Texas football gets huge flip with ex-Baylor DT commit Byron Murphy

The 2021 Texas football recruiting class continued to build up momentum on the defensive side of the ball, by flipping a former Baylor 4-Star commit.

In the month leading up to the start of the Early Signing Period, fourth-year head coach Tom Herman has been very busy trying to buff up his 2021 Texas football recruiting class. In the last four days alone, Herman landed two blue chip commits for his 2021 Texas recruiting class. Texas has now landed commitments from two prospects that can also play in the front seven.

The first commitment for the Longhorns 2021 class, which arrived over the weekend on Nov. 14, came from talented four-star Shadow Creek 6-foot-2 and 210 pound outside linebacker Terrence Cooks. Landing that commitment from Cooks broke a dry streak for Herman and the Longhorns on the recruiting trail that stemmed all the way back to Sep. 25, when they got a pledge from unheralded three-star Strake Jesuit offensive tackle Max Merril.

But the latest commit in the Longhorns 2021 class, which arrived on the afternoon of Nov. 18 came from four-star DeSoto defensive tackle Byron Murphy II. Murphy II is a former Baylor Bears commit that Herman and the Longhorns were able to flip exactly one month before the last day of the Early Signing Period.

The commitment of Murphy II to the Longhorns was announced on his Twitter timeline on Wednesday afternoon. All on the same day, Murphy II received his official Texas scholarship offer, decommitted from Baylor, and flipped to the Longhorns. The original commitment of Murphy II to first-year head coach Dave Aranda and the Bears came back on June 26, 2020.

And he got his original Baylor scholarship offer back on March 22, 2020.

Now that Murphy II flipped his pledge to Texas, he wound up choosing to take his talents to the Forty Acres over offers from Baylor and 18 other schools. The other highlighting schools on his offer sheet includes the Colorado Buffaloes, Georgia Bulldogs, Houston Cougars, Iowa State Cyclones, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Mississippi State Bulldogs, SMU Mustangs, TCU Horned Frogs, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Utah Utes, and Washington State Cougars.

The Texas assistants that were mainly recruiting Murphy II of late were first-year defensive line coach Mark Hagen and first-year defensive coordinator/safeties coach Chris Ash. This is the second blue chip commit that Hagen has landed as the Texas defensive line coach in the 2021 recruiting class since Herman hired him last offseason.

The other blue chip commit for Hagen in his time as the Texas defensive line coach was the highly touted four-star Memorial weak-side defensive end Jordon Thomas.

This sizable 6-foot-1 and 290 pound defensive line anchor is a native of DeSoto, TX, coming out of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. It is big for Herman to continue to get his foot in the door with targets on the recruiting trail like Murphy II.

This could also have an impact for the Longhorns in the recruitment of Murphy II’s teammate, and the elite four-star DeSoto defensive end target Shemar Turner. With the rival Texas A&M Aggies getting a lot of momentum in the pursuit of Turner of late, maybe this could be the shift the Longhorns need to win his interests back over.

What the Longhorns are getting out of Murphy II specifically is the nation’s No. 391 2021 high school prospect, No. 24 defensive tackle, and No. 56 prospect out of Texas (247Sports Composite). And the Top247 ranks Murphy II as the No. 20 defensive tackle and No. 46 prospect out of Texas.

Getting this commitment from Murphy II brings the Longhorns 2021 class up to a double-digit number of blue chips. They got from eight to 10 blue chips just in the last four days.

Moreover, Murphy II is a gifted defensive tackle that is fundamental and strong both in run stopping and pass rushing. His last timed 40-yard dash around five seconds flat is pretty good for a defensive tackle his size. Murphy II also fits very well as a possible nose tackle to anchor Hagen and Ash’s line in the new Texas defensive scheme that paid off of late.

The way that things are tending on the defensive side of the ball lately for the Longhorns both on the field and on the recruiting trail bode well for the times ahead. Flipping a potent prospect like Murphy II from an in-state Big 12 foe in Baylor can be a real game-changer for Herman and the Longhorns heading into the final weeks of this recruiting cycle ahead of the Early Signing Period.

According to the 247Sports Team Composite Rankings, the 2021 Texas recruiting class ranks at No. 17 in the nation and holds steady in the second spot in the Big 12 behind the Oklahoma Sooners. They now hold 19 commits in their 2021 class, with three now playing along the defensive line. The other defensive line commit in the 2021 class is four-star New Caney weak-side defensive end Derrick Harris Jr.