Predicting every 5-Star commit in Texas football’s 2023 class

Honorable mentions

David Hicks, DL

Texas is going to continue to fight until the very end for the top-rated five-star Katy-Paetow defensive lineman and former Allen High School star David Hicks throughout this recruiting cycle. But it looks like Texas and defensive line coach Bo Davis have a major uphill battle on their hands to really push for a commitment from Hicks.

There wasn’t really a point in time recently when Texas was anywhere close to sitting in the driver’s seat in the race to land a commitment from Hicks.

At the moment, it looks like this could be a recruiting battle that boils down to the Texas A&M Aggies and Oklahoma Sooners. There’s also an outside chance for the Michigan State Spartans, Miami Hurricanes, and LSU Tigers to continue pushing for Hicks.

The best thing that could happen for the Longhorns in this recruitment is a successful season on the field this fall while Hicks draws out his decision timeline to National Signing Day next offseason.

Derek Williams, S

One key defensive back target for the 2023 class that the Longhorns have found some real momentum with of late is the five-star Westgate (LA) safety Derek Williams. Texas hosted Williams for an official visit to Austin last weekend. And it looks like that official had a very positive impression on Williams and his camp.

But there’s still a lot of work to be done for cornerbacks coach Terry Joseph and the Longhorns to win this battle over the Alabama Crimson Tide to land a commitment from Williams. Texas would have to continue making major moves on the recruiting trail with Williams to ultimately win this one.

It’s possible but the Crimson Tide still seems like the solid favorite for Williams.

Rueben Owens, RB

At this point of the offseason, the top target for running backs coach Tashard Choice and the Longhorns in the 2023 class appears to be the highly touted four-star Edgewater (FL) product Cedric Baxter Jr. But Choice and the Longhorns are likely still going to push for the former Texas commit and five-star El Campo running back Rueben Owens this fall.

Yet, Texas did see Owens surprisingly and abruptly commit to the Louisville Cardinals over other top schools such as Texas, Texas A&M, the TCU Horned Frogs, and Georgia Bulldogs last week.

Owens could still be a semi-realistic candidate to ultimately land in the Longhorns 2023 class. It really feels like Owens is going to be anything but solid on his commitment to Louisville come the fall.