Texas Football Recruiting: Top JUCO ILB Lakia Henry looking toward Horns?

There seems to be some mutual interest between the 2019 Texas football recruiting class and skilled four-star JUCO inside linebacker Lakia Henry.

There’s still a few looming storylines to follow for the 2019 Texas football recruiting class before National Signing Day arrives next month. But, this 2019 Texas football recruiting class doesn’t have much going on as National Signing Day approaches. Pretty much all of the major 2019 Texas football recruiting class targets have committed somewhere, if not with head coach Tom Herman already.

However, adding depth in areas that were major needs at some point for this 2019 Texas football recruiting class can’t hurt once National Signing Day arrives, or even before then. The Texas Longhorns added enough depth at linebacker to fill that positional need for the 2019 season, but hauling in more talent never hurts. There’s an emerging target that could be a nice add for this Texas football recruiting class when it’s all said and done.

The nation’s top ranked 2019 JUCO inside linebacker expressed some interest in the Horns after he decommitted from the Tennessee Volunteers on Jan. 5. Four-star Dodge City C.C. inside linebacker Lakia Henry became one of the most sought after JUCO prospects left in the nation, especially in SEC recruiting territory, when he announced his decommit from Tennessee.

The reopened recruitment of Henry presents a nice opportunity for the 2019 Texas football recruiting class to add another immediate impact player. Texas already hauled in two potential immediate impact linebackers between three-star Fullerton College outside linebacker Caleb Johnson and four-star Westlake Village, CA, inside linebacker De’Gabriel Floyd.

Most of the interest directed toward Henry seems to be coming from the SEC. just because he decommitted from Tennessee doesn’t mean that he won’t choose another SEC program to sign with when it’s all said and done.

In a recent interview Henry did with a sports blog called Sports Talk 25/8, he declared that he still had interest in the 2019 Texas football recruiting class, among other schools. Four of the six schools Henry mentioned among his finalists were all from the SEC including the South Carolina Gamecocks, Ole Miss Rebels, Arkansas Razorbacks, and rival Texas A&M Aggies. The other two of the six potential destinations were the 2019 Texas football recruiting class and the UCLA Bruins.

https://twitter.com/Lakia_henry_4/status/1083524740428546048

Henry truly has a few potential destinations from coast-to-coast. He is a valued target that is going to be a starter wherever he goes. Henry would become an integral part of the Horns linebacker rotation if he decides to make his way to the Forty Acres.

According to the 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions, Henry has the best shot at landing with either Arkansas or Ole Miss. However, the bulk of the Crystal Ball Predictions have Henry mainly listed as “undecided”. The Rivals FutureCast has Henry nearly as a guarantee to land with Arkansas. But, the Rivals FanCast favors him to land with the 2019 Texas football recruiting class. That doesn’t mean much when it’s all said and done, though.

A big part of the draw for Henry to the 2019 Texas football recruiting class has to be the connection between senior linebacker Gary Johnson and Dodge City C.C. Each linebacker played at that JUCO, but Johnson had a very successful two years on the Forty Acres. Making the same decision as Johnson could be a great move for Henry whenever he signs his National Letter of Intent.