The Longhorns, Aggies, and others remain in the battle for a load of Lone Star State talent.
As usual, the state of Texas features a bevy of talented players in the 2015 recruiting class. Even with the prevalence of early recruiting, the top two players in the state and five of the top 11 players overall in the 247Sports Composite rankings remain uncommitted.
Where will those players end up? While it's impossible to answer that question at this point, we can gain some understanding about where their recruitments stand.
Mesquite Poteet linebacker Malik Jefferson
6'3 | 215 pounds | ***** | No. 9 prospect nationally | No. 1 outside linebacker | No. 1 player in Texas
One of the top linebacker prospects to emerge from the state in recent years, Jefferson plans on making his decision on December 19 with his teammate, athlete DeAndre McNeal.
Before then, he's working on scheduling official visits to Texas and UCLA following a trip to College Station to see Texas A&M against Missouri. There was a report that the Aggies "hit a home run" with Jefferson, but the five-star sent out the following cryptic tweet last week:
My trip to A&M was great still nothing has changed in my process Due to misunderstood context no more interviews unless I've spoken with you
— Malik Jefferson 4⃣6⃣ (@Official_MalikJ) November 20, 2014
On Monday, he released a list of his top seven schools.
The prevalent thought with Jefferson is that he'll follow the wishes of his mother and remain in the state, but there's a chance that LSU could be making a surge after he took an official visit in early December. Recall that current Tiger safety Jamal Adams, another prospect from the Metroplex, ended up in Baton Rouge even though LSU wasn't high on his radar until the process was well advanced.
So Texas, Texas A&M, and Baylor remain the favorites, with the first two likely having a lead. Jefferson admitted in the spring that the Aggies were his leader before he backed away a bit to gain perspective. Since then, the industry has mostly been predicting Texas in his 247Sports Crystal Ball.
Will a growing relationship with Texas head coach Charlie Strong and an improving Longhorns defense win over the talented linebacker? Could a strong relationship with Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin overcome the imperiled job status of Aggie defensive coordinator Mark Snyder? Do Baylor and LSU have any type of shot?
247Sports Crystal Ball: Texas 52% | Texas A&M 42% | Baylor 2% | LSU 2%
Fort Bend Marshall cornerback Kendall Sheffield
6'0 | 181 pounds | ***** | No. 17 player nationally | No. 3 cornerback | No. 2 player in Texas
An elite coverage corner who won two state tiles in high hurdles in May, Sheffield looks destined for the SEC, with an outside shot that he could end up at Florida State.
Thought to be high on Texas A&M throughout, Sheffield hasn't revealed much, but his number of trips to College Station speaks to his interest in the Aggies -- he's been there twice this fall and was there three times in a month from August to September of 2013.
The dark horse favorite is Alabama, though LSU has also received two visits in recent months, while Sheffield hasn't made it to Tuscaloosa since the summer. He has two official visits remaining after traveling to Ohio State, USC, Florida State this fall and plans to finish up his final two free trips by going to Alabama and Texas A&M.
Unless the Seminoles emerge out of nowhere, the conference Sheffield will play in seems clear, but can anyone catch the Aggies? At this point that seems unlikely.
The talented prospect will announce at the Under Armour All-American game in early January.
247Sports Crystal Ball: Texas A&M 85% | Alabama 11% | Florida State 2%
Cedar Hill wide receiver Damarkus Lodge
6'3 | 190 pounds | ***** | No. 34 player nationally | No. 6 wide receiver | No. 7 player in Texas
After he emerged in the spring of 2013, the recruitment of Lodge has taken some twists.
HIs relationship with Texas wide receivers coach Darrell Wyatt had the Longhorns on the verge of receiving his commitment during the fall of 2013, but a poor Texas season gave the talented wide receiver some hesitation. Wyatt's ultimate firing sunk Texas.
By the time star Allen quarterback Kyler Murray committed to A&M in late May, Lodge wasn't far behind. Unfortunately for Texas A&M, Lodge had second thoughts and decommitted in the middle of September.
Since then, Lodge has taken official visits to USC and LSU along with unofficial visits to Ole Miss and TCU. The five-star pass catcher is a native of Mississippi, and the Rebels seem to have all the momentum since late September and especially after his visit to Oxford in early October.
Call Ole Miss the presumed leader. The Tigers are also a team to watch, since Lodge briefly named them as his leader during the spring, as well as the Bears, since there was the brief period following Lodge's decommitment from Texas A&M when Baylor was the hot school in his Crystal Ball.
And there was a post-visit bump for USC, as well, though it hasn't ever translated to any real belief that he would end up a Trojan.
Can the Bears continue landing top-flight in-state receivers, or will Lodge return home to Mississippi?
247Sports Crystal Ball: Ole Miss 41% | Baylor 29% | Texas A&M 20% | LSU 10%
Plano West running back Soso Jamabo
6'2.5 | 215 pounds | **** | No. 37 player nationally | No. 2 running back | No. 9 player in Texas
Like Lodge, the tall, athletic running back was considered a Texas lean early. However, a lack of contact from the new coaching staff likely played a bigger role in the widening of his recruitment, in marked contrast to Lodge, who lost interest in the Longhorns himself.
As a result, Jamabo's recruitment has been open, as four programs have trended for him at different times -- first Oklahoma, then Baylor, then Notre Dame, and now Texas A&M, though there has also been some recent momentum for UCLA.
Jamabo's recruitment has been as much of a mystery as any in the state. He's taken two of his official visits, to see the Fighting Irish in early September and to see the Bruins in October, leaving the talented basketball player three more opportunities for paid trips before Signing Day.
Can a school emerge from the group he is considering for an official visit, a group that now once again includes Texas?
More likely is one of the schools he has visited multiple times winning out, which may favor the Irish, a team he has seen play twice in the last two years and unofficial visited last summer.
And there may not be time for Jamabo to take all three visits before he makes his decision, as he wants to get it out of the way as quickly as possible now that his senior season is over following a loss to Euless Trinity.
247Sports Crystal Ball: Texas A&M 26% | Oklahoma 21% | Baylor 19% | Notre Dame 19% | Texas 2%
Rockwall running Chris Warren
6'2 | 232 pounds | **** | No. 85 player nationally | No. 10 running back | No. 11 player in Texas
A truly jumbo running back who played some defensive end at Rockwall in his younger days, Warren hasn't been active on the recruiting trail this fall. H's focused on his senior season, giving few interviews and putting off his official visits.
At the beginning of August he visited Stanford, where he was sold on the academics and his fit in the physical Cardinal offense, but his projections from the industry have revolved around Texas in recent months. He and his mother developed a good relationship with Strong during the spring.
Several weeks after the visit to Stanford, Warren released his top six -- Iowa, Oregon, Stanford, Texas, Texas Tech and Washington. The plan has been to take his official visits after the season, which would leave one of those out. Since he hasn't yet visited Iowa, but took unofficial trips to each of the other schools, it would make sense for him to make at least one to Iowa City.
And there are some differing offensive styles on that list -- more pro-style attacks in Iowa, Stanford, Texas, and Washington, and spread attacks in Oregon and Texas Tech. After his visits, which offense will he see as the best fit?
247Sports Crystal Ball: Texas 73% | Baylor 18% | Texas 5% | Washington 5%
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