Texas football adds staple OT in touted 4-Star Jaydon Chatman

Among the most important additions for the 2023 Texas football recruiting class arrived for second-year head coach Steve Sarkisian and offensive line coach/offensive coordinator Kyle Flood on June 26 in the four-star Harker Heights (TX) offensive tackle Jaydon Chatman. As one of three offensive linemen to commit to the 2023 recruiting class, Chatman is now a staple of this group in the trenches.

Flood and the Longhorns have to be thrilled about sealing the deal with Chatman, who was one of the top priorities among linemen in the 2023 class. In fact, there’s an argument to be made that Chatman was the most important in-state offensive linemen for Flood and the Longhorns at this point of the offseason in the 2023 class.

That is especially the case after missing out on four-star Vandegrift offensive tackle Ian Reed to the Clemson Tigers earlier this month.

Texas added this commitment from Chatman via an announcement on his Twitter timeline on the evening of June 26. Chatman was the last of four 2023 recruits to commit to the Longhorns to round out this major official visit weekend.

Chatman was one of the multiple priority in-state offensive linemen that officially visited Texas this weekend. He is also one of three offensive linemen to commit to the Longhorns on June 26. The other two were the three-star Mansfield Timberview interior offensive lineman Andre Cojoe and three-star Frisco Wakeland OL Connor Stroh.

Texas landed this commitment from Chatman over other top schools on the recruiting trail such as the Texas A&M Aggies, Oklahoma Sooners, and LSU Tigers. Chatman was a rising name among Texas offensive linemen this summer. Rival schools on the recruiting trail such as Texas A&M and Oklahoma made big pushes for this blue-chip OT in the last few months.

Texas got the last of four official visits for Chatman in the last month or so. The aforementioned trio of Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and LSU got the other three official visits from Chatman this month.

Moreover, what Flood and the Longhorns are getting out of the skilled and athletic Chatman is a versatile early impact offensive tackle. The 6-foot-4 and 290-pound Chatman gives Flood and the Longhorns an offensive tackle that could compete for key live-game reps in his first or second season in college.

On film, Chatman looks like an offensive tackle that is ready to compete at the collegiate level already in multiple respects. Chatman shows the ability to finish blocks in the blink of an eye and work through multiple levels of opposing defenses blocking for the run and the pass.

Although he’s currently under 300 pounds, Chatman is able to either drive or pull on blocking assignments against opposing interior defensive linemen and even quicker edge rushers/defensive ends. Chatman’s apparent lateral agility and foot speed combined with his solid fundamental ability to use every pound of his frame to finish blocks make him a real force in the trenches.

The fundamentals are one aspect of Chatman’s game that sticks out on film right away. He’s got light feet and excellent flexibility in his knees and hips. That allows him to maneuver wherever he’s needed off the line of scrimmage blocking for the run or the pass.

Chatman is able to open up lanes for the ball carrier in the blink of an eye regardless if he’s pulling over or driving forward. That type of athleticism is rare for an offensive tackle that ranks outside the top 100 prospects in the country.

And that is one of the reasons why I firmly believe that Chatman is still one of the most underrated offensive linemen in the 2023 class, despite being ranked as a blue-chip recruit. Chatman has the physical tools, film, and polished skill set that makes him worthy of a top 100 ranking for this recruiting cycle.

Chatman fits the bill of a staple offensive linemen that could be one of the early starters among this position group in the 2023 class. This is the type of commitment that will really solidify the offensive side of the ball after landing the five-star Isidore Newman quarterback Arch Manning back on June 23.

The main hurdle for Chatman in terms of garnering immediate playing time with the Longhorns is just how good the 2022 signing class was at offensive tackle for Flood and this staff. Texas signed a historically good 2022 class among offensive linemen. That includes potential early starters such as five-star Kelvin Banks, four-star Neto Umeozulu, and three-star Cam Williams.

He’ll also need to put on some weight before truly being ready to compete at the Power Five level. Chatman likely needs to be around 300-310 pounds to put him at the size required to compete in the trenches in the Power Five.

Nonetheless, there’s a good chance that Texas could have one of the highest-rated linemen around this part of the country when it’s all said and done for this cycle. Chatman currently ranks as the No. 191 2023 high school prospect in the nation. The skill set and athleticism that Chatman brings to the table should at least see him crack the top 150 in the nation in the 247Sports Composite, if not the top 125 or 100, by the first signing period.

Texas is now up to 13 commits in the 2023 class after landing a half-dozen pledges in the last four days alone. Sark and the Longhorns landed four commitments in the 2023 class just on June 26. And Chatman is the second-highest-rated commit of the half-dozen for the Longhorns in the last four days.