The Longhorns have landed another piece for their 2027 offensive line class. On Friday evening, interior offensive lineman Keyon Hemphill-Woods officially committed to Texas, announcing his decision at a ceremony at his school.
The 6-3, 275-pound Columbus product chose the Longhorns after a strong final push from the Texas staff and after taking multiple visits to the Forty Acres this spring. He first visited the Texas campus in March, when he picked up his UT scholarship offer. He would return last weekend, and that’s when he told the Texas staff that he’d like to commit. He let the rest of the world know on Friday evening.
Hemphill-Woods helped lead the Columbus Cardinals to the Texas 3A Division I state championship as a sophomore, seeing significant snaps at left tackle while also contributing on the defensive line. He would help Columbus go on another deep playoff run in 2025.
A bronze-level prospect on the OB Matrix, Hemphill-Woods is ranked as a high three-star prospect nationally and one of the top interior offensive linemen in Texas. Dave Campbell’s Texas Football recently named him as a four-star prospect in its rankings. A prospect who has seen his stock rise this spring, he had collected offers from programs including Texas A&M, Texas Tech, TCU, Auburn, Oklahoma, Florida, Tennessee, and UCLA, among others. In the end, it was the Longhorns who were left standing.
“They’re just different,” Hemphill-Woods said. “I knew I wanted to be there. The school is awesome. The coaches are great. The locker room also, when I got in meetings, it just felt normal for me.”
The commitment process culminated with Hemphill-Woods delivering the news face-to-face in Austin during a visit for a UT practice last weekend.
“(Kyle Flood) was pumped up. It was great,” Hemphill-Woods said. “I told all of them, they were all excited. I talked to coach Sark, he was pumped up too. I went to spring practice and did it in person.”
Hemphill-Woods made it clear that he’s all-in with his commitment and there will be no looking back.
“I locked everything down. I’m locked in. I cancelled all my other visits. I even told coach (Flood), if I’m committed, I’m committed 100 percent,” Hemphill-Woods said.
In adding Hemphill-Woods, the Longhorns are now up to eight commitments in the 2027 recruiting class. He becomes the second offensive line pledge, joining Austin Westlake’s Jackson Cook, who committed on March 30. Cook projects as a center at the college level, while Hemphill-Woods projects as a guard.
