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Inside Texas Football
Biggest X-Factors for Texas' 2026 Season
00:51:54
These players could put the team over the top.
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- [00:01]
Eric
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- [00:37]
Justin
You redid your jingle?
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Eric
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- [00:39]
Chris
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- [00:40]
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- [01:02]
Justin
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- [01:06]
Eric
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- [01:16]
Announcer
World cup champion will be crowned this week and you can trade the tourney through the finals on Kalshi, America's number one prediction market platform. Right now Spain is trading at 58% to beat Argentina meaning 100 trade pays out $166 if they win. On Cauchy, you're trading against other people in live market. No house, no odds makers. For a limited time, download the Kalshi app and use code hoops to get $10 when you trade $10. K A L S H I Kalshi Trade the Beautiful Game 18 only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contract trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Kalshi products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information, see kalshi.com regulatory
- [02:02]
Justin
Good morning everybody. Welcome to it live. I'm Tex Homer joined by coach Dub Eric Naleen. We're going to talk about six players that if they take that jump, Texas's national championship hopes rise further. First head over inside Texas. Right now we have a flash sale where you can join for one single dollar. Then 50 off your first year. All right gentlemen. Now this is not going to be Arch Manning right These are, these are players that are kind of like right there on that tier and if they do break out, it means great things for us. Let's start with a wide receiver, Eric. And who is that wide receiver? One of your favorites for a lot of reasons.
- [02:41]
Eric
Well, of course it could be none other than Ryan Wingo. I was a little bit early on him last year and hopefully he makes me right. You know, this has happened a lot in my career where I get super excited about the traits and maybe don't quite account for where they actually are in their development because the traits are so obviously there. To me, the work ethic is obviously there. You know, we've always talked about how, how good of a culture program guy Ryan Wingo is. But if he takes the next step, it's going to make everybody in the whole offense so much more dangerous. It's going to help the run game. You know, they've already got Cam Coleman doing his part on the other side and we feel great about that. Him becoming a more well rounded wide receiver. Not that sort of, it wasn't his fault, but he was kind of a one trick pony at Auburn. He's going to be more well rounded. But if Ryan Wingo is doing the same thing on the other side, then the run game gets out more dangerous. The space opens up for tight end, the space opens up underneath, further for the running backs. We know that Ryan comes into the season with a very high floor as a perimeter weapon, which is, I mean, there's tons of value to that. Some, some teams in college football simply can't defend the perimeter. They don't have the horses to do it. So that's going to open up the offense by itself. But if he's becoming more of a mid range threat, more consistent with his hands, the offense is just going to hit the next level. We don't even know what the offensive level is going to be yet because the run games improved and Cam Coleman's there.
- [03:59]
Chris
But it's.
- [03:59]
Eric
And we don't know what Arch's improvement is going to show, but Winko's a massive X factor because he is a first round wide receiver talent.
- [04:07]
Justin
Yeah, he is. And then can we just unlock it downfield? And I've even said with Ian, I'm like, look, Ryan taking the next step is wonderful and it's great if that happens. That's awesome. But even with all these threats, like if Ryan just stays really deadly on the perimeter, I think we can still make a lot of this work. And you mentioned blocking. He'll do that for you. That's a huge factor. But you also mentioned a ton of intangibles here. Why does that matter?
- [04:32]
Eric
Well, I mean the work ethic is there. It gives me confidence that he is going to maximize. I always knew Vernon brought. Was going to maximize. It was just taking him longer to get there because, you know, I knew the day after he moved into school and nobody's. Everybody's just kind of milling about, you know, he's. He was hitting leg day in the gym, you know, when he, when he factored for that. It emboldens you to, to say that this guy's going to be really good even if, even if some are still down on him. So I'm not, I'm not too worried about that. I know the work ethic and driver there. I think the hands. The thing that does concern me that, that I didn't notice probably until last year is he is a bit more straight line. I'm not saying stiff. Stiff's not correct the right word. But he's not as, you know, when you watch him run side by side of Kim Coleman, they're not quite as. He's not quite as loose in that regard. And that does matter when it comes to adjusting for the ball. It matters when breaking off your route. But he's still.
- [05:20]
Justin
It's not fair to compare him to camp.
- [05:24]
Eric
Hey, but I'm saying he's a first round draft pick. I said he's, you know, I compared him to Romo Dunes. So you know, I gotta. You always have to adjust your evaluation when you see something that doesn't quite line up with what you suspected. But I think he can, you know, even if he is, he can just be a vertical, horizontal and vertical weapon. You know, the guys out there running right angles. You'll be perfectly fine. Mike D.K. metcalf, he. And he can be a more vertical weapon than people realize. They had to get away from play action passing last year because, you know, no, no parts of play action passing were working last year other than maybe he could get open deep. We saw him get missed a couple times. That's not his problem. His problem is not tracking the ball over his shoulder, running in a straight line. I think that's going to be evident this year.
- [06:08]
Justin
And then one thing you and I agree on, Eric and a lot of people, just so you say, like everyone else, those drops frustrated me. Drops aren't something that can usually be overcome unless the player is really talented and can also create chance to make up for them. It drives me nuts When I hear it's just a pet peeve. Get on the Jugs machine. Yeah, Jugs machines are stupid simulations. Yeah. They don't improve your catching and they're not realistic unless you're running curls. That's all a jug is going to do. Jugs machines don't solve that. Catching generally stays pretty consistent in drop rate. So what you do is you have to alter. Maybe the drops were true unluck. Like if they're not lucky, maybe you can go to the upside of that. Not always. But the biggest thing here create chances to make up for them. So if you have two drops that game but three touchdowns, guess what, you're forgiven.
- [06:55]
Eric
Right.
- [06:56]
Justin
And so that's kind of the factor. But you don't necessarily become great with your hands in a season generally.
- [07:04]
Eric
Yeah, every, every receiver is different with strengths and weaknesses. You know, I always thought Xavier Worthy was much more comfortable coming back to the ball and catching it almost in a Jugs machine position. You know, straight hands up and not so great tracking the ball over his shoulders. The Jugs machines are. I mean all you can do is really work on quick hands. Showing your hands real late is what you want to do. You know, it's just, it's just not nearly as functional as people. Is he on the jokes machine? We get that a lot. Well, first of all, yeah, he is. It doesn't really. And, and as you can see, that doesn't really prove your point, does it about the Jugs, the guy that comments about it. So yeah, you know, he's a hard worker. I'm not, I'm not worried about him being a dangerous threat, but I really want to him for himself and for the team, become a more well rounded receiver.
- [07:46]
Justin
Coach, what sticks out to you about Ryan and his progress?
- [07:49]
Chris
I think the biggest thing for me with Ryan is just how he's used.
- [07:52]
Eric
Right.
- [07:53]
Chris
Like if he's not your typical, you know, guy that runs all the other routes, the in breaking routes and stuff like that, do what you did with him last year. Now you got Cam Colan on the outside that can help. So now you can do that even more often with win go. Look, that translates to the NFL. NFL, you don't has a lot of college type offenses now, right? I know, I don't want to compare him to Debo, but if you look what Debo Samuel did, kind of like it, you know, at 4:49 he lined up in the backfield, he moved around, he got got your jet sweeps bubble screens like that's who he reminds me of. Kind of just a bigger Debo Samuel to me. But you can use them all kind of ways. And so I think don't try to make him something he's not. Don't try to make it some pure receiver. Right. Let him be an athlete out there and just get the ball in his hands and let him do what he does. I think that'll help him. And sand to what he is, a first round receiver. I think his first round talent just got to use in the right way and you don't have to force him to be in a role that he's not comfortable with.
- [08:45]
Eric
Everybody should go watch that Chris Jackson tweet of the highlights. Okay. Yeah, that's. There's nothing prettier in sports right now than watching him run with the ball in his hands.
- [08:54]
Justin
I think coach made a great point, is that we can get so desperate to turn him into that like high skill downfield receiver that we forsake what he can offer, which is incredible perimeter ability, incredible size, speed, combination. So you do want to improve that, but you don't want to force him into something that actually forces him into his weaknesses and then limits his strengths. But I do expect improvement there. I don't know how. I don't think we're going to turn him into a super skilled receiver, but he can definitely catch balls downfield. There's no question there. Definitely a lot of those drops were at critical moments in the game. Yeah.
- [09:28]
Eric
But at critical moments. I've never seen a fan that didn't think it was a critical.
- [09:32]
Justin
So I was going to say the problem with critical moments is that's when the quarterback's forcing balls. That's when DBs know the situation and know the ball is going to them. So I do agree critical moments, but there's those critical moments have a ton of factors that actually make drops more likely or PBUs more likely.
- [09:50]
Eric
Fans need to also have some context. I remember that that ball in the Citrus bowl where he. The guy went as violently as you possibly can right at the catch point as the ball arrived and yeah, you'd like for him to hold on to the ball. I'm not sure many guys are going to hold on to the ball and people oh, he just dropped it. No, he did not drop it. It was a freaking pass breakup. Amazing play by the db.
- [10:08]
Justin
Yeah, yeah. There's that fact. And then half the time arches, plum miss them. So there was definitely like pair. If I'm Ryan Wingo and I'm running, I'm paranoid that ball's going to My feet so like I'm hyper aware of and that can mess me up too. So their connection was one of the strangest I've seen between two good players. They could not figure each other out.
- [10:26]
Eric
That's the next step. Both have to get better.
- [10:29]
Justin
Yeah. And then that's what we need to wingo consistency. Right. In camps.
- [10:33]
Eric
Yeah.
- [10:33]
Justin
You know, he's had to miss camps for various reasons. So I would just like to see him solid, steady in fall camp, able to get those reps. I think that's important. All right. I mentioned two of the legends. Jade Baron, Tandre Sweat thinking he could have a final big season here and
- [10:50]
Eric
really break out or at some point. I mean, you know, if. If it's not this year, I still think it's coming. I think it'll be the next year. He'll he. As long as he shows some improvement this year, it's coming at some point. Took five years for Tavandre for various reasons. Jade Baron was a five year player that people weren't nearly as excited about those two coming back as they should have been. I was, you know, I was shooting Kalashnikovs in the air, celebrating when those guys returned because I knew the talent was there. You could see the talent. It doesn't. Just because it hasn't. They haven't done it yet doesn't mean they can't do it. Fans think these guys are finished products way too early in their career.
- [11:21]
Justin
They're college players.
- [11:23]
Eric
Anybody that was wrong about Christian Jones, which is 99.9 of the Internet, should probably have some self awareness that hey man, maybe this guy might get better. Yeah, Christian.
- [11:34]
Justin
I was wrong. Christian Jones and I was suspicious of John A. Baron because Eric didn't give me intel that Johnny was injured in this one game. So I just was like, this guy is slow as hell. What are we doing? Turns out to be one of the fastest DBs we've seen. Facts. Yeah. But yeah, Eric would always like nudge me of like no man. Trust me. And then finally it was like he was hurt the whole time. I was like, wonderful. All right, so this next part, I could have written this piece myself right here. Lance Jackson think he's a huge X factor. You point out that everyone's keyed in on Colin Simmons, but that pairing is what really unlocks this whole thing.
- [12:09]
Eric
Right. And you know, he's got to play four I well and do. He's got to look like a defensive. You know, he got recruited to look like a giant guy on the edge. Get after the quarterback but now he's got to do some of the dirty work that we see the defensive lineman at, at, at Georgia do. He's got to kind of grow into what, you know, the 49ers have used a lot. When that four eye interior, longer guy, that's quasi D tackle, quasi defensive end. You know, the NERS just took Michael Williams. Michael Williams production didn't jump off the page. Of course if you watch him, he returned from injury against Texas when they came to Austin and looked good. But you know, the production isn't as explosive as fans want and I'm trying to brace them for Lance Jackson might not have 8, 9, 10 sacks this year, but the tape's not going to lie. Come here and watch deep dive in the middle of the week to break down all 22 and see that he's actually playing at a higher level than probably the stat watchers will understand. So you know, I'm trying to, I'm trying to create the understanding that he might not have a huge production leap this year as far as sacks go. But you know, the ranking, the PFF ratings and all that, your eyeballs. If you're watching him play a very tough position at four, I are probably going to show a very good player and the scouts I think are going to notice that. I expect him to do enough to where, you know, everybody's talking about him as a three year player by the end of the season. Scouts already know about him because scouts are going by to see, you know, the last wave of, of pro players and they're like, well, who the hell is this guy that's, you know, 6 foot 5, 275. You talk to a coach about him, the coaches are going to do nothing but rave about him. You talk to Tory Becton about him, he's going to do the same. So he's on the radar of the scouts, but they want to see the tape to match up to what he looks like. They're going to realize that he looks like Tarzan but also plays like Tarzan
- [13:53]
Justin
and they knew his older brother, you know, correct that thing too. So you had that factor and what Georgia said. Kirby in one of his clinics says you earn the right to rush the passer. What does that mean? On first and second down you have to do dirty work. You're in four eye, you're stopping the run, you're battling tackles and guards.
- [14:11]
Eric
Then on third down you got to be selfless.
- [14:13]
Justin
Yep. And then on third down, then we can put you outside, then you can get after it. So you might not See the production on early downs. If they do their job on early downs though, that'll start to unlock them. If he's able to beat Colin Simmons in a foot race to the quarterback, which could also be. I imagine a lot of sacks will be. Colin Simmons makes contact and Lance Jackson a second after makes contact. But I'm super excited about him. Man, this is one of my favorite players as a recruit that probably in the last. Probably five years definitely.
- [14:42]
Chris
I think I can remember a time when people were complaining about playing a four hour position to Corn Graham. They didn't want to play that entitled Lando system. Right now. Not understanding the versatility of the NFL like you playing a four, I kind of boosted your draft status, right? Showed that you can line up in multiple ways, not just a pair of edge. And so and not just that interior guy. You can kind of set the edge of the four eye and play against the run and do it multiple times things. So I think that's kind of set the wave of, of the new trend of playing the four eye. And then Lance Jackson is one of those kids that I don't even want to call him a kid anymore but that can really take over that position and show you what it really looks like. I think he has set the stage of what a four out looks like beyond like he's gonna be the. Everybody's gonna try to compare him. Everybody's going to compare to Lance Jackson going forward because he's going to set. I think he's gonna set records of the four. I think you'll have more sex with the four out than most people because he has that ability.
- [15:29]
Eric
It's possible. You know, I was surprised that he's, you know, like already about 15 pounds bigger than Mikel Williams.
- [15:34]
Announcer
The World cup champion will be crowned this week and you can trade the tourney through the finals on kalshi, America's number one prediction market platform. Right now, Spain is trading at 58% to beat Argentina. Meaning 100 trade pays out $166 if they win. On Cauchy you're trading against other people in a live market. No house, no odds makers. For a limited time, download the Kalshi app and use code hoops to get $10 when you trade $10. K a l s h I kalshi trade the beautiful game 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Event contract trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Kalshi products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information see kalshi.com regulatory
- [16:20]
Eric
yeah, yeah, that's. He's, he's definitely, you know, I've kind of compared him to a taller Solomon Thomas. Solomon Thomas played defensive end in high school and was, was rated very highly. He was a five star. Didn't have Lance's length and I don't think, you know, I don't think he had some other things Lance had too. And Solomon went number three to those 49ers. I didn't like that pick. But it, you know, he has that. If, if Solomon Thomas was longer and probably more athletic, you get Lance Jackson and Solomon Thomas went three overall. What can this guy become?
- [16:51]
Justin
Yeah, one of the first things when we knew we got must champ, me and Ian were like, well then he's gonna have to get considerably bigger. And he did that too. So mental check there. Hopefully it's not just a pure chick fil A, but he was able to wait.
- [17:04]
Eric
I mean even if it is chick fil A, you know, at least some returns on that.
- [17:08]
Justin
The muscle was already there. He just needs the weight at the end. The, the.
- [17:11]
Eric
Yeah.
- [17:12]
Justin
What do they call it for cows? Like you're finishing weight that's is just like your end weight.
- [17:16]
Eric
He is, yeah. They're trying and they are trying to get him high for, you know, right now he's pretty much going to be what he's going to be this season. He put on some weight. We know he's going to lose some in August, but the goal was to have about 275, 280 for the season.
- [17:29]
Justin
And the ecosystem, of course having Colin Simmons helps, but you also have this range of backups behind you that can spell you and keep you ready to go. And Zena, Colton and Richard. So the whole ecosystem for Lance Jackson looks good positionally in the right spot, good tag team partner on the other side. And then you have depth that can help you out too. And then a new must champ defense that likes to use those guys in cool ways. So everything's looking up for Lance Jackson. All right, who's next? Derrick Williams. Man, there was one play he made versus ou, what was it? 2 years ago. He came off the perch and just smacked the hell out of somebody. It's one of my favorite plays I've seen the Texas player do. Then he got hurt, but he was showing some, some real ability there prior to that injury. How's the return looking though?
- [18:17]
Eric
Yep. And he showed it his freshman year too, that it's just the all out range and speed is, is obvious. It's Some of these nicknames these guys get don't fit. But I felt the Raptor other than maybe I think Raptors have short arms. I think the Raptor fits Derrick Williams pretty good. Yeah, we'll see if it still fits him. You know, we haven't heard about him necessarily being as athletic as he was before, but we haven't heard that he's really lost a step either. To me, it's going to come down to what I detail here is just how fast does he process? That's a huge part of playing safety. You've got some guys that, you know, guys have played safety in the NFL effectively that ran like a 455-46. I mean you can do it. He's definitely going to be well below that. It's just processing speed and I feel good about it, honestly. I, you know, he's been basically since he came back, he was locked in as a starter. You know, I know some people still think there's some competition back there. There's no competition. They basically treated him like a portal player to get back. And having Gideon there, there's a lot of trust between the two there and Gideon knows what he is, what he's going to be. Gideon, has Gideon had all the access to any practice footage he needed from last year to see exactly how he's moving? There are no concerns about Derrick Williams behind the scenes. I've not picked up on any so far. And if you can come back and look like the athlete that he was against OU while processing as an upperclassman, then it raises the ceiling for the defense. You know, somebody called him last week, said he could be a mid, mid rounder after this year. And you know, based on where he was on the, on the, you know, laying on the carpet in Dallas two years ago, we'll take a mid round upside right now. Now hopefully he would come back and try to live up to that, that four, you know, that, that top first round, maybe second round draft pick. But if he's playing like a mid rounder this season, we'll take that compare paired with Jelani McDonald.
- [20:07]
Justin
Yeah, for sure. And it's so he's had more years to get smarter. Safety is an experience position that's a big factor. And also safety is like they have depth so the depth actually helps them see and react better too. So they just have a physical advantage there as well.
- [20:22]
Eric
So he could play either safety spot. He can play. You know, I know it's more likely that he'll play in the boundary with Jelani at Field, they. They can mix and match with no problem. You know, they have sort of similar strengths. One guy's strength goes a little bit more in that direction. Derek is actually a little more physical than Jelani, which is why you like him in the boundary. And Jelani might have a little bit more range than Derek and which is like why you like him in the field. But both are physical and both have range.
- [20:47]
Announcer
Yeah.
- [20:47]
Justin
And that's good to say because Jelani's physical. If you see him fire through the B gap on the All 22, like he's like a missile. Sometimes he misses, but if he connects. Yeah, he's not, he's not a scared player. So that's good to hear about Derek.
- [20:58]
Eric
I was a little surprised that somebody told me that Derek was more physical because Jelani, you know, they brought in Jelani to play linebacker originally and his dad played linebacker, so. But you know, Derek's. Derek's from Southern Louisiana.
- [21:10]
Chris
Yeah, I know people worried about Derek and as far as injury movement, but people don't understand, like the workouts they do. It's a lot of, a lot of things you do in football. It's like a lot of football movements in the workout with Beckton. So if he can make through the workouts, he doesn't have any problems, worry about injury or anything like that. I don't see a problem with him being on the field.
- [21:26]
Eric
Right.
- [21:26]
Chris
Like you said, he's in the film room. But everything else, I think his body will match his mind. I don't think he. I don't think it'd be a problem. I think he'll be back to what he was. Right. Because he wouldn't be able to make it through the workouts if I was worried about him. So I'm not worried about him whatsoever. I think you get the old Derrick Williams back easy.
- [21:40]
Eric
Yeah. And remember, he came back a little earlier last year than we expected. You know, he came back during the summer rather than August, which to me is, is a good sign even for this day that, that he was. He was returned even ahead of schedule. And then, you know, last season didn't go how he wanted, but the train is back on the track now. It's up to him to play up to and live up to the faith that the coaches are showing in him.
- [22:02]
Chris
Yeah.
- [22:02]
Justin
And we want that solid to good you have here. Like, we get into this polar side of where it's either your elite or trash, but solidity at safety is what matters. And I think he's going to provide more than Solidity.
- [22:15]
Eric
So that's a big factor. Yeah, fans have it if they're. They're either great, they'll take a good player and make them great, or they'll take an average player and make them terrible. And there's.
- [22:24]
Justin
Paul talks about the language crime of that the term mid has turned in that you suck. And it's like the whole point of mid is that you're mid, you're in the middle, but somehow if you call something mid, it's actually that you suck.
- [22:36]
Eric
But it's the same thing happened with Jag, you know, you're just a guy. Well, a lot of the, you know, a lot. There's a lot of just the guys on the roster. That's what we talk about in the recruiting classes. Like, you know, a lot of them are fungible.
- [22:46]
Justin
Yeah.
- [22:47]
Eric
But Jag means, you know, you know, much worse.
- [22:50]
Justin
Yeah. Jack just means he's an average guy, but it means you suck now.
- [22:53]
Eric
Yeah.
- [22:53]
Justin
It's just that we're. We're bad about that. Everything goes to extremes. All right, Nick Townsend, what's going on here, man?
- [23:03]
Chris
Nick.
- [23:04]
Eric
Well, you know, I think he's a player that's going to get better throughout the season. My expectations for him in, in November are a lot different than what they are in, in. In September. We haven't heard a ton about, you know, anything that would really foreshadow a breakout. But he's so talented and has so much want to, that I think the season is going to mold him in the direction of a super talented player. You know, he just hasn't become the guy yet. Well, it's only his second year and, you know, he's, he, he's. He's got all the talent in the world. We just haven't heard it yet. But I think it's. I think the season is going to shape him into the player that, that we've expected. Again, it's still early. It's only his second year.
- [23:43]
Justin
Well, there's no fear of mental eval here. Like, we call him heavy metal for a reason. Like, he's intense. So it's not even like there's no. He's not timid. He's a smart guy. He has elite speed for the tight end position. So all the tools are here. Is it just hey, on inside zone, I need to cross.
- [24:01]
Eric
Well, I mean.
- [24:02]
Justin
Yeah, that stuff.
- [24:04]
Eric
Yeah. I think I said it in this article or said another article. Nobody has a more. More on their mental plate than tight ends. They've got to know the run game. They've got to know the passing game. They don't. I'm not just, you know, you have to know the skill required to block it either way. And then you have to have the knowledge in the playbook and the understanding and the. Hey, they're audible to me too. The audible isn't just going to the guards and tackles. And then you have to understand leverage as a receiver. Then you have to be physical and block and not just want to, but you have to have the backside and the in the leg drive and all that from cultivated in the. In the strength conditioning program to pull it off. So there's just so much going on for these guys. And Nick, Nick has, you know, I think he's the Vitruvian man for the position. It's just going to take a little bit more time and it's time under tension. We talk about it all the time. The big issue last year was lack of experience, not talent. And Nick, Nick has the talent. He just doesn't have a ton of experience yet. But that's why I think a little is going to go a long way this season.
- [25:03]
Chris
Yeah, that. Yeah, that. Then he had Lasik surgeon and not too long ago, right. So now you can see out there on the field. I guess he was a year too late. Then he. Everybody else who had it two summers ago or two springs ago. But now he has LASIK surgery. So now he can stay on the field. But I think it just, it's just about learning the position. Tight end is hard, man. You gotta understand blocking schemes the whole night. It's. It's tougher than most people think. You think you just go out there and be a brute. You see Travis Kelsey, see all these other guys on Sundays making plays off to Chavian Sanders. Like it takes time to become a good tight end.
- [25:31]
Announcer
Right.
- [25:31]
Chris
But he has all the tools to be there. So I believe to.
- [25:35]
Eric
Chavian had three years at Texas and never got close to being well rounded. Because of the blocking piece. Yeah, the tight end. I think tight end is a tough position. Obviously tight ends a tough position to draft because you see a lot of guys that are drafted in the mid and later rounds become studs in the NFL. A lot of guys that were low three stars become studs in college. It's, you know, Iowa made a living off of those guys. Missouri did for a while, Stanford did as well. So, you know, that's. There's so much variance in it. It's almost like offensive linemen and, you know, you don't know what these guys can become now what I loved about Nick was I knew that metal side and that metal side is guarantees success long term when you package it with such an elite athlete. So it's, it's not, it's not if it's when with. With Townsend, hopefully it's at some point this season because that could be, that could be a huge piece going into the playoffs if he becomes a guy that's not just being schemed open. You know, for Sark, that's like, all right, the defense is overplaying here. This guy's going to be wide ass open and he's going to maximize open space or if you get them on matchups, you know, that's what they did with Jatavian Sanders and he absolutely crushed people in that regard. So I'm excited to see what he becomes. I'm hoping that I'm not a year early on it. You know, again, I think I'm probably tempering it because I was a little early on on Ryan Wingo and I've been early on some other guys. You know, I was early on Vernon brought like we talked about. It's just I know these guys really well and I could see what they're going to be, but sometimes it's hard to see when they're going to be it.
- [27:03]
Justin
Yeah. And Sarka's not easy on that position. Quentin, you're back, dude. Almost football season. He's back. He was in the off season. He said let's go. In the meantime, I won the natty. Congratulations, man. CFB 27, 54, 27 against Tech. Wow, Tech made it to the Natty, huh?
- [27:19]
Chris
They actually scored in the playoffs then.
- [27:20]
Justin
Okay, I. Good. Quentin, you're gonna get another W this football season on your coaching too. Your real life coaching of the young ones. Glad you're back around Quentin. He's one of the most entertaining people we could have in the chat. All right. Melvin Siani, player that I like, had a little bit of an adjustment period and has since adjusted. I think anyone would have that adjustment period versus these edges. But if you can have lockdown on both sides, that helps for a national championship, I would think.
- [27:52]
Eric
Eric. Yeah, I mean, you know, if you need help everywhere on the offensive line, it's harder to give it. But if you need it, let's say you need it more focused than the in the interior and you're perfectly fine on on the outside. That makes life a lot easier for offensive coordinator. You know, they, they were just really young last year at the tackles. Goosby and Baker. What they had Two combined starts between them entering last year, and that was because of injury the year before. Here they have a lot of experience, and Ciani, I think, is on a really interesting growth curve. He started his career at Temple, showed some signs. I'm sure Temple fans are like, who is this guy? He sucks. And then two years later, they were crying that he left. And then, you know, he showed improvement moving over to the acc and, you know, not. Not a perfect player by any stretch, but trending in the right direction to becoming a guy. I mean, if you were down on Christian Jones like we talked about, you should love Melvin Ciani based on where he is in his development. You know, he's much further ahead than when we first started Christian Jones playing or even when Christian Jones was in his second year. So bookend tackles makes life a lot easier. I think he's also got the ability to be a good run blocker. Somebody asked me or mentioned on the board, can he be better than Cam Williams the one year that can't. Yes, absolutely. He's going to be better than Cam Williams that one year he started just by not having as many penalties. But yes, he's much further along in his development than Cam. Jeez, this not the. He's not the physical freak Cam is. But that doesn't mean that he's a pedestrian over there either. Just a huge, huge, huge upgrade overall. Because again, you were able to move Baker inside, too, which I think is going to be maybe not an upgrade over DJ Campbell, but it's going to mitigate the loss of DJ Campbell. Maybe it can even out. And then, you know, again, I mentioned here that him and Goosby could be the top tackle tandem in the country. Texas could have the top edge tandem in the country. Texas could have the top. Or maybe one of the top running back tandems in the country. I mean, they've. They're, they're training for a lot of good tandems this season. Top wide receiver tandem.
- [29:53]
Justin
I was gonna say wide receiver, too. And he has good feet, man. Like on any of those outside runs, sweeps, when I was breaking him down months ago, sweeps were really good outside zone, all that kind of stuff. So really quick feed. So maybe not just like a Mauler in the vertical run game, but has the athleticism to get outside and, and work.
- [30:10]
Chris
I think we got so many weapons to help these guys out. You don't have to block for five or six seconds. Like your running back can make a cut off of you and, you know, take it to the house with the running backs. We got now. So like the athletes around them, the quick throws and everything like that, you don't have to block as long. So the only thing we have to worry about, the holding penalties and different things like that that we had to worry about in the past with guys because guys couldn't find the holes or if they did find a hole, they're going down on contact. So I think it's going to help out. Everybody on the team is going to help out everybody.
- [30:37]
Justin
All right. Can't believe we're only a few weeks from weeks away from fall camp starting. Yeah, I know, man. I'm excited and it's great for videos, man. I cannot wait to talk about actual football occurring. All right, final piece. Here is this final piece. Number six cornerback Cade Phillips came on late in the season last year looking for him to take that step and lock down across from Bomasco, who we're also excited about.
- [31:08]
Eric
Yeah, another. You just want him to expedite the development. You know, he's still young, very promising that he, he passed Jaylen Gilbo last year. It's promising that he also held off a spirited Kobe Black who's got a year on him in the program this season. They felt comfortable enough with K that they moved Kobe to safety. Just all the talent world is. To me, he's the most talented guy in that room as far as projecting to the NFL. Some might say Warren Roberson is physically as talented, but I, I think Cade, you know, Kate, I think takes the game seriously. Almost like a safety watching tape. He has that mindset. You know, this kid had offers to Stanford. You know, Stanford was, was in the mix there for, for a time. You like that as well. It's just, you know, time under tension again. The reps, the reps early in the season that maybe week two are going to go a long way towards making him a better player later in the season. And, and I really like the trend line for him, but he's got to grow up quick because you know you can't have. If the upside is there, if, if he lives up to his potential early because if he can become an island corner on the other side of Bo Masco, who we know at minimum is going to be solid, we think he's going to be better than solid, but at minimum is going to be solid. If Kate can grow into who he's going to be and look like a three year player, which I think he is, it's going to make life a whole lot easier for Will Muschamp.
- [32:26]
Justin
He's going to be forced in fire because it's like normally you would get a, you know, a nice ramp up process there that doesn't exist. Like you're gonna have to play early and then SEC play starts sooner because you don't get that fourth non con. So it's, there's not a lot of room to ramp up. You're gonna have to. It's gonna be a baptism by fire. Coach anything on K?
- [32:45]
Chris
You saw him get thrown the game versus Georgia and other teams last year. Like he was right. He was sticky in coverage as a freshman just getting thrown out there. So I think his confidence has gotten even built even more. I think you're gonna see like K. Phillips be. Become that household name. I always love guys who can be phenomenal receivers playing db, right. They just got a different mindset, different kind of skill set. And so man, Phillips gonna be. I think he might be the, he may leave the room in interceptions. I think he's just, he's a special player. He has all the tools and one of those long athletic corners man that NFL loves and covers. And so I think he's gonna become a household name this year.
- [33:17]
Justin
He's not very talkative guy. Right. So you have the, the corner factor there too. I can't remember, was it his interviews that he's not super talkative?
- [33:24]
Eric
No, he's not. And in the, you know, he's got the famous pictures of this mean mug on him. Oh yeah, yeah. Straight face and all that. But then if you talk to him off the side, he's smiling and laughing and more talkative. And then you know that you put the microphone in front of him. He's like, you know, very short and you take a picture of him and it's just the, the smile's gone away. He's a nice, I mean I, I enjoy talking to him.
- [33:46]
Justin
He's.
- [33:47]
Eric
He's a good, he's a good dude. Just. Yeah, he's got, he's a football player, man.
- [33:51]
Justin
That's gonna be one of the most annoying. Not even K, but just in general. Whenever you're trying to get your quotes and they're giving you nothing, man. You're just trying to. Here's an extra sentence.
- [34:01]
Eric
Yeah, I mean quotes are great to give to fans, but they don't mean much. I love them to give me my opinion. What should my opinion be on your recruitment? Yeah. And they'll do that off camera more than they will. I just want my informed opinion so I can relay that quotes depending on where you are in the cycle. Quotes can be meaningless. They have a lot more value early in the cycle. So when a 20, 28 guy says something now, before he's been coached and all this stuff, yeah, it means a lot more. But Cade was very open about, you know, what he liked about Texas, what he liked about lsu. We knew, we had a feeling he was going to commit and flip to lsu. Oh, man. Yeah, that was a fun one.
- [34:37]
Justin
And then it's a great point. If you can get them as like sophomores, you can really figure out what they think. But they, they get media trade and then you get all your stock quotes. They show, they showed me where I fit into the defense. They're really building something.
- [34:49]
Eric
Yeah, it's very important to get quotes on stuff before you need, you know, you need it. You know, I'll, you know, let's say Sark left after this year. I won't get anything if, you know, the day after he leaves, I better have some information. Well in advance. When people don't even think it's realistic of having, you know, I'm just using that as an example. You got to get the information early on, then you've got to file it
- [35:10]
Justin
away and remember it what also it changes, right? So, like if Sark leaving is not a great example because that gets the fans fired up. But say if you were to ask them now versus when Sark leaves, it'll be negative no matter what when Sark leaves. So they'll be like, yep, he sucks and he's gotta go. You know, so it's like the event changes what they would say in a quote anyways. Because no one's like, we lost our leader.
- [35:32]
Eric
What will we do without him? You know, no one does that, right?
- [35:36]
Justin
So, yeah, you get a bunch of nonsense post event on a lot of that stuff. All right, before we keep going, we got a lot of cool recruiting stuff to talk, but let's hear a word from Andre. Texans know when you're injured, there's one name that gets results. Andre the Lawyer Trust. The team that has secured millions for their clients and helped thousands of Texans win their injury cases. Car wrecks, slip and falls, 18 wheeler. Accidents on the job, injuries, wrongful deaths. Don't let the insurance companies tell you what your claim is worth. Andre the Lawyer will fight for you. His principal office is in Dallas, but they serve Texans throughout the state, so don't wait. Call 214-444-8808. That's 214-444-8808. Contact info is in the description. Fans are really focused on the two five star receivers and what that means going forward. We'll talk about one of them first here and that would be Cade Phillips. So I don't care about that. That I care about this. Mansion sales is first up. Gentlemen. What intel do we have? He has announced a date.
- [36:41]
Eric
What article is this from?
- [36:43]
Justin
This is from one of your better works here called Texas Longhorns. It's Justin. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [36:50]
Eric
All right. Okay. Yeah, I edited that and added some to it. All right.
- [36:54]
Justin
Yeah.
- [36:55]
Eric
He's announcing Friday. Charlie has had exceptional information on this recruitment and I've had good information, not exceptional information on it. And I'm glad, I'm glad we, we are in such limbo on this one because if I was only hearing stuff from the Texas side and I didn't have Charlie getting such good information, I would think Texas is going to get him on Friday because there is confidence on the UT side.
- [37:19]
Chris
Yeah.
- [37:20]
Eric
But there it is. Such a convoluted recruitment given the nature of his abrupt move from Alabama to Indianapolis. The bonds he's made since they made that move. As Charlie was saying offline, I think I wrote it somewhere, head versus heart sort of decision. And people are like, hey, you've talked so good about his character. If he makes a decision on Friday, well, won't that be it? Well, I mean, I think he wants to make the decision to, to quiet the madness, not necessarily end it permanently. You know, just, you know, let some of those schools back off, focus on the season and kind of pick this up, kick the can down the road, so to speak. I think that's what he's looking to do. It's going to be Texas or Indiana. I just don't know which way his head or heart are leaning at the time. And then because those factors are still in play. Right. If each, if he goes with his heart now, he could lean towards his head later. And if he goes with his head now, he could lean towards his heart later. So we're going to be watching this one for a while. What we do know is Texas has a good relationship here.
- [38:18]
Chris
Yes.
- [38:18]
Eric
I wrote an article late last night about, you know, how the coaches have done recruiting this cycle. I graded them and Chris, Chris Jackson, whether he gets much on sales or not, he's done an exceptional job in this recruitment because Mancha, he has Texas right here, prime to win it due to that relationship to trust and the feeling that he's a great fit for the program. You know, Chris does a really good job of finding guys that he can connect with and build a really good relationship with. The stronger that bond is, the easier it is to recruit them. Jackson has been nails at that in his time at Texas.
- [38:54]
Justin
Yeah, it's. Imagine five years ago, it'd be in a recruiting battle to Indiana. Indiana's starting to swim in the deep end now, which is a different, totally different style that they're used to.
- [39:04]
Eric
Well, they also caught amazing luck in the fact that his family moved to Indiana. So this is a con. This isn't just Signetti moving into Indiana five years ago. They wouldn't have Signetti there or mach on sales. So there would be no reason to talk about Indiana. They've got a. They've got some luck on their side.
- [39:20]
Justin
But being from Alabama, it is a statement that Texas is even in this at all. You know, so it's like history in Alabama. He has a bunch of friends and family there. Right. And then Indianapolis near Signetti. So the fact that Texas is in this is unique in the first place in my.
- [39:35]
Chris
Well, surprising. Even though some of those family and friends in Alabama, they're Texas Longhorn fans.
- [39:39]
Announcer
Right.
- [39:39]
Chris
They're not screaming Roll Tide, so.
- [39:41]
Justin
Oh, good.
- [39:41]
Chris
That's their flag kind of planted in a bunch of different places within this recruitment. But also you got some recruitment on the team and KJ Lacey, who he's known since, you know, peewee football.
- [39:50]
Eric
Right. So you've got a lot of different.
- [39:52]
Chris
Texas holds a lot of different cards in the recruitment, but Eric kind of summed it up best like head versus heart, man. And it can kind of go either way.
- [39:59]
Eric
Yeah, we have it as a 50, 50. Some insiders on our board. We actually do have a couple insider. We. We normally. We run off all the fake insiders. So there's not nearly as much on it as there are other. Other places. The actual real insiders on the board have some confidence, but it's like 55, 60. It's not a slam dunk. I'm at 50, 50, and then I don't. I'm not sure how much it matters. The season is probably going to dictate where this one's going to go or just more time for him to realize it. But Texas has some things in its factor. Indiana has some things in its factor. What Texas has, Indiana can't come compete with and what Indiana has, Texas can't compete with. You know, you don't.
- [40:39]
Announcer
Yeah.
- [40:40]
Eric
So it's. It's a. It's an interesting recruitment. And then on top of it, there's a lot on this kid's shoulders. He's sort of the man of the house at a very young age with all this decision. It's, he's in a very tough spot now. He's in a can't lose situation with these two schools. So that's good. It's not, you know, it's going to be one is better than the other eventually, but it's not like it's going to be a bad decision either way. So we'll be interested to see how it plays out on Friday, but I'll be much more interested to see how it plays out by December.
- [41:08]
Justin
And then we have another recruit down here in Easton Royal, who also stretched out. He is a commit to us, right, like we did a video. So I'm just like how we talk about him is so confusing because it's just like he, he's committed to Texas, but there's a lot going back and forth with Louisiana, lsu. And then just stay off of Twitter with all that stuff, man. It's, they're pointing out that he has LSU gloves and then he's pointing out that he's wearing Texas cleats. So it's a, it's a little bit of pandemonium with him. But what's the actual reality of this coach?
- [41:44]
Eric
Well, I have this one on hold for about 16 days. I'm not really paying too close attention to it outside of, you know, unless something, something drastic changes in the next few weeks, which I don't think will. You know, I wrote in that same article I wrote, you know, who, who Chris Jackson has committed and who he's still working on and, and Eastern Royal fit both those categories to the point you just made. You know, Justin points out here that David Mulagueda is his agent, which is good in the fact that, you know, it's not good because he went to Texas. It doesn't matter.
- [42:17]
Justin
He's a professional.
- [42:18]
Eric
It's good because Mologedda has in Texas have great familiarity with, with each other. He just, he just represented Cam Coleman. So Mulaguetta knows full well what the, the cell of the Texas, what Texas can actually deliver. Not the, not the idea or theory of what Texas can deliver. So that's good. But you know, LSU's being is extremely committed. Who knows what lengths they'll go to, to land Royal. You know, it's, it's definitely one that you'll. If it's, if it's possible of happening, they'll find a way to make it happen at lsu. But as Easton has maintained behind the scenes, it's not about money. It's going to be there either way. It's going to be. Where does he feel like being? I do feel like. Oh, Karen. Karen Brown got a big, big ranking spump. Speaking of wide receivers, I'm excited to see where they. Where they moved him up to. Tape's awesome. And he ran like a 443. So royal. It's going to be. Hey, where does he want to be now? It's not. I think there are people in his camp that want him at Texas, and that's. That's a good sign. But his birthday is July 29th, and I'll see if he makes some bold proclamation on that date. Yeah, yeah.
- [43:26]
Justin
He's from Louisiana, so that's a factor. LSU is good at putting on the pressure. We just had a flip from greedy to us to them. And then who was else was up there recently? Brewster. Right. At Tech. So they're. They're trying to get all the big names together like Texas does, too. So they're. They're putting it on heavy.
- [43:45]
Chris
Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Everybody pays attention to social media. He'll post a picture of Lane. He had posted a picture of Sark. It's not like he's not got the biggest troll job or it's kind of like he just wants to play it up on the Internet. But either way, it's somebody you want to keep in the class because he's so talented. But, man. Yeah, like Eric said, let's see. Let's wait till the 29th.
- [44:02]
Eric
Hey, they just got to get one of them. And. And you know, I wrote another article that there is a possibility, not to say probability, but possibility, that by the end, by the start of fall camp, your only two commits are Bryson Thrower and Karen Brown. But that doesn't mean it'll end up that way. They're still launched on sales, but we'll see, man. I'm not. We'll see. This one is. It's. It's another tough recruitment to cover.
- [44:24]
Chris
Every.
- [44:24]
Eric
Every recruitment that LSU is firmly in. It's tough to cover, man.
- [44:29]
Justin
No.
- [44:30]
Announcer
Yep.
- [44:30]
Justin
They have unique, unique ways of getting players. And I don't even mean that in like they're doing sneaky stuff. They just. Let's use a different thing with that. And then you guys want to talk too, about another wide receiver in Peyton Smith. What do we know about old Peyton?
- [44:48]
Eric
Oh, well, he's 20, 28.
- [44:50]
Chris
You.
- [44:50]
Eric
Yeah, that's. Yeah.
- [44:52]
Justin
Not for this class. Not for this class.
- [44:53]
Eric
Yeah. Him and Jalen Herndon are 2028s. Justin mentioned Jalen Herndon from Longview in this class looks like Jalen Hale.
- [45:00]
Chris
That.
- [45:00]
Eric
I mean, he does. You know, that kid could be from El Paso. And I would have said that kid looks like he's like Jalen Hill.
- [45:07]
Justin
I watched that little tape that he had here, and that was my first before even reading Jalen Hale. I was like, that's Jalen Hale.
- [45:13]
Announcer
Yeah.
- [45:13]
Eric
Yeah.
- [45:14]
Justin
Which was also a devastating one for the Texas fans. You remember how they were bummed when Jalen Hill went to him?
- [45:20]
Eric
Yeah, that was. That was. But so that's where the context really matters. You know, Texas backed out of that negotiation. So that, you know, that tells you that they felt they could live without him. Yeah. So Jaden, very similar to Jalen, very good prospect. Kyron Brown got jumped to 205 overall. So that's. That. That is a big jump. He was. He was way on the outskirts. Kind of like how he lives on the outskirts up there in Amarillo. He was on the outskirts, but now it's at 205. We'll take that. That might help the class a little bit. Yeah. Jaden, very good prospect. Looks like Jalen. But, you know, there's a. There's. There's going to be a group of guys that they're going to be selecting from. Like they did this last class where. All right, they're going to look for the elite of the elite, probably. Right. Maybe if they get both Royal and Sales somehow, then. Then, you know, they'll have to take a back seat this next class or maybe save some for the Portal, depending how the following season shapes up. But there's going to be a bunch of guys in competition for the same spot. Like, we saw this this past year, which Bryson Thrower emerged from a group of about four or five guys.
- [46:22]
Justin
Yeah.
- [46:22]
Eric
Jaden Herndon's going to be in a. In a group with Peyton Smith from LaPorte. I really, really, really like Peyton Smith. This is even before his profile rose and he started getting invited everywhere. We've got a. We've got a guy down in Laporte that I've known since Terrell Bernard came out of there, and he was saying Texas was crazy for not going after Terrell Bernard. And I agreed. The tape. Terrell Bernard's tape was awesome. He went to Baylor, had a great career. He's in Buffalo. He's a dynamic player when he's healthy.
- [46:49]
Chris
So.
- [46:49]
Eric
So my guy down there in laporte was telling me all about Sean Simon, the running back. Sean Simon, very likely he's going to end up at I think he's going to end up at A M. Not for certain there. Texas isn't on him very hard but his teammates Peyton Smith a little bit behind him as far as notoriety.
- [47:04]
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- [47:50]
Eric
but but quickly climbing the charts. I think he's going to emerge like Bryson throw did as one of the obvious guys in the class that they want. Herndon's awesome. Don't get me wrong. I just, my gut feeling is it's probably going to be Peyton Smith emerges as a true I'll take both of them. You know, if they both want in, we'll, we'll, we'll make room for them. I like them both, but I, I, I tend to think that Peyton's going to get the full court press from Texas.
- [48:16]
Justin
All right. And then we'll close on Kyle Flood's work in recruiting. So this is a bigger piece where Eric names every coach and who they have. So you can go read that over on Inside Texas. But Coach Flood gets a lot of heat from the chat. He's gotten a lot of heat from me. But we need to do some credit where it's due here as far as recruiting. He's basically closed out his class and he's gotten some real players in here too. So credit where it's due to Coach Flood. What were your major thoughts here Eric?
- [48:51]
Eric
Well, I give him an A plus here because you have to understand the realities of recruiting. They're not going to get five guys in the top 50. I love the process here. He had a good big board. He's always, he's often had a good big board to start. I don't think he's always been great showing makeup speed, foot quickness to make up for what's happening on the ground. But this year, he had a great big board, identified Ishmael Kamara as the guy they want. Down further. I mentioned that that was a decision that reminded me of going after Kevin Kelvin Banks over Cam Dewberry back in 2022. They let a M have Kennedy Brown. I like that decision, actually. Brian Swanson. They treated Brian Swanson almost like an OT one, maybe OT one and a half. SMU was treating him like an OT one, which forced Texas to get even more aggressive. Yeah, but what I really like is. Is, you know, the money. The money. Bad guys, which, you know, I'm not saying that they were trying to hold Texas ransom or anything, but they cost a lot. Kamara and Swanson, you can get those guys if you're frugal elsewhere or. Or savvy elsewhere. Maybe. Not. Not. Not to say that Texas was cheap, but, you know, I got excited about Jackson Cook and Keon Hemphill woods because the tape is there. And also, they didn't have the highest profile, so they didn't cost a whole lot. That allows you to repurpose money and make sure you don't lose the guys that you absolutely have to have. I love Hemphill Woods. What he brings the table and Jackson Cook. You can find a center and a guard in the portal much easier than you can find a top tackle, which I think, you know, Brian Swanson, I think can be a fantastic right tackle. Ishmael Kamara can be. We've already talked about what he can be. He can be absolutely elite. And then Lucas Row is kind of the guy that tied it all together because they did need another guard. I know there was a lot of talk about Reed Rams here. My Lucas Rowe was my guy that I hoped that ended up in the class, and they got him. So this is a perfect five to me. That is obviously goes left to right. Ishmael Kamara, Lucas Roa, Jackson Cook, Keon Hemphill woods, and then Brian Swanson. It fits together seamlessly. I love the class. And, you know, Kyle Flood. Yeah. Kamara was an institutional recruitment, meaning that it went well beyond Kyle Flood's recruiting. You know, it wasn't just him having a, you know, talking about fishing or whatever. You know, it wasn't him, you know, just having a good relationship, but he did check the box for Kamara, and then I think he was the key with Lucas Roa. And so, you know, you like hearing that Lucas Row was a tough, tough recruitment. Wasn't rated the highest, but that doesn't mean anything. Penn State was all over him. UCLA was all over him. Oregon was all over him. Kyle Flood has had a fantastic cycle and I'm not sure it's over yet. Maybe they try to find a late swing tackle to really finish off the class.
- [51:35]
Chris
Yeah, that's a good five. The Lucas Roy. The more I watched his tape, I was like, it doesn't hurt so much missing on somebody like a John Mills. Because Roy can just block people out of the frame. I mean, he just mauls gang kids out of the way. Like you said Keon Hemphill, Woods, I think he's, he's super athletic. I think he's a guy. You put a left guard, you're gonna use him in front of screens, he's gonna pull and knock people out, kick out the end. Then you get your two NFL tackles on the outside. It really doesn't matter what you do so much on the inside, especially combined what's already on with what's already on the roster with your Coleman's, Jackson Christian. So you got some pieces already there. Another guy not talking about Nicholas Robertson, now he's on campus. I think he's going to surprise a lot of people and earn his way playing time. Maybe not as freshmen, but you know, the next year. So you got a lot of pieces to work with while these young guys develop. I mean, I think you got your two bookends at left and right tackle for the future. And so office line looks good.
- [52:24]
Justin
Good job. That's good. Not to stress about five star tackles down the line. I'm sure Kamara feels nice too, to be able to breathe. Kamara didn't have to just deal with American national media. He has to deal with French national media on top of it for interviews and stuff like that. So I'm sure that was stressful for him. I'm glad he was able to get that done. And he's with the Longhorns.
- [52:44]
Eric
Yeah. At least you know, the French are kind of preoccupied with the World Cup. Let's see here. The, the new rankings came out. Kamara is going to be preoccupied with this ranking. He's probably working out right now looking at. He's that rivals has him at 33. 33 is like the worst thing you could possibly be ranked because it's the.
- [53:02]
Justin
Because it's right there at the 32 mark.
- [53:04]
Eric
Yeah, 32 is where they're five stars and then he's 33, which. Alrighty, man. Let's see here. We got Eastern Royal at 3, sales at 7 and John Meredith at 8. So that's the. That's the five star combo right now,
- [53:18]
Chris
I guess dropped Meredith from number one and I think the number three corner now they got Dobson and then some Miami commit is number one cornerback now. Like how that happened, but okay.
- [53:27]
Justin
Are the rankings on a set schedule? Are they like we update them in July and then October.
- [53:32]
Eric
Does it work like that? They have a set internal schedule, you know, that they fall. I don't know if they. They usually do a summer re rankings and they'll, you know. Yeah, they'll rank them again in the season and I don't know. Will they do an August one before the season? Who knows, man?
- [53:46]
Justin
I don't know. And then you just pick whichever psych or a period of time had them highest rated and then that's where fans go. Wonderful. All right, any final thoughts, gentlemen, on anything fall camp or fall camp coming up? Any. Any stuff there, Eric?
- [54:02]
Eric
No, we still have some hurdles to get. Get over, you know, media days or next week. All this is the last Monday I'll be with this background. It's going to be go time back in Texas. Looking forward to it. No, it's going to be, you know, media days are coming. Stark has another speaking engagement before media days in Texas. We'll have that covered. Just getting closer, man. Inching, inching, inching closer. Yeah, I'm excited.
- [54:27]
Chris
On the same day at media day. I don't know. I think it's gonna be.
- [54:29]
Eric
Oh, yeah, that's fine.
- [54:31]
Justin
That's. That's absolutely wonderful. They're like the same. They're like evil twin brothers. Like Sark went with the more like buttoned up approach and then Lane went with the more kind of wild. They. They have such a unique. Like if I did a documentary, you would have to intertwine those two throughout. And then. What was it last year? Stark was throwing shots at Lane about not know what he's talking about because he hasn't been in the play. They have a weird relationship. Friendly, but it's like kind of brotherly. Yeah.
- [54:56]
Eric
I'm not sure they're friends anymore. You know, it's kind of like, you know, his friends with Kirby Smart and then Kirby Smart, you know. Yeah.
- [55:03]
Justin
But their history is totally different.
- [55:05]
Eric
Yeah. I'm just saying I don't believe coaches are as good friends as they say they are.
- [55:09]
Justin
Oh, I think Kirby's keeping tabs. I think Kirby's keeping enemies closer with Sark. I don't enjoy that at all. Whenever they talk about that also, it's a little bit mean, you know, like, you keep beating them, and then you're just like, hey, buddy, how you doing? I think there's psychological warfare occurring there.
- [55:24]
Eric
Yep.
- [55:24]
Justin
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Announcer
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