Christian Westerman Switches Commitment from Texas Longhorns to Auburn Tigers

In a move that surprised very few, standout Chandler, Arizona offensive lineman Christian Westerman has switched his commitment from the University of Texas to the Auburn Tigers.

Westerman had reportedly been reconsidering his decision to play for the Texas Longhorns for some time, and had mentioned a strong relationship with current Auburn offensive line coach Jeff Grimes.

It was also suggested that one of the primary reasons that Texas suddenly became interested in Grimes was to ensure that Westerman would not jump ship, and would indeed be the focal point of a young and improving offensive line going forward.

When Texas was not able to secure Grimes as the new offensive line coach, it became immediately apparent that Westerman's switch to attend Auburn was all but inevitable.

The fact that Westerman was the only recruit from the much heralded 2011 class to decommit speaks volumes about the face-saving job that Mack Brown and the remaining staff members did in selling recruits on Texas in light of the recent coaching staff shakeups.

Malcolm Brown, the mega-talented running back from Cibolo Steele, was also a priority for the Longhorns and so far, his commitment has stayed intact in Austin.

Will any other recruits from the 2011 class follow Westerman's lead and begin to consider programs other than Texas? While it doesn't seem likely, it definitely could happen.

As anyone who follows collegiate sports recruiting knows, a person's word is only as good as the air it creates leaving their mouth, both from coaches and recruits.

It's just the nature of the recruiting game and the "what have you done for me lately" attitude that is ingrained in the process.