It feels like forever ago that linebacker Texas High linebacker Derrick Brown gave the Texas Longhorns a verbal commitment, when in fact it’s only been a couple months. Maybe it’s because Brown was leaning to Texas for a while before he ever committed. Maybe it’s because he’s been so pro-Texas ever since announcing his decision, but it feels like Brown is already fully entrenched in the Texas program.
One of the most active recruiters that the Longhorns have on their commitment list, Brown is in constant contact with the other members of the Texas recruiting class. He also reaches out to a number of uncommitted players on a regular basis to try to get them to join the fold.
“I want to be a number one recruiter. It’s Texas. What do you not like about Texas?,” Brown said. “If you went to the University of Texas, you’ll love everything.”
With the Longhorns riding a three-game winning streak, there’s an increased level of optimism among the Texas fan base on how the UT staff will be able to recruit moving forward. Keep stacking up wins and the top talent will head to Austin. For his part, Brown said he’ll be at the Texas-OU game next weekend and then the Horns’ home game against Oklahoma State the following week to try to entice others to add their names to the Texas commitment list.
“Honestly, I feel recruiting is about to get a whole lot better. All the commits are trying to make it to the Oklahoma State game,” Brown said. “We’ve got a lot of recruits coming to that game and we’re trying to get them all.
“I’m really excited. I’m willing to do anything to make our team better.”
Brown gave Texas a verbal commitment on July 31 after taking official visits to Texas, Texas Tech and Baylor. In the end, he said it was really an easy decision for him to commit to the Longhorns.
“I knew it was going to be Texas after the official visit,” Brown said. “When I took my visit to Texas, I just knew it.
“All the coaches (at Texas) are cool guys. They were telling me how they needed me, how they want me to be a Longhorn. You can’t turn that down.”
Brown and his Texas High teammates are off to a 4-0 start to the season. The 6-5, 210-pound Brown has flashed a little bit of everything in the early part of the season – including making plays on offense – and he said it’s that versatility that he believes will help him once he gets to Texas.
“I just feel like I’m leading the team, making sure everybody is on point, making sure everybody is executing at 100 percent,” Brown said. “I’m showing that I’m a whole different person. If you come see me play, you’re going to get a show. My strengths are that I can do a little bit of everything. For one, I can play multiple positions. Two, I can drop into coverage, I can pass rush and can play inside too.”
When he’s not working on his craft, Brown has been keeping a close eye on the Longhorns’ season. He’s thrilled to see Texas riding its current winning streak, but also said he’s not surprised at the current success.
“I’m expecting to see Texas come out on top. The way everyone is playing, they’ve been doing great getting the past few Ws,” Brown said. “I felt that they did well (against TCU). For it to be an away game, going into a different atmosphere and getting the win - my favorite thing in the game was Bijan (Robinson). What can I say? Bijan for Heisman.”
