One of the biggest recruiting wins for Steve Sarkisian throughout his brief stint at Texas thus far was bringing in Michigan signee Xavier Worthy.
The speedy wide receiver requested his release from the Wolverines program in April and cited “circumstances beyond control” as a reason for backing out. He signed with Michigan in December of 2020 and was expected to enroll early, but then reportedly dealt with some admissions issues.
Sarkisian had built a strong relationship with the Worthy family while he was the offensive coordinator at Alabama, and his recruitment even came down to Michigan and Alabama at the time.
His relationship with Sarkisian is a primary reason why the process moved so quickly. Roughly a week after requesting his release with Michigan, Worthy announced his commitment to the Longhorns.
Not only would Worthy get the opportunity to work with one of the top offensive guru’s in the game, the potential for immediate playing time was evident at Texas.
Sarkisian had repeatedly mentioned the need for speed on offense, and they were lacking a true deep threat at the position. Worthy has fixed those problems and then some.
Despite his small frame, he’s extremely fast and hard to tackle. His talent was on clear display against Texas Tech in Week 4. The highlight of the day came when Worthy caught a pass near midfield and ran out five defenders for a 62-yard touchdown.
His five receptions for 100 yards and three touchdowns earned him 247Sports’ True Freshman of the Week honors. He averaged a whopping 20 yards per reception.
He is now Texas’ leading receiver with 246 yards and four touchdowns this season, including four catches of 25-plus yards.
Out of high school, Worthy was a four-star prospect and the No. 8 wide receiver in the country. In the state of California, he graded out as the No. 4 overall recruit for the 2021 class.