Bru McCoy goes in depth on his recruitment

Bru McCoy (Joe Cook/IT)

SAN ANTONIO — With 22 signees inked into the class of 2019, the Texas staff can focus a ton of attention on its remaining unsigned targets.

One of the highest profile remaining targets is 2019 Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei WR Bru McCoy.

A brief reset on McCoy: He attends a high school known for sending players to Southern Cal. Three members of USC’s 2018 class, including current Trojan starting QB JT Daniels, were McCoy’s teammates at Mater Dei. His current QB at Mater Dei, Bryce Young, is a member of USC’s 2020 class. McCoy is the son of a former tight end and a former volleyball player at Northern Illinois. He took his official visit to Texas to see the Longhorns defeat USC, and took his official visit to USC the weekend of December 14th.

McCoy made it clear Thursday he has not signed his Letter of Intent, and still speaks with both Texas and USC staffs every day. He did say he knows where he’s going.

“I made my mind up before I came out here,” McCoy said after All-American Bowl practice Thursday. “I made a point to do that. My mind’s made up. I’m solid on where I’m going. Now, it’s weird trying to play the game, still playing both sides in my head. I know where I’m going.”

During the actual All-American Bowl on Saturday, McCoy plans to announce his decision on-air. Before he does that, he said he plans to inform both the Texas and USC staffs of his decision on Friday. Once he announces, there will be no wavering.

“It’s done,” McCoy said. “Just for my sake, my family’s sake, we’re going to shut it down regardless. Peace of mind, and just kill it there.”

He admitted it would be a difficult task because of the tight relationships he’s built with all the coaches who have recruited him.

“It’s pretty gut-wrenching,” McCoy said. “For me, relationships are pretty important and honesty. I made sure I developed good relationships. These dudes walked into my house and looked me in the eye. They told me some things. That’s respect. You earn a certain level of respect for each other, and especially the coaches from Texas. It’s like a long distance relationship. You’ve got a school in the backyard, and then we’re on the phone all the time just trying to keep that relationship just as strong.”

McCoy’s comments showed that while he is making this decision with football as part of the process, each university’s off-the-field connections and accomplishments are also of great importance .

“For me, I wasn’t even really looking at football when it came down to the nitty gritty of deciding my school,” McCoy said. “I was looking at where do these degrees branch off to and how can I market myself well enough to where if football doesn’t work out or I get injured or something happens, I can fall back and legitimately work a job. Try to really make my way in the world outside of football.”

For a California kid with an emphasis on education and his own brand, a USC degree obviously offers benefits. As a result, the Longhorn coaches tried to show what a Texas degree and education offered.

“They showed me if I were to be from Austin, Texas, this is the way I would perceive Texas the same way I would being from LA and looking at SC,” McCoy said. “They gave me that whole background. They helped me understand the whole alumni network, how much fan support there is, the amount of love the fans have for the school, how they support you outside of football, and how the city of Austin stand behind the school.”

The hire of Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator at USC is likely a boost for someone who wants to play WR at the next level, but has the elite skills and athleticism to play linebacker at a high level as well. Receivers put up big number in his air-raid offense, and several rated lower than McCoy have gone on to NFL success.

However, there have been reports this week that despite recently heading to Los Angeles, Kingsbury could be a candidate for NFL head coaching vacancies with the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals.

That said, even if the current Trojans OC were to become the former Trojans OC after McCoy announced his decision, it wouldn’t alter his choice.

“I can’t even think about it,” McCoy said “I’ve got to understand it’s a business. It could happen anywhere. You can never know what will happen. There’s always scandals and stuff. Things happen all the time. Like I said, most important is education, getting the degree, and setting myself up beyond football. I know I thrive on the football field. I’ve got to see the way I thrive off the football field. That’s what I’m really going to college for.”

As far as whether or not he’ll sign, McCoy said he possibly could just enroll at the school he chooses. He said he hasn’t signed a Letter of Intent, any financial paperwork, or anything. The coaches from both staffs are on board with that.

“I’ve talked to both sides about it, and they’ve both said you can just enroll and we’ll figure that out once you’re here,” McCoy said. “Just get here.”

So now, McCoy will fulfill his final responsibilities as a high school athlete in the All-American Bowl before making his decision on NBC on Saturday.