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New Texas OL commit Reese Moore is happy to be a part of the UT family

Reese Moore committed to Texas on Sunday.
Reese Moore committed to Texas on Sunday.

For new Texas commitment Reese Moore, it was a sort of on-again, off-again relationship between him and the Texas Longhorn program over the last year. The good news for the Longhorns is that it ended in a marriage of sorts, with Moore announcing on Sunday that he had given Texas a verbal commitment.

Moore took visits to Texas last summer for a Texas camp and again in the fall for a UT football game, but he didn't mesh well with the previous coaching staff. When he returned to Austin this spring, he said he had a completely different feeling about the UT program and his views took a 180-degree turn.

"Back whenever Charlie Strong was there, I really didn't like Texas, didn't enjoy the atmosphere. I honestly wasn't even considering Texas at all," Moore said. "The new staff came and everything happened. They invited me to come in, I thought I'd give them a chance. Whenever I went down there, it was great. The atmosphere and energy coach (Tom) Herman brought in was night and day different from the previous times I'd been there. I really enjoyed it a lot."

Moore said it was difficult to put into words why things felt so dramatically different, saying it was more just the energy level and comfort level he felt. Whatever the case, he's glad he gave Texas a second chance.

"It feels great," Moore said of his commitment. With the excitement also comes a sense of relief. You know it's over, I'm going to be a Texas Longhorn."

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Moore, who measured in at 6-5 3/4 and 270 pounds on Monday, visited Texas twice this spring - once for a scrimmage and once for the Orange-White game. He also attended the Oklahoma spring game. The Seminole product said he'd been thinking about making a decision between those two programs, and a call from another recent UT pledge helped seal the deal for the Longhorns.

"I had been thinking about it a lot. It had come down to Texas and Oklahoma," Moore said. "It was on my mind a lot. I prayed about it and Cameron (Rising) actually called me on Saturday, told me he was going to commit and be a Longhorn. I guess that pushed me in the direction that I needed to go."

Moore actually plays tight end and some defensive end for Seminole, but the Longhorn staff is recruiting him exclusively as an offensive lineman. He has tremendous agility for a player his size, but knows he's going to need some time to add size and strength, and fine-tune his technique, before he's ready to contribute at the Division I level.

"I think what I do well is, I think I'm more agile than most. I play basketball and was an all-state basketball player, so I can move and my agility is pretty good," Moore said. "The thing is, out here (in West Texas), there's no 300-pound defensive linemen, so my size is overwhelming for other people and it's easy. I think what I need to work on is a whole lot of technique. My strength now and size now won't be enough when I get to the next level. My technique will have to be great."

With Texas set to hold summer camps in late May and early June, Moore said he'll be making a return trip to Austin very soon. When he does, he'll do some recruiting on the Longhorns' behalf. In the meantime, Moore is thrilled with his decision to be a Longhorn and he foresees big things in Texas' immediate future.

"Whenever I met with coach Herman, I could just tell he was a winner. He had that attitude, he brought in the energy. I could tell that Texas was about to be The University of Texas again, represent Texas football again. That really stood out to me," Moore said.

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