THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Don’t get Jonathon Brooks riled up
Every time I look up, Texas running back commitment Jonathon Brooks is putting up big numbers. Last week, Brooks led his team to an undefeated district title with a 54-39 win over Hitchcock. In that game, Brooks rushed for 215 yards and 6 TDs on just 12 carries, and Hitchcock found out the hard way just how talented Brooks is in a chippy game that saw Brooks take out some frustration on one of his runs.
“I don’t really know what happened,” Brooks said of one play in particular, where he literally threw a Hitchcock defender out of the way on his way to the end zone. “The game was really scrappy, there was a little scuffle at one point. I was kind of mad and in the moment, I was really determined to score.”
On the season, Brooks has now rushed for 1,797 yards and 39 touchdowns on just 139 carries (12.92 ypc).
Away from the field, Brooks is a mild-mannered kid. When he steps between the lines, the switch seems to flip, as Hitchock found out, but Brooks said he’s just trying to take care of business to help his team win.
“When I get on the field, I just want to get my job done, just do what I can do,” Brooks said. “My in-game mentality, I get a little serious.”
Brooks remains solid with his Texas commitment, and said he likes what he’s seen from the UT run game of late. While he’s the main runner for his high school team, Brooks said he likes UT’s running-back-by-committee approach, with three backs all getting work.
“Me personally, in high school, I want the ball in my hands,” Books said. “In college, I’m just looking to do my part, get to the next level, compete with college athletes.”
Texas continues to recruit another back in the 2021 class, L.J. Johnson. If Texas is able to land the Rivals100 member, Brooks said he has no problem being part of a two-back class. In fact, he’s talked to Johnson to try to get him to commit to Texas. If Texas doesn’t land Johnson, Brooks is expecting to be the only back the Longhorns sign this year.
A few weeks ago, Oklahoma reached out to Brooks to gauge his interest. The Sooners touched base again on Sunday, and Brooks made it clear he’s not interested.
“They just texted me today,” Brooks said. “It was one of their recruiters, but I told them I’m 100 percent committed to Texas and they didn’t text me back.”
2. Texas is looking to add more defensive linemen to the 2021 class
A guy like Shemar Turner is going to be on the radar until he signs his letter of intent, but the UT staff continues to target some other options as well.
Late last week, Texas put a couple new offers on the table to prospects in Louisiana, including one to New Orleans Holy Cross product Barryn Sorrell.
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