Texas Football: Longhorns on Verge of Another Top Recruting Haul

The Texas Longhorns may be 13-12 over the last two seasons, but the Austin-based program is still a recruiting gold mine.

In 2011, Mack Brown hauled in a Top Five recruiting class (ranked third on Rivals.com and Scout.com), which featured players like Malcolm Brown, David Ash, Quandre Diggs and Joe Bergeron. All four will be cornerstones for Texas' rebuilding process.

One year later, Brown and his overhauled staff are in a position to seal yet another Top Five class (ranked second on Rivals.com and Scout.com) that may inject even more young talent into a program that is set on a BCS bid in the next few seasons.

The Longhorns record may be mediocre, but the Texas brand and reputation has hardly been tarnished.

Top Talent

The state of Texas is offers talent at a number of positions, and the 2012 class is no different. The Longhorns have gotten their fair share of top talent in the state. High school seniors have been lining up to earn an offer from one of the premier programs in the Big 12.

Headlining the class are players such as Johnathan Gray, Malcolm Brown, Cayleb Jones, Curtis Riser and Kennedy Estelle—all Top 100 players in the country.

In Gray, Texas will get one of the most explosive players to ever come through the program since Jamaal Charles. Many expect the Aledo product to fix in the role that Fozzy Whittaker played in Bryan Harsin's misdirection-heavy offensive system.

At the Under Armour All-America Game, Brown showed why he recently moved into star status in the class of 2012. With the lack of veteran presence at defensive tackle for Texas, Brown could potentially go into the summer with an opportunity to crack the two-deep and earn some early snaps.

Curtis Riser and Kennedy Estelle will add some much needed athleticism to an offensive line that is thin on experience. Though neither is in a position to claim perhaps even a backup spot, both provide some future insurance along a line that has struggled for the past few seasons. 

Athletes Galore

The athletes that Texas will be signing in only a few weeks may transform the type of production we will see from the Longhorns moving forward.

Jalen Overstreet, Orlando Thomas, Adrian Colbert and Kendall Sanders have not pledged themselves to either offense or defense. Many expect Thomas, Colbert and Sanders to end up in the defensive backfield under Duane Akina while Overstreet will get his shot at quarterback.

Per the usual, the Longhorns found themselves a nice haul of defensive backs who should develop like clockwork under Akina. The likes of Carrington Byndom, Quandre Diggs and Adrian Phillips will be holding down the fort, although we may not see these 2012 guys for a while. 

An Early Start

A handful of Texas' 2012 commits already have arrived on campus and are enrolled in classes, making them the freshest meat in the program.

The following players are expected to enroll early: quarterback Connor Brewer, offensive linemen Camrhon Hughes and JUCO transfer Donald Hawkins, defensive tackle JUCO transfer Brandon Moore, linebacker Alex de la Torre and cornerback Orlando Thomas.

These six players are just the tip of what will be yet another stellar recruiting class under Mack Brown. There are just a few weeks to go until signing day.

The nation's No. 2 ranked class may get better with prospects Dorial Green-Beckham, the top player in the country, and Mario Edwards signing with the Longhorns on National Signing Day.