2015 Texas Longhorns football team

In 2014, first-year head coach Charlie Strong led the Texas Longhorns to a 6–7 record, including a 5–4 record in conference play and a 7–31 loss against Arkansas in the 2014 Texas Bowl. In the aftermath of the bowl game, Strong described it as well as a 10–48 loss to TCU a month prior an "embarrassment to the program" and stated that a competition between players for the quarterback position as well as other positions was needed to improve the team as a whole after quarterback Tyrone Swoopes received heavy criticism following the game.[1] On December 31, 2014, then-tight ends coach Bruce Chambers and wide receivers coach Les Koenning were released from their coaching duties. Bruce Chambers had been the only coach to have been retained following Charlie Strong's hire earlier in 2014.[2] On January 16, 2015, the Longhorns hired former Oklahoma wide receivers coach Jay Norvell to the same position at Texas. Norvell had been fired from Oklahoma earlier that month following the fallout from the 2014 Russell Athletic Bowl.[3]

On February 6, less than two days after National Signing Day, defensive-line coach Chris Rumph left Texas to coach the same position at the Florida Gators after just one season with the Longhorns.[4] A week later, Texas hired Brick Haley and Jeff Traylor to fill the team's coaching vacancies at the defensive-line and tight end. Haley was the defensive-line coach at LSU at the time of hire and had previously coached the same position with the Chicago Bears, Mississippi State, and several other schools.[5] Traylor was previously a 15-year head coach at Gilmer High School, where he amassed three state championship titles.[6]

A total of 28 players pledged non-binding commitments to the 2015 Texas Longhorns football team during the 2015 recruiting cycle.[7] However, these players would not officially become part of the team until they signed their National Letter of Intent on National Signing Day, which occurred on February 4, 2015.[8] However, junior college recruits could sign earlier, and as a result all three of Texas' junior college prospects signed their letters of intent on December 17, 2014 and became the first recruits to sign on the Longhorns' 2015 recruiting class.[9] Six players joined the Longhorns as early enrollees, meaning that they would be able to train with the team during the spring of 2015.[8] One player did not sign with the team and instead elected to grayshirt, meaning that they would not be officially part of the team or receive financial aid from the athletic department until the spring semester of 2016 (on August 7, 2015, after more scholarships became available, Merrick was offered an immediate full scholarship).[10][11] The first player to commit was offensive guard Patrick Vahe, who committed on July 28, 2013. Three commits came from a players in either junior or community colleges, while the rest came from high schools.[7]

Of Texas' 29 commitments, 14 were listed on the ESPN 300, which lists the 300 top recruiting prospects nationwide according to the network's metrics.[7] According to ESPN, Rivals.com, Scout.com, and 247Sports.com, linebacker Malik Jefferson was the Longhorns' highest rated prospect; Jefferson was considered the third best linebacker nationwide and fifth best prospect overall in Texas.[12] Three players announced their commitments to Texas at two nationally televised high school all-star games, including one at the 2015 Under Armour All-America Game held on January 2, 2015 and two from the 2015 US Army All-American Bowl held the following day.[13] Among Texas' recruits in 2015 were a group of five players from Florida who visited Texas in 2014 as they played West Virginia in Austin. Given the moniker of the "Florida Five", the five—Cecil Cherry, Devonaire Clarington, Davante Davis, Tim Irvin, and Gilbert Johnson—were heavily sought after during the recruiting process and were all eventually committed to Texas by January 4, 2015.[14] However, Tim Irvin would decommit from Texas on January 18[15] and Gilbert Johnson was unable to gain academic eligibility for The University of Texas.[16] Throughout the recruiting process, five players revoked their former Texas-commit status.[15][17][18][19] However, one recruit, John Burt, recommitted to Texas on January 26, 2015.[20]

Texas' 2015 recruiting class was ranked 9th, 12th, 7th, and 10th by ESPN, Rivals.com, Scout.com, and 247Sports.com, respectively. These rankings also placed Texas as having the best recruiting class in the Big 12 Conference.

Recruits

US college sports recruiting information for 2015 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Kris Boyd CB	Gilmer, Texas	Gilmer HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	182 lb (83 kg)	4.48	January 30, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 81
John Burt WR	Tallahassee, Florida	Lincoln HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	–	January 26, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 81
Cecil Cherry MLB	Lakeland, Florida	Victory Christian Academy	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	231 lb (105 kg)	–	December 15, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Devonaire Clarington TE	Miami, Florida	Booker T. Washington HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	224 lb (102 kg)	–	January 3, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 84
Davante Davis CB	Miami, Florida	Booker T. Washington HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	189 lb (86 kg)	–	January 1, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 81
DeShon Elliott S	Rockwall, Texas	Rockwall-Heath HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	204 lb (93 kg)	4.51	March 18, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 83
Breckyn Hager MLB	Austin, Texas	Westlake HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	213 lb (97 kg)	–	September 24, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 74
Holton Hill CB	Houston, Texas	Lamar HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	181 lb (82 kg)	4.62	January 30, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 82
Brandon Hodges OT	Aberdeen, Mississippi	East Mississippi CC	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	–	–
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
Tristian Houston HB	Houston, Texas	North Shore HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	198 lb (90 kg)	–	April 14, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 81
Malik Jefferson OLB	Mesquite, Texas	Poteet HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	217 lb (98 kg)	4.39	December 19, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 87
Gilbert Johnson WR	Homestead, Florida	Georgia Prep Sports Academy	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	193 lb (88 kg)	–	Jan 4, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 75
Kirk Johnson RB	San Jose, California	Valley Christian HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	–	April 17, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
Du'Vonta Lampkin DT	Houston, Texas	Cypress Falls HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	–	July 28, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
P. J. Locke S	Beaumont, Texas	Central HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	–	February 4, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
Kai Locksley ATH	Baltimore, Maryland	Gilman School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	–	February 4, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
Ronnie Major OT	Huntsville, Texas	Huntsville HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	–	February 22, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
DeAndre McNeal ATH	Mesquite, Texas	Poteet HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	212 lb (96 kg)	–	December 19, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
Matthew Merrick QB	Irving, Texas	Cistercian Preparatory	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	186 lb (84 kg)	–	November 21, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Ryan Newsome WR	Aledo, Texas	Aledo HS	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	4.5	Feb 4, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 82
Tristan Nickelson OT	League City, Texas	Navarro College	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	309 lb (140 kg)	–	November 8, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 74
Charles Omenihu DE	Rowlett, Texas	Rowlett HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	223 lb (101 kg)	–	February 24, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Garrett Thomas OT	Many, Louisiana	Many HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	308 lb (140 kg)	–	July 9, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
Cameron Townsend LB	Missouri City, Texas	Ridge Point HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	202 lb (92 kg)	–	October 26, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 80
Patrick Vahe OG	Euless, Texas	Trinity HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	296 lb (134 kg)	–	July 28, 2013
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 82
Quincer Vasser DE	Nyack, New York	Navarro College	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	264 lb (120 kg)	–	December 3, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Chris Warren III RB	Rockwall, Texas	Rockwall HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	–	Feb 4, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 83
Anthony Wheeler MLB	Dallas, Texas	Skyline HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	223 lb (101 kg)	–	January 2, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 84
Connor Williams OT	Coppell, Texas	Coppell HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	273 lb (124 kg)	–	September 4, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 8   Rivals: 13  247Sports: 11  ESPN: 7
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2015 Texas Football Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015. "Texas College Football Recruiting Commits (2015)". Scout.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015. "2015 Texas Longhorns Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015. "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015. "2015 Texas Football Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015.

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