4-Star QB Prospect Casey Thompson Commits to Texas

Texas is already feeling good about its 2018 recruiting class after quarterback Casey Thompson committed to the Longhorns. 

Thompson announced Thursday he's committing to Texas, citing new head coach Tom Herman as the biggest reason why.

“I just think he’s a great coach," Thompson told 247Sports' E.J. Holland. "His track record speaks for itself. Me and Coach Herman talk about every other day. We just have a really good relationship. He’s a great coach.”

Thompson is the No. 10 quarterback and No. 94 overall in the 2018 class, per Scout.com. Over the last three years, he has established himself as a dynamic dual-threat passer at Southmoore High School in Moore, Oklahoma.

His stats from 2014 to 2016 are below, courtesy of MaxPreps:

Season	Games	Passing Yards	Comp. %	TD	INT	Rush. Yards	Rush TD
2014	11	1,180	49.5	10	8	553	5
2015	11	2,670	61.6	32	4	1,011	20
2016	11	2,730	62.1	28	5	586	14

Scout.com lists Thompson at 6'0" and 184 pounds, which isn't an ideal size or a quarterback, especially one who's likely to take additional hits on the run. It shouldn't preclude him from having a prolific career with the Longhorns, though.

In his final year of college, the Wisconsin Badgers listed Russell Wilson at 5'11" and 210 pounds. Johnny Manziel was also only an inch taller during his time with the Texas A&M Aggies.

Unlike most mobile quarterbacks coming out of high school, accuracy isn't a significant issue for Thompson, as evidenced by his improvement in completion percentage at Southmoore.

ESPN.com's Gerry Hamilton shared a short clip of Thompson at Deion Sanders' Prime21 Camp last July. Thompson flashed good arm strength, but his technique will need a little work:

Given his height, Thompson will need to hold the ball a little higher when he's dropping back, or he'll be more susceptible to getting stripped by opposing pass-rushers.

On the whole, there's little not to like about Thompson, and he's the perfect kind of quarterback to run a spread offense—an increasingly important trait for high school QBs with the rise of the spread in college football.

One of Texas' problems in recent years has been an inability to find a talented quarterback—an inexplicable issue given both the Longhorns' prestige and the high volume of spread quarterbacks in the state.

In Shane Buechele, Texas finally found a capable passer who can help make the team a national title contender again. Buechele threw for 2,958 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions as a true freshman in 2016.

By the time Thompson arrives in Austin, Buechele will be a junior, and if his career progresses as expected, he'll be a possible first-round draft pick in 2019. Should Buechele bolt after his junior year, Thompson could potentially assume starting duties as a sophomore.