Texas Football: 3-Star Wisconsin CB commit Avyonne Jones a contingency

We’re starting to see how the big board is shaping out for new head coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff to close out the cycle for the 2022 Texas football recruiting class. Less than two months ahead of the start of the Early Signing Period, Texas has what the final picture of the 2022 class could look like starting to shape up at this point of the fall.

Part of figuring out how the final look of the 2022 class could shape up for the Longhorns is knowing what contingency plans could be in place if the coaching staff isn’t able to get some of their remaining top targets. And to know what contingencies need to be in place, we also need to know what prospects, in particular, are the top remaining targets for the Longhorns 2022 class.

Some of the top remaining targets at this point of the fall include the likes of five-star Bowie interior offensive lineman Devon Campbell, five-star North Shore cornerback Denver Harris, and five-star Frisco-Liberty wide receiver Evan Stewart, among others.

Given that the in-state elite cornerback Harris is probably going to be the least likely of those three aforementioned top targets that the Longhorns can get a commitment out of in the 2022 class, this position group might have to turn to a contingency plan before the Early Signing Period. And that is where key targets that are mostly falling under the radar right now, like three-star Southlake Carroll cornerback Avyonne Jones, come into play.

Jones is currently committed to the Wisconsin Badgers in the Big Ten, and it appears that coaching staff up in Madison is thrilled about what he can bring to the table for their secondary. The 5-foot-11 and 180-pound corner remained committed to Wisconsin since late June.

And while it looked like the Longhorns were starting to zone in on Jones ahead of the summer visit cycle back in June, nothing really came to fruition in that regard.

Texas has yet to even send an official scholarship offer Jones’ way this fall. But according to a report from Inside Texas (part of the On3 network, paid content), Texas is keeping a firm eye on Jones as a potential contingency plan if they’re not able to get the likes of Harris or four-star Ohio State commit Terrance Books in their 2022 class.

Texas football reportedly keeping 3-Star CB Avyonne Jones as a ‘contingency’

The first step with Jones would clearly be to send him a scholarship offer. But if the Longhorns want to try and flip his commitment from Wisconsin at some point ahead of the Early Signing Period of National Signing Day (if he doesn’t sign his letter of intent in December), an offer would signal their concrete plans to do so.

While it’s nice to keep someone that does have the tools to become a quality modern cornerback (good agility, hips, and speed in pass coverage), there’s no guarantee that the Longhorns could flip Jones’ commitment even if they send an offer his way. Yet, most indications point to the Texas coaching staff holding Jones in high regard still.

All in all, we won’t know what the movement of Texas with Jones will look like until a decision from Harris officially drops. Harris is clearly the Longhorns’ top cornerback target for the 2022 recruiting cycle. And if he does eventually wind up committing to Texas, the staff would likely forego sending Jones an offer.

The lone commit that the Longhorns currently hold in the 2022 class at the cornerback position is three-star Warren Easton (LA) product, Ronald Lewis. Texas did once hold the commitment of the touted four-star Memorial cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau, but he flipped to TCU last month.