3 fast risers among 2024 recruits Texas football must offer in February

For all intents and purposes, the focus on the trail is now firmly on the 2024 Texas football recruiting class for head coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff. Texas has essentially wrapped up the 2023 class in terms of high school recruiting as of mid-February.

Sark and the Longhorns are now working toward a big spring and summer wave of momentum on the recruiting trail, as they found in the 2023 class last offseason. Texas already had an impressive visitor list among the priority targets in the 2024 class for the first Junior Day of the offseason, which took place last month.

Texas is getting set for a big-time visitor list for the presumed second Junior Day of the offseason, which looks to be set for the final weekend of March.

It will also be important to note that the spring evaluation period is essentially starting now for Sark and the Longhorns staff. Texas has already distributed roughly a half-dozen offers to emerging 2024 and 2025 targets on the recruiting trail in February.

Fast risers in the 2024 class that Texas football should offer in the early spring evaluation period

What other 2024 fast risers could the Longhorns look to offer this month as the spring evaluation period is about to be in full swing ahead of the start of camp? Here’s a look at three names to watch.

Mario Buford, CB

Before getting into the first prospect on this list, I will say that there is likely a good reason why Texas has not offered the blue-chip DFW cornerback Mario Buford as of yet. A report from Inside Texas last month indicates that Buford received an invite to Texas’ Junior Day festivities on the weekend of Jan. 21.

But Buford was not one of the attendees for Texas’ Junior Day, indicating that the interest might not be that strong between the two parties.

If something were to change, though, I still believe that Buford is worth a further look from Texas’ coaching staff as he is one of the more impressive and underrated defensive backs in this state for the 2024 cycle.

The former teammate of a pair of newly-enrolled Longhorns players, three-star running back recruit Tre Wisner, and five-star wide receiver Johntay Cook II, Buford is someone that has picked up a lot of steam on the trail in the last couple of months.

The 5-foot-11 and 165-pound Buford has long arms and great ball skills. He’s also physical and plays stronger than his frame would otherwise indicate when pressing opposing wideouts near the line of scrimmage.

Buford also has above-average speed and quickness, which he puts on display running track at DeSoto High School. The vertical ability is there too with a 30+ inch standing vertical leap.

I am also encouraged by what I’ve seen from Buford in the 7v7 circuit and camp scene the last couple of offseasons. He looks the part as a lengthy corner with next-level ability in man coverage.

Since late in his junior season at DeSoto last fall, Buford has garnered a lot of national attention on the recruiting trail. And rightly so given his play for the Eagles down the stretch last season. He played well in pass coverage for DeSoto en route to helping the Eagles win a state title.

Since the state title game, Buford has received more attention from schools such as the Alabama Crimson Tide, Oregon Ducks, and TCU Horned Frogs. And he’s also picked up offers from the Houston Cougars, Purdue Boilermakers, Arizona State Sun Devils, and the Michigan State Spartans to add to an already loaded offer sheet early in 2023.

The school that could have the edge here, though, is the Nebraska Cornhuskers. His brother, Marques Buford, plays corner at Nebraska. And he’s visited Lincoln on multiple occasions in the last calendar year, including a scheduled trip to see the Huskers in late March.

It does sound like Buford will be narrowing down his decision in the near future, so Texas would have to move quickly here to make something happen.