The Texas Longhorns football program got a big jumpstart to its Class of 2021 recruiting class thanks to a pair of rapid fire commitments. In the span of 48 hours, the Longhorns landed both a four-star quarterback and offensive tackle.
Jalen Milroe, the new dual threat quarterback from Katy (Texas) Tompkins High School, came first, picking the Longhorns on Sunday. A top-three quarterback prospect and top-15 overall player in the state of Texas’ Class of 2021, per 247Sports, Milroe chose the Longhorns ahead of scholarship offers from Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Oregon, Texas A&M, Nebraska, Virginia Tech and Houston.
As one of the top quarterbacks in the Class of 2021 and one of the top players in the Houston area, Milroe is also seen as a potential influencer for other top prospects in the Houston area.
In fact, whether Milroe was at all responsible for it or not, it took just 48 hours for another athlete from Katy itself to join Tom Herman’s Class of 2021.
Four-star offensive tackle Hayden Conner, from crosstown Katy Taylor, picked the Longhorns rather than Arkansas, Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas A&M and even national powers like Georgia, LSU and Michigan.
Conner was apparently won over by a handful of different experiences he had while visiting the Texas campus in recent months and years, and a much less frequently cited factor: a passion for aerospace engineering. According to 247Sports, what Conner learned about Texas’ aerospace program helped convince him that Austin was the best fit for his future.
Now, combined with fellow four-star, wide receiver Quaydarius Davis of Dallas (Texas) Skyline, Conner and Milroe may help a number of other top prospects from inside the state border to decide that Texas is the right place for them.
