Glad To Have You Back: DT Quincy Russell Recommits To Texas

The message is clear to football recruits who want to play their college ball at the University of Texas: Grab your seat now, while it's still there.

The Longhorns secured their 22nd commitment in the 2011 class when San Antonio Sam Houston DT Quincy Russell pledged to the Longhorns on Sunday. 

Russell initially committed to the Horns in April, then backed out only a day later, wishing to explore his other options.

In this situation the coaching staff will often stop recruiting a player, but because Russell handled the situation well, a spot was left open for him.

Only two months later, Russell committed to the Longhorns a second time, and becomes a vital member of the 2011 class. 

When Russell initially de-committed, Longhorn fans didn't have long to anguish over the decision—only two hours after news broke of the Russell de-commitment, fans received word that OT Christian Westerman, the top rated player in the state of  Arizona, had committed to Texas. The mixed emotions from that evening have now come full circle. 

With this commitment, the Longhorns have secured the top two defensive tackle prospects in the state of Texas for the second year in a row, based on rankings by Rivals.com.

Russell will join Desmond Jackson in the 2011 class, and Taylor Bible and Ashton Dorsey in the 2010 class, to comprise the best collection of young talent at the position in the state of Texas.

This commitment comes on the heels of another big commitment from CB Josh Turner last weekend, and leaves the Longhorns with very limited space in this class. Prior to the Longhorns first junior day, some predicted that the 2011 class wouldn't exceed 23 commitments, but with several top players still on the Longhorns radar, such as Malcolm Brown, Aaron Green and Austin Seferian-Jenkins, it wouldn't be too surprising if Texas decided to fill up this class to the 25 player limit, and let injuries and attrition take care of the rest.

And it's possible the numbers will be there. 

In just this past offseason, the Longhorns have had three players decide to transfer: Dan Buckner, Marcus Davis and Brandon Collins. In addition, tight end Blaine Irby is still in the process of recovering from a gruesome knee injury he suffered two years ago, and the possibility remains that he may never suit up for the Longhorns again. 

For the time being, it appears that the Longhorns have secured another outstanding recruiting class that will only improve moving forward.

If a few more highly-rated recruits hop on board, this class could very well surpass last season's in terms of talent, which few people thought would be possible before the recruiting cycle began. 

Numbers aside, Russell's commitment adds valuable depth at a position that's traditionally difficult to recruit. The Longhorns have now successfully addressed all of their needs in this class, with the exception of running back, and from the looks of it, it appears that need will be addressed as well when all is said and done.