Longhorn great Cedric Griffin gives Jelani McDonald a strong recommendation
If Texas is looking for recommendations on football players, it’s entirely possible some of the best ones come from former players themselves.
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That’s what I thought of when I saw this Twitter post from former Longhorn and NFL veteran Cedric Griffin on Sunday.
Griffin, himself a former track standout and starting cornerback, was talking about Jelani McDonald, the Waco Connally three-sport star who signed with the Horns in the class of 2023.
It’s somewhat rare for a former player like Griffin to step out there and really be high on other players, especially young ones like McDonald. Why? Because these former players, they know the grind, they know the small things separate the great ones from the good ones and even further, the ones who never make an impact.
It’s why when Michael Griffin, the former Longhorn All-American and first-round NFL pick who is now a commentator for the Longhorn Network tells folks he sees possible first-round traits in Louisiana safety Derek Williams, it’s time to take note.
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Rarely do players as accomplished as the Griffins play up the abilities of mere high school players.
For that reason alone, it’ll be interesting to see just how McDonald and Williams develop on the 40 Acres.
McDonald was ranked by On3 as the No. 41 overall overall prospect, the No. 2 athlete, and the No. 7 player in Texas in the 2023 class.
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McDonald is not the only newcomer arriving in the next couple of weeks who was at the state track meet.
In an injury-filled spring campaign Aldine Eisenhower wide receiver Ryan Niblett finished sixth in the long jump at the state meet. Melissa offensive lineman Trevor Goosby finished fifth in the shot put. And McDonald finished fourth in the triple jump.
