Tag: 2017 class

Where Texas’ 2017 recruiting class is now

Four years ago, Tom Herman was hired to be Texas’ coach. The transition recruiting class was not great. Here is where the ’17 class is now.

Four years ago, Tom Herman was hired away from Houston to become the head coach of Texas. His transition recruiting class was not ideal, dealing with the struggles of Charlie Strong.

On the 247Sports composite, Texas had the No. 25 class in the country and the No. 2 class in the Big 12. It was the lowest-rated class since Strong’s transition class from Mack Brown. Few significant starters were able to be developed and turned into talent ready for the next level.

So far, only four players have made it to the NFL, while five are expected to be on the roster for Steve Sarkisian. COVID-19 allowed players to take a fifth year if they chose to. Of the five, only two are going to be starters week in and week out for the Longhorns.

Here is a look as to where Texas’ 2017 recruiting class is now:

Texas Football Recruiting: Comparing the transition classes from Strong, Herman, and Sarkisian

For UT, three transition classes have occurred since firing Mack Brown. Here is how all three worked out for Strong, Herman, and Sarkisian.

One of the most difficult aspects of hiring a new coach is retaining and working with a transition recruiting class. More times than not, the entire class was recruited by and had relationships with the old staff. The new head coach had little to no prior contact.

For Texas, three transition classes have occurred since the firing of Mack Brown in Dec. 2013. Charlie Strong, Tom Herman, and now Steve Sarkisian have all had to manage with someone else’s recruits. For Strong and Herman, we witnessed how they turned out, while Sarkisian still has the chance to prove himself.

Each class has its positives to go along with its weaknesses. All three transition classes ranked outside the top 10 nationally on the 247Sports composite. When struggling on the field and dealing with continual staff turnover, Texas’ new head coaches were all given tough hands.

Here are Strong, Herman, and Sarkisian’s transition classes and how they turned out.

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