National Signing Day 2011: Christian Westerman Dumps Texas, Who'll Leave Next?
We've been waiting and waiting for the conclusion of the Christian Westerman saga. The offensive tackle/guard prospect verbally committed to Texas early in the process, but had rumored to be wavering like a sea-saw.
He visited Auburn late last fall and scrapped his scheduled visit to USC this month. Westerman finally bolted from Texas and committed to Auburn today. Texas has one of the very elite recruiting classes set to be locked in on National Signing Day, yet could there be more departures on the way?
Let's see.
Westerman Goes From Texas To Tigers
1 of 5
Westerman had long been rumored and pretty much expected to de-commit from Texas for months. The speculation was not a matter of if, but more so where he would end up.
He really liked USC, scheduled a visit to Troy but never actually took the trip. In the end he decided that Auburn was the best place for him, pledging to the champs today.
Longhorn Class Outlook
2 of 5
Commits: 22
Five star commits: 1
Four star commits: 15
Clearly the class starts and ends with Malcolm Brown, the nation's top running back. Yet Brown is not the only star slated to sign with Texas, as players like linebacker Steve Edmond, receiver Jaxon Shipley, defensive back Quandre Diggs and guard Sedrick Flowers are in the fold.
Jermauria Rasco, a defensive end out of Louisiana, is also considering Texas.
Could Edmond Bolt For Florida?
3 of 5
Edmond was being recruited by former defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, who left Austin to become Florida's new head coach.
Muschamp ran the defensive recruiting board for Texas and coordinated the defense with players that fit his system. Edmond was one of those players and surely Muschamp had to gauge Edmond's interest in coming to play for him in Gainesville.
Rest assured Longhorn fans, Edmond looks to be solid in his commitment to Texas.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Cochran and Flowers To Follow Westerman Out?
4 of 5
Josh Cochran and Sedrick Flowers are the top two offensive line recruits in Texas' incoming recruiting class.
Texas and Mack Brown has gone through some coaching changes within the staff after a disappointing 5-7 season. In comes Bryan Harsin from Boise State as co-offensive coordinator and Major Applewhite was also elevated to co-offensive coordinator as well.
A key change has been the resignation of offensive line coach Mac McWhorter, yet it looks like right now Cochran and Flowers are not going anywhere.
Texas' Recruiting Strategy
5 of 5
Westerman's de-commitment is still a surprise from the standpoint of almost no Texas commit ever de-commits from the Longhorns. A key variable with Westerman is he didn't play high school ball in Texas.
UT mainly only recruits within the state. They feel there are more than enough talented players within Texas to compete for Big 12 conference championships ad national titles year in and year out. They get players from within the state who grew up rooting for and aspiring to play at UT, so when they commit to the Longhorn program, they're as solid as can be.
Texas starts recruiting players in their sophomore and junior seasons. Then after signing day of incoming recruiting class, they host a "Junior Day" event by bringing in the top juniors in Texas for unofficial visits and offer them scholarships. This is where they get a bulk of their commitments for the next year's class and usually finish up recruiting by the start of training camp. Texas recruits one year ahead of everyone else.
Mack Brown isn't sweating over losing any other recruits. A Longhorn de-commitment like Westerman's is pretty much an aberration.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
