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Part 3 of 3
Recruiting Roundup As a general rule, blue-chip recruits are scarce at 11:30 a.m. Longhorn games, but Saturday's 59-0 rout over Kansas was an exceptional day for top recruits to turn out. For starters, three top linebackers took their official visits to Texas. They are Michael Williams, 6-3, 220, 4.6, of Lindale; A. J. Nicholson, 6-2, 230, 4.5, of Mount Tabor HS in Winston Salem, N. C., and Rufus Alexander, 6-1, 210, 4.5, of Baton Rouge Christian Life. Texas needs to sign several linebackers this year. All three starters are seniors and their backups are mostly unproven. Williams and Alexander are speedy outside linebacker types who are top national recruits, and Nicholson is one of the top inside backers in the nation. I talked to all three of them after they returned home from their visits, and Williams, who has visited Texas, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Texas A&M, said he has pretty well narrowed his choices to the Longhorns and Sooners. He said he had a great time in Austin "and I really like the players and coaches." Nicholson said Texas is his top choice right now, but he said he plans to visit Miami and Florida State before making a decision. "I thought the facilities at Texas were incredible," he said, "and I really liked the coaches and players and everybody I met. Alexander said Texas is one of his top choices. "The players and coaches really get along together," he said. "It's like a big family." He said Texas and Alabama are his top two teams right now, and he said he will visit Alabama, Florida and Tennessee before making a decision. Eleven recruits off my 25-man "difference-maker" list were at the game. They are QB Vincent Young of Houston Madison, RB Albert Hardy of Galena Park, LB Marvin Byrdsong of Longview, TE Eric Winston of Midland Lee, WR Robert Timmons of Flower Mound Marcus, RB Paul Mosley of Austin Anderson, Athlete DaBryan Blanton of Forney and UT commitments DT Earl Anderson of San Marcos, LBs Garnet Smith of Arlington Lamar and Brian Robison of Splendora and OL Brett Valdez of Brownwood. Other top recruits at the game included DE Chase Pittman of Shreveport Evangel, a UT commitment and a national top 100 player; WR Anthony Wright of Klein Forest and WR Dustin Miksch of Round Rock Westwood, a UT pledge. Two top juniors who were there were QB Kris Heavner, 6-3, 200, 4.7, of Johnson City, and WR/DB Limas Sweed, 6-4, 190, 4.5, of Brenham. The Longhorns still have 16 commitments. Garnet Smith has firmed up his commitment and has stopped talking to the press, on orders from his father. Of the kids who came to the game other than the three who were on official visits and who have already been discussed, I think Texas has at least a 50-50 shot with Young, Hardy, Winston and Timmons. The Longhorns will sign between 25 and 27 players in February and most of the remaining 9-to-11 scholarships will go to recruits in an 18-member group that includes Young, Hardy, Winston, OLs Justin Blalock of Plano East and Tony Ugoh of Spring Westfield, DT/OG Kasey Studdard of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; DEs Bryan Pickryl of Jenks, Okla., Larry Dibbles of Lancaster and Travis Leitko of The Woodlands, DTs Rodrique Wright of Alief Hastings and Marco Martin of Mesquite; LBs Williams, Nicholson, Alexander and Aaron Harris of North Mesquite, and one of three WRS - Timmons, Wright or Biren Ealy of Cypress Falls. The Longhorns also are looking for a kicker who can boot the ball into the end zone consistently and will sign one if they can one who meets their needs. Of course, they probably will try to talk him into walking on first, but they'll probably come up with a scholarship if they find a great one. Horns Fifth in Both Polls Texas remained No. 5 in both major football polls this week. The Associated Press poll has Miami No. 1, Nebraska No. 2, Oklahoma No. 3 and Florida No. 4, while the USA Today/ESPN poll has Nebraska No. 1, Miami No. 2, Florida No. 3 and OU No. 4. Great Sprinter Commits to UT UT track coach Bubba Thornton is going to sign a great bunch of runners when the early national signing period begins Wednesday. The top recruit is Brendan Christian, an awesome sprinter at Austin Reagan, who is one of the top two or three prospects in the nation. Christian won the Class 4A 200 meter title in a Class 4A state record fully automatic time of 20.56 as a junior. He didn't run the 100 at the state meet because he anchored Reagan's 400 and 1,600 relay teams and UIL rules allow participation in only three running events for each individual. He anchored Reagan to second place in the 1,600 relay. He has run anchor legs in the 45.5 range on the 1,600 relay. Christian also won the National AAU 100 meter title in his age group in a fully automatic time of 10.3. He is a senior this year and says he is hoping to lower his state record in the 200 before heading to Texas for his college career. He also said he wants to run more 100 meters races. Thornton also has commitments from several other top sprinters and I'll have a full story on it in my next issue after they have signed their letters of intent. Horns Get Exhibition Win Sophomore forward Brian Boddicker had 21 points and seven rebounds to lead No. 23 Texas to a 122-72 victory against Alaska Anchorage in the Longhorns' exhibition opener Wednesday in the Erwin center. Sophomore swingman Brandon Mouton and sophomore guard Royal Ivey both scored 18 points. Senior forward Chris Owens had 13 points, six rebounds and two blocks in just 12 minutes of action. Sophomore forward James Thomas had 12 points and six rebounds, while fredshirt reshman center Jason Klotz added 11 points and a team-high nine boards. "I thought we were a little sloppy tonight," coach Rick Barnes said. "Defensively, we looked good. We did force some turnovers (29) and capitalized on them (40 points off turnovers). The effort and intensity they showed tonight was what we were looking for." Freshman T.J. Ford started alongside senior Fredie Williams in the Texas backcourt, and their defensive pressure caused problems for the Seawolves throughout the game. Ford finished with 12 assists against only two turnovers and a game-high six steals, while Williams added three thefts of his own. UT kicks off the 2001-02 regular season with a home game versus national power Arizona Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Erwin Center. Youngsters Lead Women Sophomore forward Stacy Stephens and freshman forward Heather Schreiber combined to score 28 points and pull down 29 rebounds to lead the Texas women's basketball team to an 80-67 win over Aabyhoej of Denmark in exhibition game action Thursday night at the Erwin Center. Led by Stephens, Schreiber, sophomore guard Kaira White with 14 points and senior forward Tracy Cook, who added 11 points and seven boards, Texas completely dominated inside play. The Horns outscored the Danish squad by a 52-12 margin in the paint. The Horns also controlled the boards, out-rebounding the visitors by a convincing 57-32 edge. Aabyhoej is the reigning Danish National Champion. This was the second and final exhibition game of the preseason for the Longhorns, who defeated the Australia Institute of Sport,71-64, in their other exhibition contest on November 1. Texas returns to action on Tuesday, Nov. 20 when the Longhorns open the regular season against BYU at 7 p.m. at the Erwin Center. "We still have lots of work to do, and we just made some mental errors, kept fouling and we put them on the free throw way too much," said head coach Jody Conradt. "We certainly ran the ball well and got some great looks, but didn't finish our plays on the offensive end, and that's a concern." The Perfect Christmas PresentFor Horns Who Have Everything Else - A Gift Subscription to True Orange and/or the E-Mail/Fax True Orange is the great gift you can give again and again. Sure beats Christmas shopping, birthday shopping or anniversary shopping. The only thing better is a gift of True Orange and the True Orange Fax - and you can give both for just $130 a year ($99 if they take both by e-mail). o I am enclosing $45 for a gift subscription ($35 e-mail) o I am enclosing $130 for a gift subscription to the newsletter and the fax ($99 e-mail) Name of Recipient Address (& fax no., if applicable) City, State, Zip Your Name Any Message You Want on Card Next Issue November 26 The next issue will be e-mailed on November 26, and will cover the regular season finale at Texas A&M and preview the Longhorns' post-season prospects. I'll also have a lot of recruiting news, as always, and reports on other Longhorn sports teams, including men's and women's basketball. Tell Your Friends About True Orange If you like True Orange, be sure and tell your Longhorn friends about it. I can always use more subscribers. The more subscribers I have, the more resources I have to call recruits and coaches and do all the other things that give you an inside view of Longhorn sports. Subscription Form I want to subscribe. I am enclosing $45 for the next year, which will include 26 issues. A two-year subscription is $85. For a one-year subscription via E-Mail, send $35. Name Street Address or Box Number or E-Mail Address City, State and Zip Code Remit to True Orange, P O Box 26530, Austin, TX 78755 Foreign Rates Available on Request. Phone 512-795-8536 E-Mail Address: truorange@aol.com Gift Subscription Form I want to give a gift subscription to True Orange. I am enclosing $45. Please send an appropriate gift card. For a gift subscription via E-Mail, send $35. Name of Person Receiving Gift Street Address or Box Number or E-Mail Address City, State and Zip Code Your Name
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