It has to be considered a pretty big accomplishment for newly hired head coach Steve Sarkisian to keep ahold of as much of the 2021 Texas football recruiting class as he did through National Signing Day early last month. Texas didn’t really lose any major pieces of their 2021 recruiting class through both signing periods after the departure of the now former fourth-year head coach Tom Herman and the subsequent hiring of Sark back on Jan. 2.
A complete change in coaching regimes can often result in drastic losses in that same recruiting cycle. But Sark and his new coaching staff did nice work to keep their 2021 class together through this point of the offseason. Texas also had a double digit number of early enrollees to participate in spring ball.
It is of the utmost importance for the Longhorns to get as many younger players, and new entrants to the program, involved in spring drills this year to get adjusted with the new coaching staff.
According to the 247Sports Team Composite Rankings, the 2021 Texas recruiting class ranked at No. 16 in the nation and in the second spot in the Big 12 behind the Oklahoma Sooners. Texas signed 21 prospects out of high school in their 2021 class, and are still waiting on two transfer additions this offseason.
There’s a lot of new faces making their way to the Forty Acres this offseason, including for the start of spring camp set for March 23.
Here’s a look into three Longhorns early enrollees who could make an impact in spring camp.
3) Early Texas football enrollees ready to breakout in spring
Derrick Harris Jr., Edge Rusher
One of the higher rated early enrollees from the Longhorns 2021 signing class is the talented four-star New Caney 6-foot-3 and 215 pound weak-side defensive end/edge rusher Derrick Harris Jr. As one of the early commits on the defensive side of the ball in the Longhorns 2021 class, Harris Jr. saw his recruiting ranking fluctuate quite a bit.
This spring will be the first time that he can prove his potential that he flashed during his time at New Caney High School while playing on the Forty Acres. Texas does need some new faces to step up in the trenches with the likes of senior defensive end Ta’Quon Graham, junior linebacker Ayodele Adeoye, and star junior edge rusher/outside linebacker Joseph Ossai all gone.
Getting the likes of former Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive end Ovie Oghoufo and LSU Tigers linebacker Ray Thornton out of the NCAA Transfer Portal will help. But Texas needs more long term solutions that could rise to the occasion this year such as sophomore defensive lineman Vernon Broughton, sophomore defensive end Prince Dorbah, and Harris Jr.
Harris Jr. is one of the more potent blue chip commits getting ready to participate in spring ball (which begins on March 23) for the Longhorns. He ranked as the nation’s No. 266 2021 high school prospect, No. 19 weak-side defensive end, and No. 41 prospect out of Texas (247Sports Composite). And the Top247 ranked him as the No. 32 weak-side defensive end and No. 84 prospect out of Texas.
2) Early Texas football enrollees ready to breakout in spring
JD Coffey, Safety
There’s a lot of potential brewing in the Longhorns defensive backfield with Sark and new defensive coordinator (former Washington Huskies longtime co-defensive coordinator) Pete Kwiatkowski running the ship this year. One of the major reasons for optimsm for the secondary is all the blue chip additions in the 2021 class.
A few of the more notable additions form the 2021 signing class among the blue chips includes safety JD Coffey, John Muir cornerback Jamier Johnson, and Kimball cornerback Ishmael Ibraheem. The Kennedale High School product and Texas native Coffey stands at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds and is one of the highest rated prospects in general coming out of the 2021 class.
There is a real shot for Coffey to make an impact right away in spring camp and the spring football game for Texas. With the departures of key defensive backs such as senior safety Brandon Jones, junior safety Caden Sterns, and junior cornerback Jalen Green, there’s a lot of depth needs to fill coming up this year.
Texas also lost former four-star recruit and freshman safety Xavion Alford to the transfer portal earlier in the offseason. Green also departed the program via the transfer portal. Alford wound up landing with the USC Trojans and Green with the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Moreover, Alford ranked as the nation’s No. 157 2021 high school prospect, No. 7 safety, and No. 26 prospect out of Texas (247Sports Composite). And the Top247 ranked him as the nation’s No. 224 high school prospect, No. 16 safety, and No. 35 prospect out of Texas.
1) Early Texas football enrollees ready to breakout in spring
Jaden Alexis, Wide Receiver
The lone blue chip addition in the receiving corps for the Longhorns in the 2021 class is the four-star Monarch 5-foot-11 and 185 pound wide receiver Jaden Alexis. This Florida native is very elusive and made an impact all over the field for his high school football team at the skill positions. That has to be very appealing to the likes of Sark and second-year wide receivers coach Andre Coleman.
It was also very nice work on the recruiting trail for Sark and Coleman to keep ahold of Alexis after Herman’s departure a little more than two months back.
Texas is getting a very versatile and elusive wideout in Alexis. A wide receiver that has timed in at around 4.4 seconds for his 40 yard dash time and sub 11 seconds for the 100 meter dash could be special right away in this offense.
Explosive wide receivers that are very capable route runners like Alexis were shown to become stars in Sark’s offense during his time as OC for the last two years with the Alabama Crimson Tide. The potential for Alexis in the immediate future really is mind boggling under Sark’s new offensive scheme.
Texas did have some losses in the receiving corps this offseason, namely the former senior transfer Tarik Black and junior Brennan Eagles. There is some room for a player like Alexis to step up and make an impact. A fourth wideout could very well rise to the occasion this year alongside Jake Smith, Joshua Moore, and Jordan Whittington.