3 former 5-Star Texas recruits that have yet to live up to the hype

Ja’Tavion Sanders, TE

The first name that comes to mind for a lot of Longhorns fans when considering some former five-star recruits on this team that have yet to live up to the hype is the rising sophomore tight end and Denton-Ryan High School product Ja’Tavion Sanders.

Yet, to say that Sanders has turned out to be a disappointment in his collegiate career would be way too premature of a reaction. He’s just one year into what is still likely to be a very promising collegiate career. Sanders is just too talented for the Longhorns not to find some role for him on this team in the next couple of years.

There’s no doubt, though, that Sanders still has a long way to go before he’s able to reach his lofty ceiling. First and foremost, Sanders would still have to at least prove that he can at least get a spot on the two-deep depth chart at the tight end position. That is certainly step one for Sanders in spring ball this offseason.

And the good news here is the fact that Sanders was getting the first-team reps at the tight end position along with the former Alabama Crimson Tide junior transfer Jahleel Billingsley in the first full pads practice of spring ball last weekend.

If Sanders can keep making the necessary strides to prove his value to this coaching staff this spring, he could be well on track to locking up a spot on the two-deep at tight end this fall.

For Sanders to be considered a former five-star recruit that lived up to the billing, he would likely have to be a starter making a true impact by the start of next season. Anything shy of that would likely be considered a valid disappointment by most Texas fans.