4-Star QB Sam Ehlinger Trains with Future Rivals, Says Texas Is 'On Its Way Up'
Quarterback Sam Ehlinger refused to allow his pursuit of a shot at national Elite 11 MVP end in Texas.
After walking away from regional action April 3 in Houston without an invitation to attend Elite 11 finals, the Lone Star State standout set sights on a cross-country journey. Ehlinger, a Texas Longhorns commit from nearby Westlake High School, traveled alongside his mother to New Jersey last weekend and did his best to prove he belongs among America's premier passers.
"There's nothing better than competing against the best, so I wouldn't want to miss out on that opportunity," he told Bleacher Report.
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Far away from home, throwing to a wide receiver group made up of complete strangers, the 6'1 ½", 215-pound gunslinger got it done:
"He built on a good performance in Houston and looked even better today," Student Sports president of sports Brian Stumpf said Sunday after extending the invitation.
Ehlinger will be joined in Los Angeles by 23 contemporaries who also aim to stake their claim as top quarterback prospect. He recently spent time training with two of those competitors, working under the tutelage of acclaimed quarterback coach Steve Clarkson.
Fellow coveted recruits Tate Martell and Shawn Robinson joined Ehlinger for the action, placing three of the country's finest offensive prospects in one drill:
Ehlinger is rated No. 6 nationally among dual-threat quarterbacks in 247Sports composite rankings. Martell and Robinson sit at No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, on that list.
"It's awesome for the top dual-threat guys to get together, become good friends, compete and make each other better," Ehlinger said. "That's exactly what we did. I got to know them pretty well and they're really cool guys. I think that kind of experience pushes us all to improve."
Robinson is committed to TCU, a Big 12 opponent of Texas. Martell spent the past nine months pledged to Texas A&M but reopened his recruitment May 4 and will consider several suitors moving forward.
Given the potential of each passer and a high level of fanfare surrounding their recruitments, it wouldn't be a surprise to see this trio someday compete for postseason success and personal awards.
Ehlinger understands everything changes at kickoff regardless of the rapport they've established as high school stars.
"We're friends now and the goal is to help make each other more prepared for college," he said. "But once we get on opposite sides of the field, we're not friends anymore. It's going to be fun."
Unless Martell lands in the Big 12—a development that appears highly improbable at this point—Ehlinger is far more likely to stare across the sidelines at Robinson. The Longhorns' past two matchups against TCU were mighty ugly, as the Horned Frogs outscored Texas by a combined score of 98-17 in lopsided victories.
Despite recent struggles in Austin, Ehlinger feels things are trending in the right direction for a team counting on young talent to deliver. Head coach Charlie Strong, carrying an 11-14 record through two seasons with the Longhorns, will face mounting pressure if his program fails to make strides in 2016.
"It's the University of Texas and nothing can take that away no matter what," Ehlinger said. "Once Coach Strong turns it around, we're going to be good for a long time. It's going to happen this year. People are going to start to see this team is on its way up."
Offensive efficiency has been a primary concern throughout Strong's tenure, particularly when it comes to the Longhorns passing attack. Texas collected just 4,350 passing yards (174 per game) during the past two years, with 23 total touchdown tosses and 17 interceptions.
Freshman Shane Buechele, an Elite 11 finalist last summer, enrolled early in Austin for spring practice and figures to be a major factor behind center for years to come. Ehlinger has monitored the young playmaker's progress and looks forward to fighting for reps.
"Shane is a great player," he said. "He's very accurate, has an outstanding arm and I'm just going to feel blessed to be able to compete against him. He's going to make me better, I'm going to make him better. I believe in myself and I believe in him. The best man is going to play and I want to play at the University of Texas. Whatever is going to make the program better is what they're going to do."
Ehlinger, who has been working to recruit other top Texas prospects to the Longhorns' 2017 recruiting class, believes challenges such as the Elite 11 put him in better position to chase opportunities down the line.
"You learn every time you come to one of these events," he sad. "I've applied what they taught me in Houston—relaxing my upper body, focusing on consistency with my feet—and I did better with it. That's always the goal."
Ehlinger, who also holds scholarship offers from Florida State and Houston, has dominated since taking over as starter at Westlake. He torched defenses for 6,133 passing yards, 2,082 rushing yards and 103 total touchdowns during his sophomore and junior campaigns.
"He's obviously been as productive as you could want from a high school player on the field," Stumpf said. "Combined with the physical talent he showed today, it was a no-brainer for us to include him in that final 24 for Elite 11 competition in June."
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