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Johntay Cook commits to the Texas Longhorns

Joe Cookby:Joe Cook•06/29/22•

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Johntay Cook (Sam Spiegelman/On3)

One of the top receivers in the class of 2023 has made his decision. After taking a number of visits to places like Oxford, Tuscaloosa, Eugene, Baton Rouge, and College Station, DeSoto wide receiver Johntay Cook decided he wanted to play football in the capital city of his home state. Cook committed to Texas today, choosing the Longhorns over competing offers from Texas A&M, Michigan, Florida, Ole Miss, and Jackson State.

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The 6-foot-0, 171-pound receiver is ranked as the No. 32 overall prospect in the 2023 On3 Consensus. On3’s internal rankings listed him as the No. 36 overall prospect, the No. 6 wide receiver, and the No. 4 prospect in the state of Texas.

During his 2021 season, Cook caught 38 passes for 806 yards and 18 touchdowns. That followed up a 2020 season he caught 43 passes for 690 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Cook’s recruitment was one of the more hotly-contested battles between Steve Sarkisian and Jimbo Fisher. After seeing both campuses, as well as several others, Cook decided the place he wanted to be was in Sarkisian’s offense on the Forty Acres.

On3’s high school scouting summary

Smooth-moving receiver who is one of the better route-runners in the 2023 cycle. Shows the ability to tempo and toggle speeds within his routes. Can win at all levels of the field. Has long arms with a 6-foot-4 wing-span at 5-foot-11.5. The length helps create a large catch radius. Productive and efficient as a junior while facing top competition at one of the top talent-producing high school programs in Texas. Scored 18 touchdowns on just 38 receptions as a junior. Will need to continue improving on his reliability as a pass-catcher and eliminate concentration drops.

Excerpt from the Recruiting Notebook

Strengths: Well-proportioned athlete with room to add in upper and lower body. Excellent acceleration off the line with no false steps. Excellent balance with very little deceleration on change of direction. Effective against off, rolled up and press coverages.  Is on the defender quickly. Eye and pad level are excellent on fakes and double moves. Great route runner. Fluid in and out of his cuts and crisp body control. Exceptional change of direction and short-area quickness. Creates separation naturally and obviously well-coached on setting up defenders. Takes advantage of leverage repeatedly. Catching motion starts with soft hands away from his body and secures the ball quickly. Tracks the ball really well and catching motion is compact and quick enough to not give away the ball’s arrival to the defender. Competes for 50/50 balls with good explosion. Runs a variety of pass routes to all depths and zones. Experienced at both outside and inside positions in a well-coordinated and reasonably complex offense.  Will make significant yards after catch and is a threat from anywhere.

Areas for Improvement: Teammate film on run plays shows very little blocking. Some of this is by design to sell pass. Will need college S&C

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