Texas Football: 3 biggest whiffs in the 2023 recruiting class
With the bulk of the 2023 recruiting cycle now in the rearview mirror for the Texas football program, it’s a good time to take a look back at what transpired for this class in the last year or so. Texas put together a really solid 2023 recruiting class, with a foundation built around the elite five-star Isidore Newman quarterback Arch Manning.
Arch leads a group of a whopping five elite five-star commits that the Longhorns have already signed in the 2023 recruiting class. The other four are the Orlando Edgewater (FL) running back Cedric Baxter Jr., Denton Ryan linebacker Anthony Hill Jr., New Iberia Westgate (LA) safety Derek Williams, and DeSoto wide receiver Johntay Cook II.
Head coach Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns managed to sign a top three-ranked recruiting class in the nation for the 2023 cycle, per 247Sports Team Composite Rankings. It is also the second consecutive top-five-ranked class in the nation for the Longhorns.
Despite all the success that the Longhorns found in the 2023 class, there were still some misses that are noteworthy and ultimately shaped this group.
The biggest misses for Texas football in the 2023 recruiting cycle
Here’s a look at three of the biggest misses for the Longhorns in the 2023 class.
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Javien Toviano, DB
One of the top-rated defensive back priorities for the Longhorns 2023 class was the highly touted four-star Arlington Martin cornerback Javien Toviano. Texas made Toviano one of its top priorities among defensive back recruits in the 2023 class since well before last summer.
Yet, the recruitment of Toviano wound up being one of the most mysterious and turbulent of any prospect in this cycle. It didn’t surprise me all that much when it was all said and done that he picked the LSU Tigers over the likes of Texas, the Michigan Wolverines, and Oregon Ducks, among other finalists.
The 2023 class superlatives for the Longhorns from Mike Roach of Horns247 even tabbed LSU as one of the “teams that hurt” Texas the most during this recruiting cycle, specifically because of Toviano. Texas missing out on Toviano did hurt the depth in the defensive backfield in the 2023 class.
If Texas hypothetically was able to secure a commitment from Toviano in the 2023 class, it leaves me to wonder if the Longhorns are even prioritizing the recruitment of the four-star TCU Horned Frogs commit/Red Oak (TX) safety Warren Roberson.
But that is all speculation that doesn’t matter at this point.
What does matter, though, is Texas being able to out-recruit LSU at a key position such as defensive back. Texas did get back at LSU a bit by landing Williams out of the state of Louisiana in the 2023 class.