According to a report from the On3 network and later confirmed by the prospect himself, the Texas Longhorns are hosting Florida Gators defensive tackle commit Joseph Mbatchou for Saturday’s matchup against the UTSA Roadrunners in Austin.
“He’s going to be in Austin this weekend”@justinwells2424 says Gator DL commit Joseph Mbatchou is rising up the Texas d-line recruiting board
MORE: https://t.co/xVx7hB6aiu pic.twitter.com/e4Lq7ld3D1— Josh Newberg (@josh_newberg) September 11, 2024
Excited To Be At The University of Texas Today! @CoachCarswell @CoachTuftsJr @CoachK_Baker @CoachSB_4theG @TexasFootball @On3Recruits pic.twitter.com/ZXqOIBk0lW
— Joseph Mbatchou (@JoeMbatchou) September 14, 2024
The Loganville (Ga.) Grayson product who was born in Cameroon and recently took up football after focusing on basketball earlier in his high school career picked up his offer from the Longhorns back in the middle of August, several weeks after Mbatchou’s recruitment began to take off when he visited Gainesville and then committed to the Gators days later.
Since then, the 6’4.5, 280-pounder has seen his stock continue to rise, picking up offers from Auburn, Georgia, Alabama, USC, Tennessee, and LSU in recent weeks. Mbatchou’s official visit to Florida is currently set for November, but continued pursuit by Texas and the distinct possibility of continued on-field struggles by the Gators could influence those plans.
Mbatchou has also risen up the recruiting rankings, too — when the Horns offered, he was ranked outside the top 1,200 players nationally and the top 130 defensive linemen, but now he’s ranked No. 764 overall and No. 84 among defensive linemen in the 247Sports Composite rankings.
So although Mbatchou remains a raw prospect, the evaluation by Texas defensive line coach Kenny Baker continues to look more and more positive as the Longhorns emerge as a serious threat to flip the Cameroonian from the Gators.