Tag: Xavier Worthy

Three Longhorns make ESPN’s top 50 newcomers in college football

ESPN recently ranked the top 50 newcomers in college football.

For every star that leaves the college football ranks, there are new faces that come in and capture the attention of fans across the nation.

ESPN recently ranked the top 50 newcomers in college football, whether they be recruits, transfers, or simply players who did not start the season prior. With Texas having a new coaching staff, the whole roster essentially started with a fresh slate. The Longhorns also had a major haul of transfers that they hope will help add playmakers and depth to both sides of the ball.

Texas had three current players and one former player (Keaontay Ingram) make the list. It’s interesting to note that much of the chatter this offseason surrounded the players that the Longhorns added to their defense, but all three of the newcomers on ESPN’s rankings are on the offensive side of the ball. It does make sense, however, considering Steve Sarkisian is one of the best offensive minds in the nation and has utilized his talent to perfection regardless of what school he has been coaching at.

Let’s take a look at the three Texas players that ESPN expects to have major impacts in their first year of being a full-time contributor.

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Roschon Johnson names freshman WR Xavier Worthy as a camp standout

One of the most under-the-radar recruiting wins was Texas picking up Xavier Worthy. Roschon Johnson has already noticed the four-star WR.

One of the most under-the-radar wins late in the 2021 recruiting cycle was Texas picking up Xavier Worthy. After some problems getting enrolled early at Michigan, the four-star wide receiver switched his commitment and headed down to Austin for spring camp.

On the 247Sports composite, Worthy was the No. 62 prospect and No. 8 wide receiver in the country. He slid in as the second-highest-rated player in the Longhorns’ class, just behind Ja’Tavion Sanders.

Speed is the main reason Steve Sarkisian brought the wide receiver in. Texas was lacking what most people would consider real SEC speed. Worthy instantly brings that to the locker room and it’s already caught the eye of teammates.

One of the main leaders on the team, Roschon Johnson, says the first thing he noticed with Worthy was his quickness. He thinks Sarkisian’s offense can be even more explosive with him in the lineup.

As things stand, Jordan Whittington, Troy Omeire, and Joshua Moore are expected to be the starting wide receivers. If Worthy wants to get on the field, he is going to have to earn his playing time. Different than Tom Herman’s philosophy of rotating players in and out.

“You earn the right to play and the best players ultimately play,” Sarkisian said after practice.

Hardly do true freshman wide receivers ever make an impact in offenses. However, Worthy will get his opportunity to play if he continues to show out in practice.

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Five key non-starters for Texas football this season

Five key Texas football players that may not have a starting role this season, but will be relied on heavily.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian inherited an extremely talented roster in Austin that has often been misused and underachieved by program standards.

On Sunday, the team practiced in the stadium after dark to give the newly turfed Campbell-Williams Field a test run. Media members were able to track the order in which players were getting reps.

Something that many people disregard is that reserve/depth players are critical to a teams success and oftentimes provide a needed spark or big play off the bench. Just look at Casey Thompson in the Alamo Bowl.

The Longhorns added plenty of young talent in their 2020 recruiting class, while also gaining the services of several talented transfers that just need an opportunity to shine. It’s resulted in numerous position battles on both sides of the ball, but there’s only so many starting roles available.

With the season starting in exactly 25 days, the starting roles for Texas will begin to be solidified over the next two weeks. Here is a look at five depth players who may not secure a starting role, but will still be key contributors for the Longhorns this year.

Keondre Coburn compares Texas WR Xavier Worthy to Tyreek Hill

Keondre Coburn had a great comparison for Texas’ new speedy wide receiver Xavier Worthy.

Texas defensive lineman Keondre Coburn was the ultimate teammate, wingman and hype man at the Big 12 media day as he had nothing but great things to say about his squad.

Coburn has always been known for being a quote machine when it comes to supporting his teammates. He did just that on Thursday in reference to one of Texas’ new wide receivers.

Steve Sarkisian swayed four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy to the Forty Acres after he had already signed his national letter of intent with Michigan.

The speedy wide receiver requested his release from Michigan on April 15, and Sarkisian wasted no time in offering him a scholarship that day. Worthy committed to Texas roughly a week later, and Sarkisian added the fastest wide receiver in high school to an already solid 2021 recruiting class.

Worthy has reportedly been getting rave reviews throughout team practices and is expected to be a difference-maker this season. Coburn wasted no time complimenting the speedy receiver at Big 12 media day on Thursday.

He compared Worthy to one of the fastest players in the NFL, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill, otherwise known as the cheetah.

Having Worthy and Kelvontay Dixon’s speed at his disposal, Sarkisian will have a field day beating teams vertically and getting these two in space. The Longhorns offense will have a much more explosive vibe in comparison to Tom Herman’s lackluster offense.

Texas Football: Chad Simmons’ high-impact freshmen for 2021

Three signees from Texas’ 2021 recruiting class were chosen as high impact freshmen for this upcoming season.

First-year head coach Steve Sarkisian joined the party late in the cycle, but Texas’ 2021 recruiting class still ended up No. 15 in the country and No. 2 in the Big 12.

There are 23 true freshmen on the Forty Acres this season. The class is headlined by the Longhorns’ lone five-star prospect, versatile athlete Ja’Tavion Sanders. Aside from the Denton Ryan star, 10 talented four-star recruits are in the class.

Will any of them make an impact as true freshmen?

Director of recruiting for On3sports Chad Simmons recently chose three high impact freshmen for Texas ahead of the 2021 college football season. Sanders is the clear no-brainer, but the other two selections — a speedy wide receiver and highly rated safety — were listed ahead of him.

Here are the three 2021 signees Simmons expects to play a significant role for Texas this season.

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Two Texas Longhorns among 247Sports’ top true freshmen to watch in 2021

247Sports recently listed the top true freshmen who will impact the 2021 college football season.

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Five-star signee Ja’Tavion Sanders has understandably received the most hype from Texas’ 2021 recruiting class. Continue reading “Two Texas Longhorns among 247Sports’ top true freshmen to watch in 2021”

Former Texas WR target Xavier Worthy requests NLI release from Michigan

A young, true star is needed for Texas at wide receiver. On Thursday, Xavier Worthy requested a release from his national letter of intent.

Wide receiver has been a position group struggling early on in Steve Sarkisian’s first spring camp. The quantity is there, even with Jake Smith suffering a broken foot and Tory Omeire still recovering from a torn ACL. However, the quality has been lacking from top to bottom.

Only one wide receiver from the 2021 class is on campus as an early enrollee in Jaden Alexis. Despite being ranked the No. 56 receiver on the 247Sports composite, the Florida native was the highest-rated player at the position in Texas’ class.

A young, true star is needed for Texas at wide receiver. On Thursday, an option may have opened.

Four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy signed with Michigan on Dec. 16 but did not enroll early. He requested a release from his national letter of intent, saying “things did not go as planned.”

Here is his full statement:

“Since graduating HS, I looked forward to starting my college football career at the University of Michigan, however; due to circumstance beyond my control, things did not go as planned – and I have submitted a NLI release request.

To the Michigan coaching staff, I have nothing but the upmost respect & appreciation for the opoortunity offered to me. And to the Michigan fans I’ll always be grateful for all the love & support you’ve shown me.

At this time I’m reopening my recruitment, in search of a new home to begin my college football career.”

When Worthy decided to sign with Michigan, his recruitment came down them and another national brand: Alabama. The four-star wide receiver made an unofficial trip to Tuscaloosa on Nov. 28, the weekend of the Iron Bowl when Steve Sarkisian took over as the head coach for Nick Saban.

Should Sarkisian look to dip into the portal for a wide receiver, Worthy should be his first call. A speedy deep threat is desperately needed, even if inexperience is a factor.

Worthy ranked as the No. 61 player and No. 8 wide receiver on the 247Sports composite in the 2021 class. The California native was the No. 4 in-state prospect.

Top 5 freshman that will see major playing time

Five incoming Michigan football freshmen who have what it takes to make an early impact in 2021.

The Michigan Wolverines made a major splash on national signing day on Wednesday when it flipped two recruits — one from a major rival — and signed three more prospects into the class of 2021.

The maize and blue were in major need of some interior line help on the defensive side of the ball, and as of last month, it appeared that Michigan wouldn’t be getting any help at all. When it was all said and done the Wolverines snagged three defensive-tackles in the likes of George Rooks, Rayshaun Benny — the major get that was previously committed to MSU — and Ikechukwu Iwuannah — the commit who flipped from Colorado. Defensive line coach Shaun Nua and newcomer Ron Bellamy had a huge hand in landing these players.

According to the 247Sports Composite ranking, the Wolverines landed the 10th-best class in the nation, and that was a big win for Michigan after the less-than-stellar season it had.

Now that spring ball is coming up next, we’re going to discuss which five new freshmen will see the most playing time in the fall.

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Update on Michigan WR signee Xavier Worthy

With the news that the Michigan football signee won’t be enrolling early, here’s an update as to what’s happening with the four-star WR.

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There’s been ample speculation about Michigan football signee, four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy with the news that he won’t be enrolling at Michigan early. Many have wondered aloud whether or not he’ll arrive in Ann Arbor, despite having signed his letter of intent in December, cementing that he would be a Wolverine.

Though it may be a setback, not arriving in January doesn’t mean that the speedy wideout won’t be coming to Ann Arbor in June.

One person close to the situation, but who spoke anonymously on the topic, shared with WolverinesWire that ‘nothing has changed,’ and that Worthy will 100% be enrolling at Michigan when the time comes. It won’t be this month as originally planned, but he will arrive on campus with the rest of the non-early-enrollees.

While there have certainly been setbacks in other scenarios, this one does not correlate with any other. Let’s hope this puts the speculation of Worthy and his future with the Wolverines to rest.

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Xavier Worthy will not enroll early at Michigan

The incoming freshman from California was supposed to be a midyear enrollee, but he announces that will not happen now.

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There’s been ample speculation as to the status of Michigan wide receiver signee Xavier Worthy and whether or not he would end up in Ann Arbor as an early-enrollee as planned.

Now we can end that speculation.

Worthy signed his national letter of intent in December along with the rest of the class, and while he intended to arrive in Ann Arbor on Saturday, things did not go as planned. Though his future with the program doesn’t appear to be in question, the four-star speedster announced via Twitter that he will not be among those who are on campus for the Winter 2021 semester, as originally anticipated.

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While that’s certainly a setback, there’s no indication that he’ll seek to play elsewhere at this juncture. Though, as with anything in recruiting or college football, that could certainly change on a dime.

Worthy had committed back over the summer, but there was some drama after he visited Alabama for the Iron Bowl at the end of November. He then announced that he would be deciding between the Wolverines and Crimson Tide on signing day. With Josh Gattis retaining his job as offensive coordinator, Worthy chose to stick with the maize and blue, despite it appearing he could lean towards the national championship program.

Michigan’s signees who did not report in January will make their way to campus in June.

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