Jared Wiley enjoys UT official visit, ready to start his Longhorn career

Tight end Jared Wiley has been committed to Texas for more than six months. As a player who lives less than an hour drive from the UT campus, Wiley has been a regular visitor to the Forty Acres, and every time he steps on campus he feels better and better about his decision to be a Longhorn.

Over the weekend, Wiley was in Austin for his official visit, and he said it was another great experience.

“I had a lot of fun up there. I was telling coach (Tom) Herman that I get more comfortable every time I visit,” Wiley said. “I’m happy I got to get this last one in, really talk more with the committed players and some of the upperclassmen. It was all-around a good time.

“I talked to players like Josh Thompson and TQ (Ta’Quon Graham). They were basically showing me – they didn’t have to talk about it a lot - but they were basically showing me that there’s nothing like the University of Texas.”

Wiley was part of a group of visitors that included five current Texas commitments and three uncommitted players. He said the players all got along well, and he enjoyed having a chance to spend a lot of time with his future teammates.

“It was great. I think we bonded really well,” Wiley said. “Everybody got along. It wasn’t like on the other visits where everybody was kind of quiet. Everyone go to chill out, enjoy the visit. It was a lot of fun.

“We were on (the uncommitted players) heavy the whole weekend. We tried to make them feel as best at home as they could feel. I’m hoping we got them. We talked about it, Texas is obviously high on all three of their list.”

Wiley will sign with Texas on December 19 and then will enroll at UT in January. He said he’s ready to officially become a part of the Longhorn family.

“I’m excited. It’s hard for me to have in the back of my head that I still have to finish high school. I Still have a week of normal classes, then I have finals. It’s definitely exciting,” Wiley said. “But I think this weekend got me even more excited to be up there. It’s a great group of guys. The bond and love for each other really showed, and I can’t wait to be a part of it.”

Wiley measured in at 6-6 ¼ and 238 pounds during his official visit. After playing quarterback as a senior for Temple, Wiley has already begun to put in the work towards transitioning to tight end to get ready for his Texas career. He’s been working with a quarterback in the Temple area from the Canadian Football League to polish up his footwork and pass-catching skills.

“I feel like I can bring a one-on-one mismatch with me and whoever else is on the field. I work every day to make sure that’s going to happen, to not let coach Herman, coach (Derek) Warehime down,” Wiley said. “They offered me for a reason, and I’m going to make sure I do my best to become what they need me to become.”