we get ready to hit July, 5-star offensive tackle Felix Ojo (more on him below), offensive lineman John Turntine and edge Jamarion Carlton all feel like very solid bets at this point.
That’s five. One more needed to hit the minimum number preferred.
Whether it’s Xavier Atkinson, Lamar Brown, Kaiden Prothro … you name it … Texas will have at least another big fish in it among the pile of players it lands on signing day. It feels like a bad ass tight end or another monster defensive tackle would be fantastic, but the amount of work to take care of the needed big boy shopping/hunting is taking care of itself.
Just in case you needed some framing with regards to recruiting.
No. 2 – Let’s talk about Felix Ojo …
Every once in a while, something will happen and it will be revealed to me that when it comes to a particular topic, I’m a completely different island than a lot of consensus opinion.
It felt like that happened this week in the aftermath of 5-star left tackle prospect Felix Ojo having a completely forgettable performance at the Rivals Five-Star event in Indianapolis.
There’s no need to pile on, but a few things like this happened.
In the aftermath of a day in shorts and t-shirts, there were Texas fans that were wondering if he would lose his 5-star ranking or if his NIL market might crash. Some even speculated whether Texas would still recruit the young man or if it did, would he be worth the NIL costs.
Personally, I just kind of watched everyone’s reactions a little wide-eyed. I definitely wasn’t as bothered by it all as … well … pretty much everyone. Honestly, my overall thoughts and expectations for Ojo haven’t changed at all. Let me see if I can properly explain myself.
a. I don’t look at Ojo through the prism of what his is as a high school senior. I’m looking at him through the prism of what he has a chance to be if he hits his ceiling as a player. Take a look at the photo (below) of Ojo with current Texas starting left tackle Trevor Goosby. Although Goosby has a long way to go before he’s rightfully spoken in the same breath as a player with Kelvin Banks, he might actually get drafted higher because of his dreamy prototypical tackle frame. Ojo and Goosby could be brothers from a build standpoint, except this is what Goosby looks like after his third college off-season.
b. I do not view Ojo as a guy that is as strong of a candidate to be a first-day impact performer as a 5-star prospect like Michael Fasusi. Ojo needs more strength. Lots of it. He is almost certainly going to need a redshirt season. He’s still a basketball type athlete turning into a future NFL-type of football player. That usually doesn’t happen while the word “teenager” is part of your age bracket. Kelvin Banks is a freak and what he did as a young player is freakish. You need to know that. Leonard Davis didn’t do that. Jonathan Scott didn’t do that. Justin Blalock didn’t do that. What will be asked of Ojo from a development standpoint isn’t out of the norm. It IS the norm. There’s a conversation to be had about whether the investment combined with the risk is worth the financial rub of next-level offensive line prospects, but they are the ones that Kyle Flood specializes in.
c. 5-star offensive linemen come with real risk. One of the reasons why you need to sign as many super blue chips in bulk as you can is that it is a position that produces both monster booms and busts. I can romanticize the story of Jonathan Scott being a 5-star prospect while earning second-team all-district honors, only to become an All-American on a national championship team at Texas, but for every Scott I can also show you a Tommy Brockermeyer, Reginald Youngblood or even a Kent Perkins that will remind you that a super blue chip offensive line signee is far from a sure thing.
Ojo doesn’t come with a guarantee on the box. You need to know that. It might be 50-50. The reason why you do it at all is because if it lands on heads and you called heads, he might shake hands with Roger Goodell on his draft night. He might also get as close to the NFL as you and I. That’s one of the possibilities (see Tommy Brockermeyer).
d. Guys have bad days. He didn’t have pads on. He didn’t have inside help. He was competing in drills designed for the defense to have the edge over the offense. He’s not anywhere close to what he can eventually be.
Nothing about Tuesday really changes much about how I think of Ojo. I’m not sure if I still think he’s the No. 1 prospect in Texas, but he’s still everything as a prospect that I already believed he is.
No. 3 – The Trevor Goosby element in all of this …
All of the Ojo discussion is really interesting to me because of the proximity of Goosby’s recruitment. For those that don’t recall much about Goosby’s recruitment because there’s probably little reason for you to remember it, he was a consensus 3-star prospect who a few of us liked as a 4-star prospect with a lot of upside, but weren’t willing to stand on the table for him.
Here’s what I wrote of him on the day he committed in June of 2022: “In a year where the depth at tackle in the state of Texas is really low, Goosby might be the best lottery ticket of the bunch when you consider the possibility exists that he’s able to turn this new frame into something quite large.”
Yet, I ranked him No. 35 in the state. By the time he was in the middle of his redshirt season, I already knew what a mistake I had made and I was one of the people in the industry who was HIGHEST on him.
The thing is … tackles with Goosby’s physical profile as a young player as so easy to fall in love with and I know I have a number of times over the years. I remember thinking Youngblood was going to be a future first-rounder. These dudes are called lottery tickets for a reason. These guys that look like small forwards in the NBA sometimes end up playing like small forwards in college football.
I wonder how much of Ojo’s ascent as a prospect is a reaction to all of us seeing Goosby not get the benefit of the doubt that is being given to Ojo. Both players are very similar to each other at the same stage of developments, except Ojo is even bigger and has more advanced strength at the same stage.
Anyway, all of this was rolling around in my head before this week. It felt like a good time to share.
No. 4 – One last offensive line thought regarding Goosby …
know I sometimes do y’all’s heads in with regards to the analytics of a pseudoscience that will be a pseudoscience no matter how hard I might try.
Yet, I wanted to show you something I wrote back on June 26th, 2022 … the day when Goosby was one of four offensive line prospects (Goosby, Andre Cojoe, Connor Stroj and Jaydon Chatman) who all announced commitments within hours of each other on the same day.
Here’s what I wrote that day in the analysis of Goosby: “The math says that of the four offensive linemen that are suddenly committed to the Longhorns, none will likely be drafted, which means that the Longhorns will be ahead of the developmental curve if they can get one of the four into the NFL as a drafted player. Hitting on two of the four would be worthy of celebration. In order for Goosby to be one of the guys that hits, it’s going to require some patience for everyone involved because his development is not going to occur overnight, even if his size has. Goosby is a high ceiling/low basement prospect.”
Guys, the math is the math is the math. If Goosby hits in the next two years the way many are projecting, the Longhorns are going to get way more out of that group of four that the data would have projected was likely. Getting a possible first- or second-day NFL Draft-type player is incredibly unlikely, which means that if he pulls it off, the haul from this day will have been a massive success.
The failure baked inside of it? It should have been expected. You weren’t lied to. This stuff might get tedious, but I promise you that it typically sets a correct parameter for expectations.
No. 5 – What came first … the chicken or the egg?
I was thinking of something this weekend and I can’t quite shake it.
a. Is C.J. Baxter the Derek Williams of Texas running backs?
or
b. Is Derek Williams the C.J. Baxter of Texas safeties?
Both players are third-year members of the 2023 recruiting class.
Both arrived with massive expectations to be the next great player at their position in burnt orange and neither quite hit those heights in year one.
Both witnessed their sophomore seasons come to a crashing halt with knee injuries.
Both enter this season with murky expectations entering the season. Should they be starters? Should we remotely expect that? Is it too much to ask for either or both to emerge as impact performers? Is 2026 more realistic? Is one more likely than the other to scale the 2025 mountaintop?
These all feel like rhetorical questions at the moment. Every single one of them.
No. 6 – All the talk about Chace Calicut this week has me wondering …
Forget about all of the discussion with kids coming in from the 2026 recruiting class for a moment because I want to focus on one of the more fascinating top to bottom position wars that will take place in the coming months and that’s the eventual breaking apart of the collection of stud defensive backs on the roster.
A total of 12 different defensive backs on the Texas roster in 2025 will be sophomores (5), redshirt freshmen (2) and true freshmen (5). Of those 12 players with three or more seasons of eligibility remaining, five of them (Derek Williams, Kobe Black, Xavier Filsaime, Kade Phillips and Jonah Williams) were/are the kind of prospects that are receiving large NIL deals going into the season.
All five of those players have different stories. Williams is recovering from a major injury. Black is trying to earn a starting spot, but has his hands full. Filsaime is trying to prove he can play at a school like Texas. Phillips is still settling in. Williams just arrived from baseball.
Outside of the five biggest names, Warren Roberson and Jordan Johnson-Rubell are trying to hold off the young stallions, while Wardell Mack, Santana Wilson and three true freshmen are trying to get even with the older guys because if they are even … they are likely leaving (the old dudes in their dust).
There are only four upperclassmen in the secondary. All are starters or could be starters. All but one could be gone after this season.
One way or another, the pack is going to need to break up by the end of this season because there’s no way they are all coming back in 2026. Some things are going to have to give. Survival of the fittest.
No. 7 – Updated Texas Scholarship Board …
No. 8 – BUY or SELL …
Buy/Sell: The only Texas coach that’s not living up CDC’s standards is Track Coach Edrick Floreal and 2025-2026 needs to show improvement and more winning.
(Sell) Yes, the track program needs to be better. It also needs better facilities, starting with its indoor facilities. The guy won an indoor team national title three years ago and the outdoor women’s title two years ago. I’d say that’s a hell of a lot better than the men’s basketball program or women’s soccer.
2025 could be Texas’ best chance for a run over the next few years considering the potential move to a 9-game SEC schedule and the teams Texas hasn’t played who would likely be on it (LSU, Bama, Tennessee, Ole Miss, etc.).
(Sell) 2026 is the year when things shape up best on paper.
B/S There are at least 3 kids who are currently committed to other schools that will sign with Texas in December?
(Buy) Sure. Almost definitely.
B/S You always been motivated to put out an extremely good product, but becoming an independent site has you feeling as excited as an 8 year old on Christmas morning?
(Buy) I’m excited about the long-term future of where we’re headed, first and foremost. These are exciting times. We needed a kick in the ass and just didn’t know it.
B/S – Texas will sign a top 5 recruiting class.
(Buy) Definitely.
No. 9 – Scattershooting all over the place …
… It’s interesting that after all of the pre-draft chatter about Kelvin Banks’ future position, the Saints seem 1,000-percent locked into playing him at tackle, which is why they took him ninth overall. Duh.
… Denver defensive coordinator Vance Bedford on Jahdae Barron: “He was a can’t-miss prospect for us. He can tackle, he can cover, he has excellent ball skills … it was a no-brainer to draft him.”
… Matthew Golden has already caught starting quarterback Jordan Love’s attention in mini-camps. “I think from the get-go, from day one when he got here, he’s showcased kind of just the versatility he has running routes, the speed he has and his ability to catch,” Love said.
… There’s just not a lot to say about the Justin Tucker situation that hasn’t already been said. It’s so incredibly disappointing. It feels like this might be the thing that he is ultimately remembered for and that just feels so stupid. SMH.
… Rest in Peace, Dave Parker. I thought this man was the baddest dude on the planet when I was 7.
… I really tried to care about the NBA Draft this week, but even with the third pick in the draft belonging to my Sixers, I just couldn’t lock in. The second round of the draft on its own night? R-e-a-l-l-y?
… Junior wing Dailyn Swain, who transferred from Xavier after averaging 11.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore, is the only Longhorns player on ESPN’s Top 60 2026 Draft prospects going into the season. Swain ranks No. 36 on the list.
… You’ll forgive me as a Phillies fan if I don’t see the Astros again the rest of the season.
… Ilia Topuria has knocked out Charles Oliveira, Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski in his last three fights. These dudes from Georgia just don’t stop.
… The best in the business in the fight game is hanging them up. The fight game won’t be quite as good without him writing about it
No. 10 – The List: Top 10 Brad Pitt movies …
It’s hard to believe that Brad freaking Pitt just had the biggest opening weekend of his entire career with a sports car movie, but it’s true.
F1 is a massive hit.
Obviously, it was all the inspiration to tackle Pitt’s filmography, which I’ve somehow never done in 10 Thoughts. As I get started, I have to make a confession … I have no idea how this list is going to play out. I just know that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is going to be very high.
Let’s get started.
Honorable Mention: The Big Short (2015), The Tree of Life (2011), Babel (2006), Allied (2016), A River Runs Through It (1992), World War Z (2013), Burn After Reading (2008) Killing Them Softly (2012) and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Last 5 Out: Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005), Thelma and Louise (1991), 12 Monkeys (1995), Interview With a Vampire (1994) and Snatch (2000)
10. Legends of the Fall (1994)
It has to make my Top 10. It’s been a guilty pleasure for three decades.
9. True Romance (1994)
Yes, he plays a bit part in this movie as Floyd the Stoner, but what a part it is.
8. Ocean’s 11 (2001)
We should all … just one day in our life … have a chance to be Rusty Ryan.
7. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
Low key … one of the most underrated movies of the century. I might have it underrated at No. 7.
6. Babylon (2022)
I am a founding member of the Babylon Hive. We stand on the table for this movie.
5. Se7en (1995)
Maybe the most underrated of his great performances. It’s easy to focus on Kevin Spacey’s performance, but he’s the Yin and Spacey’s yang in that movie.
4. Fight Club (1999)
It’s going to be No. 1 on a lot of lists. Trust me, I get it.
3. Moneyball (2011)
Maybe this is a little high, but this truly is a special sports movie … one of the best ever made.
2. Inglorious Basterds (2009)
The second best Tarantino movie after Pulp Fiction. Yup, I said it.
1. Once Upon a Time In Hollywood (2019)
I want to not live in a world without recent bias, but it’s true … I think this is my No. 1. It’s either this or Basterds. If I was going to be stashed on an island with only one Brad Pitt movie, this is the one I’m taking with me … I think.