High school eligibility ruling for John Meredith III shouldn't worry the Longhorns

Earlier this summer, five-star cornerback John Meredith III was ruled ineligible to play in the upcoming season for North Crowley High School. Unsurprisingly, the blue-chip prospect and 2027Texas Longhorns commit appealed the initial ruling.

On Thursday, the appeal was denied, cementing the fact that Meredith could not play for the high school football powerhouse in North Texas. The initial ruling was handed down by the UIL's District Executive Committee (DEC) and was upheld by the UIL State Executive Committee (SEC).

However, Meredith does still have eligibility to play for Euless Trinity, where he started his high school career and was named a unanimous First Team All-District selection after his junior season.

No matter where or if he plays his senior season of high school football, Meredith is still the No. 1 defensive back and No. 2 overall prospect out of the class of 2027. It is still so massive that the Horns lay claim to his commitment.

John Meredith wasn't the only blue-chip denied eligibility

In a day of rulings for the UIL SEC (not Texas's conference), four-star quarterback and Georgia Bulldogs commit Colton Nussmeier was also ruled ineligible, with a 4-1 vote upholding the initial ruling from the DEC that he was not eligible to play his senior season for Denton Ryan.

Both blue-chip prospects were attempting to transfer. According to the UIL governing bodies, both attempts were for athletic purposes and not academic, something that is not allowed at the high school level in the Lone Star State.

If either player opts to skip their senior season, it wouldn't necessarily hurt their overall value, but it would have them nearly a year removed from in-game action when they finally set foot in their future college's locker rooms.

Following the report of the ruling, former Texas running back Marcus Myers voiced his own frustration at the ruling, saying that the "UIL is the absolute worst."

"They basically admitted not a shred of evidence was ever presented that he moved for athletic purposes, acknowledged his mom is a peace officer and, as such, can choose where her son goes to school, acknowledged she got married in November, waited until the semester ended, and they now live in his stepdad’s home in the North Crowley area.

"The Euless Trinity coach sole argument was that they have to pass other schools between Euless Trinity and North Crowley. Not a single thing about anything else, so much so that committee questioned him multiple times and admitted they were confused why he checked 'Yes' on athletic move based on what he was saying today," Myers said.

Also read: 5-star John Meredith knows what the country would see if Texas played Texas Tech

Meredith committed to the Horns just over a month ago, topping the group of commits in Texas's recruiting class of 2027 and propelling them into the top 10 of the national rankings. In other words, when he picked the Longhorns over the Texas A&M Aggies and Alabama Crimson Tide, it was massive for the recruiting class.

Currently, he is the top recruit in head coach Steve Sarkisian's recruiting class, followed closely by five-star wide receiver Easton Royal and five-star interior offensive lineman Ismael Camara.

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