Not your average Joe
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Wide receiver Lorenzo Joe was the first commitment for the Texas Longhorns' 2014 class, giving the UT coaching staff a pledge on August 2, the same day he was officially offered. For Joe, committing to Texas was the realization of a lifelong dream and being the first member of UT's class is a privilege that Joe does not take lightly.
"That's a great honor, knowing I'm the first commit of that class," Joe said. "Every year, Texas has a big recruiting class. To be first, that's pretty awesome."
Over the weekend, Joe put in some extended time in Central Texas. He and his Abilene Cooper teammates played in Cedar Park on Friday night, and Joe made his way to Austin for the Longhorns' home game against New Mexico on Saturday. To make both stops happen, Joe had to put in some extra effort.
After leading Cooper to a hard-fought 17-14 win, Joe returned home with his teammates in the early morning hours of Saturday. After attending his team's film session on Saturday morning, Joe made the nearly four-hour trip back to Austin for the Longhorns' win over New Mexico. It was worth the effort for the 6-3, 183-pounder.
"It was a great experience to go out there and watch Texas play. I got to meet some of the guys in person," Joe said. "I talk to some of the guys over Twitter, but to meet them in person was good. I met a lot of recruits - Jake Raulerson, Jake Oliver, Torii Hunter. They're really cool people. Just sitting with them and talking football was really cool."
Before the Texas game started, Joe got a chance to talk with UT assistants Darrell Wyatt and Bo Davis. After the game was over, Joe had a chance to chat up Texas head coach Mack Brown.
"That was really a great experience," Joe said. "Seeing those guys on TV, then walking through the hall and they know your name, they talk about you're having a great year, that's just wild. It's always been a dream of mine."
Cooper now sits at 2-0 after Friday night's win over Cedar Park. Joe is slated to play wide receiver at Texas, but he's done his damage at quarterback this fall, making plays with his legs on zone read keepers. On Friday night, Joe rushed for 89 yards on 20 carries and completed 5 passes for 39 yards. It wasn't his best performance from a statistical performance, but Joe did a good job of managing the game and being a vocal leader during Cooper's last-second win (the team converted a field goal with no time left on the clock to claim a 3-point win).
"I've just been trying to do a good job of running the ball. If coach needs me to pass it, I'll complet ethe ball too. Whatever it takes to win," Joe said. "It was a really good game. We went in first half, came out strong. In the second half, we came out kind of flat. But we did a great job getting a team win and getting ready for district."
Joe ranks No. 33 on the 2014 Lone Star Recruiting Top 100. He's planning to return to Austin for the Longhorns' home game against West Virginia on October 6.