Texas Football: Assessing 4 most important 2023 early enrollees

Cedric Baxter Jr., RB

This might sound crazy, but I think I actually undervalued the impact that the elite five-star Orlando Edgewater (FL) running back Cedric Baxter Jr. would have on this backfield in 2023 ahead of the Early Signing Period.

The lack of consistent production from the running backs in the Alamo Bowl loss to the Washington Huskies on Dec. 29 shows me just how important the addition of Baxter will be to this RB room.

It was clear coming out of the Alamo Bowl that head coach Steve Sarkisian didn’t trust the likes of redshirt freshman running back Jonathon Brooks and redshirt junior Keilan Robinson nearly as much as he did Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson. Sark didn’t give Brooks much of a shot to make an impact on that game, giving him just six carries despite the second-year back racking up more than 50 total yards and two scores.

What Baxter will bring to the table is a physical beast that is a really ideal fit in this Sark offensive scheme. Baxter is that bruiser-bell cow running back that can really set the tone with the outside zone run game to let the rest of Sark’s offensive playbook open up.

The 6-foot-1 and 215-pound Baxter is another top-rated recruit in the nation at his position. And he looks to be the next in line to star for Texas at running back upon the departure of Bijan in 2023.

It will be big to have Baxter on campus to compete in spring ball since he could be getting a lot of the first-team reps at the running back position right away. I expect him to be splitting the first-team practice reps with Brooks and/or Keilan in spring ball.