Latest news with #SEC
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28 minutes ago
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2026 WR chooses Alabama Crimson Tide over Penn State, Notre Dame
The post 2026 WR chooses Alabama Crimson Tide over Penn State, Notre Dame appeared first on ClutchPoints. Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide landed a talented player to add to their 2026 recruiting class, getting the pledge of wide receiver Brian Williams Jr. Advertisement Williams announced his commitment to the Crimson Tide on Tuesday, per On3 insider Hayes Fawcett. He chose the SEC powerhouse over the likes of Penn State, Florida and Notre Dame. The young receiver stands out as a solid prospect from the Sunshine State. He boasts a three-star ranking with an 86 score on 247Sports. He is the 106th-best player in the state of Florida and the 162nd-best wide receiver in the 2026 class. 'Traits-heavy outside wide receiver with the length and athleticism to bake into a difference-maker, but one where the on-field production has yet to really materialize. Looks the part with a lanky frame that stretches close to 6-foot-4 and pairs the outstanding size with green speed and explosion scores,' 247Sports' scouting director Andrew Ivins said. 'Displays good initial burst off the line and will sink his hips to snap in and out of his breaks. Not the most physical player at this stage, but finds ways to beat man coverage with his quick feet and sharp releases.' Advertisement What's next for Alabama after landing Brian Williams Jr. Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images It's a solid pickup for Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide to get. With Brian Williams Jr. arriving in 2026, the team's receiving corps looks to boast a lot of potential. DeBoer is preparing for his second year as the Crimson Tide's head coach. He navigated the program through the start of a new era after Nick Saban retired from coaching college football. His ability to lead teams to remarkable success made him a strong fit for the job as Saban's successor. His first campaign with Alabama was a strong success. He led the Crimson Tide to a 9-4 record, a promising start to his time with the program. However, he ended the season with a loss to the Michigan Wolverines in the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl. Related: North Carolina football way-too-early bold predictions for 2025 season Related: Oregon football way-too-early bold predictions for 2025 season
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44 minutes ago
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Longhorns land one of the best defensive lineman in the 2026 class
Over the last few days, the Texas Longhorns have had a few wins to celebrate on the recruiting trail. That includes the commitment of one of the top defensive linemen in the entire country, Vodney Cleveland. He has the potential to be a future star and now will be a vital piece of the Longhorns' defense. The Birmingham native picked Texas over Miami, Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama. He was expected to stay in state for his college career, but the Longhorns and defensive line coach Kenny Baker made a pitch he could not turn down. Following his visit to Texas last week, he highlighted how the atmosphere stood out. Advertisement "Texas is definitely different from any atmosphere I've seen, Everyone is together, everybody is on the same page, strong family vibes. That's what you want in a program." As Cleveland begins his college career, he will join a talented 2026 class that continues to improve. In the last month, Texas has added Kenny Baker, Dylan Berryman, and Corey Wells to the mix. That group should continue to make the Longhorns one of the best teams in the SEC. In their newest weapon, the Longhorns are getting a player that makes life difficult for offensive coordinators. He uses his raw strength to beat offensive linemen and get to the quarterback. That will be a very valuable characteristic in the SEC. That is partly why Cleveland was ranked as the No. 141 overall prospect in his class. Advertisement With plenty of talent left on the board, the Longhorns should continue to make headlines. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @LonghornsWire. This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Four-star DL Vodney Cleveland commits to Texas
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44 minutes ago
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Longhorns predicted to land cornerback Samari Matthews
Over the last few weeks, Longhorns football has been on a roll in adding to their 2026 class. That includes the additions of a five-star defensive end and two four-star defensive linemen. However, they are not done yet. On3's Chad Simmons and Steve Wiltfong have both logged expert predictions that Texas will land four-star cornerback Samari Matthews. The North Carolina native is ranked as the No. 9 cornerback in the 2026 class and the No. 69 overall player by On3. They also rank him as the sixth-best player out of North Carolina. While the expert prediction is a welcoming sign, Texas is not the only program with its eyes on Matthews. Advertisement During the offseason, the talented cornerback has been busy touring the country. Matthews has visited Florida State, Texas, and South Carolina this month. That came after a trip to Miami in May. With most of his visits in the books, the anticipation is building over his final decision. Currently, the Longhorns 2026 class includes one cornerback, three-star Hayward Howard Jr. While he is a talented prospect, adding more depth at the position is key for a recruiting class trending up. Following the Longhorns' recent additions, their 2026 class has climbed to No. 10 in the country and No. 4 in the SEC per on3. A commitment from Matthews could make that ranking go even higher. Luckily for the Longhorns, they won't have to wait long to find out Matthews's decision. He has set his commitment date for July 11. Texas hopes that on that date, they will be able to add Matthews name to the list of potential Longhorns stars. Advertisement This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Recruiting experts say Longhorns will land four-star cornerback
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44 minutes ago
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New Texas five-star DL commit Richard Wesley goes in-depth about his decision
It's been a wild month for five-star defensive lineman Richard Wesley. First, he committed to Oregon and famously jumped in a pool with Ducks coach Dan Lanning. But soon after, the Los Angeles native backed out of the commitment and there was a lot of speculation Texas was leading. Over the weekend, Wesley did indeed commit to Texas. Sunday, Wesley told Jason Suchomel of "My recruitment is 100 percent, 1,000 percent shut down. I'm going here in January." Advertisement Wesley flew straight from Austin to Indianapolis where he's taking part in the elite Rivals Five-Star Challenge, a camp for 100 of the best players in the country at Lucas Oil Field. The 6-foot-4, 250 pound EDGE talked to Rivals National recruiting director Adam Gorney about his decision. Gorney asked Wesley what convinced him Texas was the right spot. "I knew Texas was a great school. Not only for football, but academically. They have great degrees. Great business school. Great every school. I felt like the decision was the best of both worlds. I get to play in the SEC but I also get to walk out with a great degree. God forbid, football's not forever. So if I do get hurt, in the long run I still walk out with something good. It was all the coaches combined. But what really convinced me was from the academic standpoint." -- Richard Wesley While academics are obviously important to the California prospect, the blue chipper tells Gorney his main goal is to win a national title at Texas. "My goal is to win the natty. You know, I want to win a state championship this high school season. I want to win one my college season. It's great knowing my team is going to be very elite when I get there and I'm going to continue the legacy." -- Richard Wesley Wesley becomes one of the highest ranked prospects that has ever committed to the Longhorns. He ranks just behind Vince Young, Arch Manning, Jonathan Gray and Sergio Kindle. Since Wesley has already committed to two schools during his recruitment, Gorney asked him if this was his final decision. "I'm staying here. I'm staying at Texas. Hook'em! I feel like that's the spot that I want to be at." -- Richard Wesley Wesley says he's glad the recruiting process is now over and he can get down to work for the upcoming high school season and beyond. "I'm glad that everything has settled down. I can finally work this upcoming offseason for the high school season. I'm trying to come up there and really do something. I'm glad everything is cooled down. I'm glad everything is calm now and I can really get to work now." -- Richard Wesley Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @LonghornsWire. Advertisement This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: New Texas 5-star commit Richard Wesley goes in-depth about his choice
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44 minutes ago
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Is the Texas Longhorns 2026 recruiting class in danger of falling behind rivals?
June is an important recruiting month. The Texas Longhorns rolled out the Lamborghinis and hosted three huge official visit weekends. The month was going well as several recruits committed to UT. But some disappointing recruiting battle losses at the end of the month have put the prospects of another top five finish in question. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian has certainly developed a great pitch to recruits. "I honestly think this is the best place in the country to come play football at. I firmly believe that, and I think we have the stats, the nuances and the information to back that up. Who's the one school that's gone to back-to-back college football playoffs, back-to-back semifinals? Who's the one school their first year in the SEC that went to the SEC Championship game? Who has the most draft picks in the NFL draft over the last two years? ... Who has last year signed the best class in the country, the year before that a top-three class in the country, the year before that a top-five recruiting class in the country?' -- Texas coach Steve Sarkisian Texas has the history, a proven track-record of player development, a great academic institution and the biggest city in the SEC by far. The pitch persuaded elite five-star defensive end Richard Wesley, who after spending time as an Oregon pledge, said he's fully committed to Texas. Advertisement Texas also landed the No. 2 punting prospect in the country and added four-star Vodney Cleveland, who said, "Texas is definitely different from any atmosphere I've seen. Everyone is together, everybody is on the same page, strong family vibes. That's what you want in a program." That's the good news. The bad news came the final weekend in June. Texas lost five recruiting battles to recruiting rivals. A couple were thought to be Texas locks by recruiting experts across the nation. Five-star linebacker Xavier Griffin committed to Alabama over the weekend. Texas thought it was in the driver's seat for the one-time USC commit. Austin-based recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman thought Texas would land the blue chipper. "It's down to Texas and Alabama with a June 26 commitment on the horizon," Spiegelman said. "No team has come on stronger with the four-star edge than the Longhorns. There's a sense Texas made another step forward with Griffin and his mother back in Austin this weekend." Advertisement One of the Lone Star State's most coveted offensive linemen, four-star Zaden Krempin, picked Texas A&M over the Longhorns. Four-star running back Amari Latimer cancelled his Texas visit at the last minute and committed to Wisconsin. And four-star edge rusher Dre Quinn committed to Clemson over the Horns. It was a bad week. Recency bias has Longhorns fans worried that UT's run of top five classes, including last year's No. 1 recruiting class, could come to an end. Texas has the 16th-ranked class on Rivals/On3, 13th on 247sports and 7th on ESPN. Obviously, Texas has some ground to make up if it wants to repeat the success of the past few years. Advertisement While nobody wants to lose recruiting battles, the future is still bright. Longtime Longhorns guru Geoff Ketchum, the owner/publisher of went deeper into the numbers during his weekly Ketch's 10 Thoughts ($) column. Ketchum points out that if you just look at the top end of the Longhorns' class, UT is in the top three with Georgia and Ohio State. "In quickly assembling a roster that ranks behind only Georgia and Ohio State in consensus super blue chip players (rated as 5 stars or high 4 stars by multiple services) on its roster, the Longhorns are sitting at the important people table at Thanksgiving, while so many of their historical peers are eating at a card table with 7-year olds." -- Geoff Ketchum, OrangeBloods. There could be more good news coming the Longhorns way over the Fourth of July weekend. Mansfield Lake Ridge five-star Felix Ojo and North Crowley's John Turntine III, two of the state's top-ranked recruits, plan to announce their commitments this weekend. Five-star defensive lineman Bryce Perry-Wright also plans to make his choice on July 5 from among Texas, Clemson, Miami and A&M. Advertisement Analysts believe Turntine will commit to Texas. Ojo has narrowed his decision to Texas and Ohio State. While he struggled at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge, the sixth-ranked recruit in the nation would still be a huge feather in Sark's cap. "I'd really say Texas and Ohio State (lead). Really just the atmosphere. The culture. Not only that. The opportunity to play early. I'd really say those two schools have really been pushing me throughout the recruiting process. Those are ultimately the two schools that are the biggest factor in my recruitment right now. I'd say right now with the race, I'd say it's pretty even. I'd say there's no clear cut leader right now." -- Felix Ojo Assembling each recruiting class is a marathon. Under Sarkisian, Texas has generally assembled a good class early in the cycle and turned it into an elite class late in the year. If that's the case, the Longhorns should be just fine when the national signing periods arrive. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @LonghornsWire. This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Is the Texas Longhorns 2026 recruiting class in trouble?
